The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1894-06-21
NAILED TO A CROSS
The ExcrucieEing Experience Of q
German Adventure.
he ventures Among the Biood.hirsty
smsphot5Of Burmah and Is Nailed
IhrmSbfthe Hands and Feet
to q Cross.

tSus q tle t.1nSts anu Z Get
sh OFT time ago William Brede-
meyers Prussian by birth and min
Ing Spert by profession, died in Ia
com A. Ee was quiet, unobtrusive
sor OF chap. says the San Francisco
L faminer, and considered by those
Who knew him to be an everyday citi-
zen of the commonplace type. He died
of paralysis in the most orthodox way,
| but when the undertakers began to
prepare his body for burial they found
most curious scar upon his right hand
At one time there had been hole made
BY some sort of sharp instrument in the
palm, going in at one side and coming
out at the other There was some spec
ulation IN regard to its origin, when
suddenly one OF the undertaker's as
sistants uttered an exclamation of as
constituent and held up the deceased's
left hand There was precisely iden-
teal scar upon that also. Men do not
generally have bullet holes through
both hands, and Bredemeyer had also
similar scars upon each foot. The right
hand scar was not as long as the left
hand only by an inch. Both were be-
tween the bones of the thumb and
forefnger, in the thickest part of the
palm. The left hand scar was two and
one-half inches long, and on both sides
of the hands the scars set out like
mountain ranges, compared with the
size OF the hands, the serrated top
ridges Of the ugly marks being white
and smooth, like snow-capped peaks.
They were exactly like the marks of cru
cifixion, and little wonder, for crucifed
Bredemeyer had been, although he
had never told the story to anyone, and
the fact was unknown until Brede-
meyers record of his own life was
found among his papers after his death.
Bredemeyer wasia graduate of the
university of Bann and had qualified as
a member of the Prussian pioneer en-
gineer corps. That was in 1862. The
next year he entered tho Dutch-India
service as a mining engineer and ex-
pert, and advanced step by step in his
chosen profession until 1883, when the
king of BurInah made him chief engi-
neer Of the famous ruby mines in the
northern part of the country. Brede-
meyer had headquarters at Medea, In
the ruby mine district, where big sap
phires are also found. The mines are
jealously guarded and all the precious
stones belong to the king. From the
ruby and sapphire harvest the king
realizes from fifTy thousand to sew
enty-fve thousand dollars year.
North Of Medea, IN the lofty noun
tains, there were some ruby mines
which the king had not prospected for
various reasons. No white man had /
ever ventured into the mountains of !
the north, among the half-civilized. |
who, while partially recog- !
nizing the authority of the king, were /
unruly and barbaric. Thither the king
sent Bredemeyer.
His advent was the signal for great |
among the Singphos. They /
had never seen white man, and, not
Bredemeyer announced |
his mission under authority of the
king. the Singphos were not satisfied.
They decided to cruelty the white man
If he did not flee the country. A hand
full of soldiers were with Bredemeyer,
perhaps fifty all told, but then there
were three million five hundred thou
sand inhabitants. Bredemeyer refused
TO leave the country until he had
carried out the orders of the king. The
Singphos declared war. Bredemeyers
soldiers went into ambush, only to
the mining expert when the
natives swooped down upon them.
While soldiers were sc urryinG about
Tor reinforcements the IA tives nailed
Bredemeyer to a cross made of two
pieces of native oil wood. Before the
brutal work of mailing Bredemeyer to
he cross was finished he became
unconscious. The shock was
almost fatal. The last thing he dis
inctly remembered was the swarming
'ingphos, looking like devils, with
heir fat faces, broad skulls. straight
black hair, deep brown skins. When |
5redemeyer had been nailed to the
ross the natives prepared to raise it
md fastened the end nearest his feet
nto the ground. At that instant the
oldiers returned with reenforcements !
nd routed the natives Bredemeyer
ras carried back to Medea. The
rucifxion occurred at about noon. At
loon the next day his wounds were
ressed. The rainy season had not set
n and it was very warn and under the
conditions 1t was feared
angrene would set in. He was cared |
OF tenderly under directions from the ,
ing and being accustomed to great
he speedily recovered, but ;
ever again ventured into the land OF :
he Singphos-