The Wilmington daily Republican. (Wilmington, Del.) 1890-1902, 1896-10-12
HARA KIRI IN JAPAN.
4 TERRIBLE PUNISHMENT WHICH is
SELF INFLICTED.

ers nave SSen INC aeb-Ahe Sn1ei heE'
son why Japanese Adults or Children
Have No Fear of Death.
The act Of hara kiri was witnessed only
once, so far as records go, by foreigners
TWAS in February, 1863, The port OF Hio-
go (Kobe) had been opened 10 foreigners,
when party Of HiGen troops passed
through on their way to Kioto One of Tho
captains, Taxi Zenzamr 70, gave orders to
fire on the foreigners, and, although very
little damage was done, the act Was so
wahton and unprovoked that prompt and
4. rropurtlonato punishment Of the offender
was demanded, so that these promiscuous
attacks upon peaCeable foreigners might
cease. The government assented and Taxi
was ordered to commit seppuku by the
e1nperor's command, and that there might
be no mistake representatives of the for
eign powers were invited to be present at
the sickening drama
The time was set for 1890 p. M; the
place, the "hcndo " or main hall of the
Selftukni temt.o Of logo. Ito Shunske,
how his eAcellency Marquis Ito Hirobumi,
premier of the cabinet, but then provision
al governor Of Hiogo, had been ordered to
witness the punishment on the part Of the
government. Altogether there wee seven
kenshi, or witnesses, probably to CORE
spond In number with the foreigners de-
tailed to witness the act
The general opinion prevails that the
man about to commit hara kri dies by his
own hand. That is not So He is accompa-
MED by a kaishaku, a second, frequently
cI1nntn1 h17L ip,anlf f,n ri, ,,,,, A. 10
sword.
Taxi entered calmly and steadily but
without any brayado, dressed in his robes
of ceremony, and after bowling respectful
ly to the kenshi and foreign witnesses pro-
ceeded to the mats covered with rug Of
scarlet felt upon which lie squatted in q
respectful attitude, the knees and toes
touching the ground, but the body resting
upon the knees ana Slightly bending for
ward. He now declared that he alone was
responsible for the firing, speaking In
steady tone An assistant now brought q
tray, upon which rested wakizahi, or
poniard, 9h inches long, pointed and
sharp as a razor The condemned man
cook the weapon, after causing his clothes
to drop to his waist and, says an eyewit-
ness, "stabbing deeply below the waist on
the left hand side, drew the dirk slowly
across to the right side, and, turning it in
the wound gave slight cut upward. -
He now drew the dirk out and bent his
head forward, whereupon the kaishaku,
or second, who had been creuching on his
left hand, brandished his sword and at
one blow severed the head from the body.
1t was then certified to by the kenshi or
witnesses and the horrible drama closed.
This peculiar mode Of atonSment became
part Of the Japanese judicial system under
the Ashukaga rule, the third dynasty of
shoguns I336 1868 A. n :; 1t was a privi-
lege strictly reserved fo- the damo and
their armed retainers, the ssmurai, and
generally took place at night, the place Of
execution being either the yashiki lbaro-
NAL residencel or the adjoining garden,
according to the rank Of this sufferer
When lyeyasu founded the last dynasty of
shoguns, the house of Tokugawa, pom
derous code of ceremonial was instituted,
and as the young samurai grew up it was
an essential part of their education to be-
come familiar with ceremony in which
Mt any time they might be called upon to
take "a Leading part :bis accounts for the
courage and the contempt of death which
characterize the official class of Japanese
today and which evoked the admiration
Of the world in the Chinese. japanese war
especially at the siege and capture Of Wei
Hni-Wei.
If daimo Qeudal lord) were guilty of
conspiracy or rebellion, seppuku w&s the
only means TO avert confiscation and loss
of honor. If samurai we're guilty Of
crime he was condemned to hara kiri,
and his clan might be punished unless he
forestalled his doom by the ultimate cerc-
mony,
If samurai had been condemned, he
was delivered to one Of The feudal lords,
who had been previously requested to see
that the execution should take place with
due decorum Two tstamt lthick mats
about by feet, bound with white silk
were placed in the garden. ono lengthwiss
and the other OF right angles, In the form
of a hammer. They were then covered
with white silk, 6 feet long and feet
broad. while bamboo poles we've stuck in
the ground, also wrapped in white silk.
from which curtains would he hung, so as
TO screen the rordemned man from unD-
rited eyes. In front of the mats vas
bamboo portal framed somewhat after The
entrance to a temple The whole was sur
rounded by II picket fence in which two
openings had been left. This fence was IS
feet square
The condemned man entered by tho
opening at the north. called the umban
mon, or door Of the warm basin. - and
after bowling seated himself upon the mat
placed crosswise and facing north There
were usually three kaishaku (senonds),
who entered by the en6rance on the south
side, called shnSyio MOL, or door IT the
practice of virtue The first Of these kat
shaku crouched at the culpfit : left hand,
to decapitate the man who had
called upon him for this last act Of kind.
ness. And it shows the nerve If the Jap
anese that in almost every ease this man
was bound by ties Of kindred or friend
ship to him who was about to die The
duty of the second kaishaku WAS less oml.
nous. He had to bring the tray With the
dirk to be used In the dreadful act The
third kaishaku WAS TO pick up the head
lfter 1t had been severed from the body
and To show it to the officials representing
the government for Identification.
Brought to look with calnlness upon
or probability of departing
mo AiiS uiitti sum stANuSo tiC
'toical contempt of japanese children for
1ain and death Is easily explained for it
las happened that young boys IL years of
ige, having committed an act involving
lishonor upon their family, quietly and
;teadily proGtod by the lessons they had
and by seppuku ended their youth
III csrcer.-SpringGeld Republican
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Her uu 1t.
Say Biggs, l would give anything If |
lad your faculty Of making long story |
hort How can do 1t, for [ have IA good |
ne now"
"Send it to the editor OF . newspaper.
Detroit Free Press
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In 1912 Hamburg was burned; 4,21Q |
were destroyed, their estimated
'alue being $50, 900, 600; 100 lives were
Ist by falling walls and similar accidents
The era If Abraham began Oct l, Is. @.