The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-10-03
IT THE WHIPPING Posi-.
Tho Public Admitted to witness
Barbnrous Custom.
From the philadelphia Times.

Fron the Philadelphia Times.
NEW CASTLE, Sept. w tho narrowly
confined walls OF the historic old Jail yard, hvo
prisoners, four negroes and one white man,
were publicly whipped and pilloried to-day, re-
calling the barbarous days when tho thumb
screw and the rack were not uncommon means
Of punishment for crime. With the exception
Of one man. a negro, who had attempted to
teloniously assault a little girl, and who richly
deserved his fate, all the other culprits were
convicted on various counts, charging them
with petty larceny.
Following each quarterly session OF the Gen
eral Sessions Court of New Castle county there
40 usually a number of culprits condemned by
ne Judges TO the pil,ory and the lash. While
the offence for which some Of these prisoners
suffer is no greater than the larceny OF a pair Of
boots, or the ordinary case OF purloining a pock-
e,book or robbing a roost, the prisoner must un-
dergo the usual term o; imprisonment. and II
the Judge deems 1t an aggravated case the Dill.
Tory and tho cat =" are also added to his punish
ment.
In every instance, unless he is disabled by
sickness or death, the Sheriff must infiict the
corporal punishment, He has no alternative
but to obey the Courts directions. Usually tho
prisoner who is to be pilloried is brought out
first, and while the crowd of impatient people
gather about him and make all manner OF Jest
OF the man in the sto ks, the prisoner wriggles
and squirms at the post, Beating, a tattoo upon
make sure that life still holds his twisted and
distorted body together.
" tht ldTulltSSO VI CutTlH III IL.
Finn, who was detained at court in Wilmington,
the whippings, did not take place on schedule
time this morning. Usually the hour set for the
Nhippings Is IL O'Clock, and promptly at this
Tune the gate ts thrown open to admit the null
titude. Young men and young women elbowed
closure. while. not a few gr.y-haire: old men,
and even children. mingled with tho morbid
throng.
A few minutes after IL o'clock the door at the
end OF, the jail corridor opened. and a negro
walked side by side with Deputy Sheriff Conner.
Inc crowd OpenCd q DaSSayeway Tor the officer
and his prisoner. and as soon as the latter had
been cuffed to the post and stripped to the waist
OF his clothin the officer drew IA paper from his
pocket, at the same time calling out:
ward Winder. larceny. ten lashes."
lie had no sooner said this when Sheriff Finn,
level with his shoulder and brought 1t down
with terrific force upon the Negroes back.
When william Flamer, a tall. angular mulat-
TO. made, his appearance on the scene he was
hailed, with mingled jeers and curses. Flamer
had pleaded guilty to attempting to assault q
an !he piliory and thirty lashcs. sheriff Finn
had little mercy for the negro brute. He brought
the blows down upon the mans back with full
force, causing huge welts to appear upon tho
surface OF the skin.
John West got one hour in the pillory and
twenty lashes for robb ng the store, OF James
chcerfully. William Douldcn. another negro.
was eiveI, fifteen lashes for abstracting a pair
of chickens from a hen roost.
Harry Wilson, the only white man fogged,
was an old offender. He had been whipped once
for stealing a pair OF, shoes, another time for
taking a watch that did not belong to him, and
this time no got fifteen lHshcs for stealing a
pair OF fatirons. This ended the show, and tho
crowd dispersed.