The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-09-17
The Catching" Torture Of Persia

That Persia is not a paradise for crirni-
nails has long been known, but few per-
sons have any conception as 10 the pre-
else manner in which evildcers are pun
ished
For ordinary crimes tho punishment IN
Persia is bodily mutilation- For his nrst
offense highway robber may lose soma
OF his fingers, for MS second he may lose
hand. and IL he is rash enough 10 COM
nit a third offence ne may be pretty GER
tain that one Of his eyes viii be souged
OUT Many persons are punished in this
way every year, and one OF the nrst
things that attracts the attention or for
eigners travelling in Persia is the num-
Der Of MANNED and half blind persons
whom they meet.
II prisoner viii not confess his wrong
doing he is punished with the baStinado.
His bare feet are tied TO a pole which IS
fixed TO two uprights. ard while in that
uncomfortable position he Is beaten on
the bare soles with long and heavy
stick few applications Of the stick
are usually sufficient 10 extract con-
fession of some sort. but If the prisoners
soles are exceptionally tough or hts spirit
Is unusually stubborn more severe msa-
sures are taken. Thus the assassin OF the
late Shah was not only oastinadoed. but
was also subjected to far more awful
tortures in the hope of wringing con-
fession from him
In case of serious crimes decapitation
Is the usual punishment The execution
er IS supposed TO hack the victims head
OF with sharp knife. but this he sell
dom does, preferring TO open two OF three
veins OF the throat with his knife and let
the condemned man bleed TO death.
On extraordinary occasions d9ath IS in
fiieted by catching" This most cruel
mode of punishment. after being in abey-
ance for nearly half a century. was re-
vived few years ago by the governor OF
Shiraz H. n. H Ruhkn-ed-Dowlsh. He
found that ever since the Shah's assass-
ination crime was increasing throughout
the country, and he resolved TO repress il
| by inflicting upon any notorious criminal
who might be caught one Of the most
horrible deaths lhat can be imagined.
When victim is to be 'gatche6" a hol-
| low pillar is erected over a hole about
two feet deep, and into this well the pris-
oner is put. sometimes with his head
downward, al others 18th his head stick
ing out OF the top. Plaster Of Paris is
| then emptied In. and between each
basketful water is poured down the we'll
AS a result the catch" swelis, and as
| IL hardens circulation of the blood Is
stopped, causing most intense agony. The
/ first victims selected by the governor for
this punishment met their death on May
! 10. 1895 They were five In number. and,
curiously enough. they were not notorious
criminals, at least in the American sense
OF the world, the sole charge against
them being that they had Failed TO pay
their taxes.
Chained together. neck to neck, the five
doomed men were led to the Koran Gate
near the Bagh-i-No, where the necessary
well had been prepared Round the neck
of the first man was a steel collar. with
a chain. which his guard held tightly IN
his hand. He. being the leader was 10
die before his fellows. and calmly he
waited during the half hour that was
spent in filing the well with catch"
Some one offered him a drink OF water
| from a pitcher while he waited and he
accepted It eagerly. Meanwhile a troop Of
| soldiers stood around in a circle. press
! ing back the eager and impetuous crowd.
When the five wells were ready the
prisoners were thrust into them. and. as
each minute passed. their agony became
greater. Slowly the catch" became solid.
and, as a consequence, piulessIy and
slowly the flow of their life blood was
checked. until finally they were tightly
encased, as it were. In a solid tomb.
Terrible were their sufferings during the
last half hour Persians almost always
meet death braveiy and stoically. but
there are some fortunes which no hu-
man being can endure. and OF such a na-
ture were those suffered by the five men
in this living tomb. An eyewitness says
that their yells were frightful. and that
even il they had been silent tho agony
stamped on their faces would have
shown how greatly they were suffering.