The Washington bee., 1899-07-08
TAKING THE OATH:
VARIOUS MErHors THAT PREVAIL IN
CERTAIN COUNTRIES.

In Some Instances Solemn and In Others
observation-disclosures for the Bible
Used in India-Tbe Terrible Norwegian
There is more than a touch Of the
| grotesque, as well as of the solemn, in
the modes of administering oaths in
certain countries. When a Cninaman
| swears to tell the truth he kneels down
and china saucer is given to him
This he proceeds to break in pieces
and the following oath is then admin
| istered: You shall tell the truth and
the whole truth. The saucer is cracked
and if you do not tell the truth your
soul will be cracked like the saucer"
Other symbolic variations of the
Chinese oath are the extinguishing of
candle, or cutting off of a cock g
head, the light Of the candle repre-
senting the witnesses soul and the fate
OF the cock symbclizing the fate Of q
| perjurer
In certain parts of India tigers and
lizards skins take the place of the
Bible Of Christian countries, and the
! penalty of breaking the oath is that in
one case the witness will become the
prey of tiger, aud in the other that
his body will be covered with scales
like lizards.
One of the most terrible of European
| oaths is that administered in Norweg-
ian courts of law. The prelude to the
oath proper is a long homily on the
sanctity of the OSth and the terrible
consequences of not keeping ii. Part
OF this lengthy sermon takes this form:
IF you swear a raise oath tie good
ness and mercy of God will not avail
you, but you will be punished etern-
ally in hell as perverse and hardened
sinner. If you swear falsely all your
possessions will be cursed; your land
and meadows, 50 that they will yield
you no fruit; your cattle and sheep
will be barren, and all that you enjoy
in this world will become O curse to
YOU"
When the witness is duly crushed by
the sense of his fearful responsibility,
the oath is administered, while he
holds aloft his thumb and fore and
middle fingers, as an emblem Of the
Trinity.
1t is little curious that the express
sion, "the truth, the whole truth and
nothing but the truth" in very slightly
varied forms, runs through almost all
the Oaths administered in European
courts.
In an Italian court the witness, with
his, right hand resting on an open
Bible, declares, II will swear to tell
the truth, the whole truth and nothing
but the truth
The Mohammedan takes the oath
with his forehead reverently resting
on the open Koran. He takes his
"bible' in his hands, and. STOPPING
low, as if in the presence OF higher
power. slowly bows his head until it
touches the book, which to him is in
splred. In the reverence of his acts
and the answering loyalty to an oath
many Europeans have much to learn
from follower Of Mohammed.
In certain parts Of Spain the witness
when taking an oath crosses the
thumb of one hand over the forefnger
of the other, and kissing this symbolic,
if primitive, cross. says, by this cross
l swear to tell the truth"
In the more usual form of admins.
tering the oath in Spain, the witness
kneels solemnly before the Bible and
places his right hand revenently upon
it. The Judge then asks him, 'Will
you swear. in the name of God and
His holy Book, to speak the truth in
answer to all questions that NAV be
asked your The witness answers. II
swear" The Judge then concludes,
IF you do this God will reward you."
An Austrian takes his oath in front
of crucifix, fianked by lighted can
IL
says, Il swear by the all powerful and
all wise God that l will speak the
whole and clean truth. anJ nothing
but the truth, in answer to any ques-
tiOns that may be asked in this court"