The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1900-08-12

ably he enjoyed the good show ,n i,
the last and considered himself for
tunate to have been allowed the entar-
tainment OF sneing his companions ex-
ecuted.
Some OF the heads were chonned
on evenly, leaving little stumps at,
tached; others were cut off close no
hihd the ears, but one OF them was
siieed or at a slant angle. The GRIM
maj before him had just been executed
anu MS feet were still Kicking about
and his body writhing. AS the exc
cuuoner rnised his ak the man who
was being executed turned his head
with ,ieisnrely curiosity, to observe the
death throes Of the former victim inst
as the ak fell, SO his own head was
sliced or smoothly. but in such a man.
ner that it would have to be set upon
. steep incline to bring the face level
Later relatives and close friends came
anu carried away the heads of the
criminals. dangling them by means of
the cues. The bodies were consid-
cred less important and were left to
the hoodlums
More horrible even than the pirate
execution was that of two innocent
women. We did not see the execution.
but came along two days later in time
TO observe what was left of the bodies
hanging by ropes to rough wooden
crosses. man had died, and 1t was
thought he bad been poisoned. His
wife and his sister were accused of the
murder. and the Chinese trial was pro-
ceeded with. instruments of torture
were brought, the principal one being
contrivance for crushing the ankles.
Two hard blocks, screwed tightly to-
gether at one end and the other ends
held loosely with a long screw, were
put around the women's ankles. Then
the screw was slowly tightened, crush
ing the ankle bone in an excruciatins
grip. Tighter and tighter the merciless
blocks gripped, the women screaming
and protesting their innocence, and
when it was no longer bearable they
cried out that they were guilty. No
one in China is allowed to he punished
until he has confessed his crime, and
from the innocent and guilty alike con-
fessions are wrung by the cruel ankle
torture.
After the confession the women
were taken to the place of execution
and stripped nude. Their bodies were
tied upon the rough wooden crosses.
and the executioners began the process
| of cutting them with sharp knives. the
object being to make thousand cuts
hnfOPn t1n fat tal
| it were possible. Each joint of fingers
and toes was cut away. the limbs
were hacked. the ears clipped off in
dozen pieces, their faces slashed and
every atrocity imaginable committed
Throughout 1t all the executioner en-.
| deavOred to cause as much pain with
| as little danger rs possible. to pro
| long the life of the victim. the eyes
| being left uninjured until the moment
| of death approached, when they were
hacked out. Long before the thousand
cuts We're made the two delicate wcm
en- We're dead, but when we saw theil
bodies still hanging by ropes two days
| later it was sight of indescribable
horror. 1t is with 4OO,00O,OOO of sucf
fiends or foes capable of such barbar
tiles that the allied powers are now
trying to cope.
1T seems to me that to talk OF sub
DUNG such people by force of arm:
or any other way is arrant nonsense
l have seen so many horrible and un
speakable things in the course of m!
three visits to China that | have NJ
faith in any plan to put down thei
hideous rebellion. Whatever of Law
and order the Chinaman knows is bas
ed upon his own barbarian love of tor
ture. All about the different towns
may be seen cripples hobbling or drag
ging themselves around without fee
and otherwise mutilated. They ar
the ones who have withstood the an
kle screw and refused to confess t
crimes of which it will never be known
whether they were innocent or guilty.