Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-11-03

to fly back upon touching the flesh. The
executioners held ii in both hands bringing
it down with noise like a pistol crack
uron one single spot. They never left
again they counted the strokes
aloud. In the first ten strokes there was nc
change of color, although the man howled
am groaned After the twenty-tifth the
flesh red. and at the end of the second
fifty it had turned black. When one hun
bred and twenty-five were reached it was
bleeding slightly, the black line having ex
tended out to a ring about the size OF your
palm At the end the flesh to the depth OF
an inch was jelly.
Criminals Must Confess.
By Chinese law no criminal can be pun
ished until he has confessed his guilt. This
causes all sorts of tortures. The Inquisi-
ton was mild in comparison with the Chi
nese courts of the present. I once saw an
alleged pirate brought into the native court
al Annoy. The man protested his innocence
He had been SO tortured that he was
not able to walk and he was carried in a
basket. He had an iron chain about mis-
neck and another about his feet and hands
He was spilled out of the basket upon the
floor in front of the judge. His chains were
taken off and he was assisted to his knees.
The judge asked him if he We're guilty. He
replied, No" and he was ordered away fer
more torture
Three policemen then dragged him to the
side of the court. room They took bench
much like a carpenters sawhorse-and.
forcing him upon his knees, put this saw
horse against him that the board of The
bench rested against his back between the
shoulders. There was a hole in the top of
the board Through this his queue was
pulled and his head tied by it tight against
the board so that his neck was stretched to
its utmost. His arms We're bent back and
tied to the upper legs of the horse. The man
was oarefooted. The officials pulled up his
wide pantaloons to the thighs and, bending
his legs, tied them to the upper legs
Of the horse by strings fastened
around his big toes, SO that the whole
weight of his body rested on his bare knees
on the stone. Now an iron chain with rag
ged links as sharp as though filed was coil
ed UP and put under his bare knees. He
was then told that he would be let down
when he confessed. l cannot describe the
torture. The mans eyes almost started
from their sockets his face twitched and
his moaning made me sick.
4 Tortured Pirate.
Here is another pen picture as took it in
the native court at Canton few weeks ago
1 give the notes just as l wrote them Il
am in Chinese court room. a yellowfaced
judge in a gorgeous gown, with a peacock
feather in his cap sits behind a red-covered
table. Beside him clerks in silks and
satins- The officers of the court, dressed in
livery with tall sugar-lOaf hats, stand
dbpul Win ISL uIiltlltS VI lOIluEe III their
hands.
The floor is of stone and upon the cold
granite in front of the bench upon his bare
knees is a Chinese criminal. His arms are
stretched out al right angles to his body
They are bound by ropes, twisted round
and round them, to long bar which rests
upon his shoulders just back of the neck
throwing his yellow agoniZed face to the
front. The bar is fastened to uprights on
each side, and it serves as a frame to keep
the man in position and prevent him from
falling if he should faint. His head is tied
to the bar by his queue.
Now, at the direction of the Judge two
of the court officials take a round stick
eight feet long and of the thickness of a
telegraph pole. They lay 1t down upon the
mans legs just back of the knees. They
then catch hold of the bar to which the
criminals arms are fastened and step with