The Tacoma times. [volume] (Tacoma, Wash.) 1903-1949, 1904-08-22

bEINLl4N. aus. - 'N'A 49,
German medical man, DR.. Hans Mey-
err, who recently returned from the
island of Saghalien, publishes in the
weekly review, Die Welt, an account
of some of the horrors which he wit
messed there.
The island of Saghalien is off the
eastern coast of Siberia and is used
by the Russian government as con-
vict station, chiefly for political pris-
oners. The island is desolate, the
climate far more rigorous than that
of the mainland of Siberia and the
sufferings of the prisoners from nat
ural causes are thus intense. DIT.
Hans Meyer writes:
"The official regulations give the
officials power to punish numerous
trivial offenses committed by the
prisoners according to their discre-
ton. Er
"The knout is the commonest in
strument and it is used for every
trifling disregard of the rules. The
number of strokes varies from 20 to
100. The knout is a short, thick
stick, about one yard in length, with
leather thong also about yard in
length attached to it.
"Flogging is a punishment not so
frequently inflicted because it is in
describably cruel and barbarous.
witnessed a fiogging at Due in Sag
halien. A workman named Procher-
off, convicted of political conspiracy,
contrived to eXtricate himself from
his shackles and plunged into the sea
in the hope of being drowned. He
was captured and the governor or
dered 80 strokes with the cat-o'-nine
tails. The cat is a whip OF nine
thongs knotted at the ends.
ION the morning on which Pro-
cheroff was to be logged, the gov
ernor. the medical officer and my
self walked to the prison, where we
found Procheroff sitting between two
warders. Come into the Office and
strip. said the governor harshly. An
executioner, Tolstych, was standing
with barred arms. He was murder
err who had been sentenced to lifelong
penal servitude for brutally slaugh-
tering his own wife. He seized Pro-
cheroff stripped him naked and then
placed him on a bench, afterwards
strapping him down tightly with his
face toward the ground. Stepping
back, Tolstych grasped the instru-
ment of torture and delivered the
first stroke. The nine thongs came
down on Procheroff's bare back with
a sickening thud,
one, counted the governor with
impressive features.
"Procheroff' face assumed a look
of agony, convulsive shivers shook
his frame, and sounds of pain, re-
sembling the whines of a tortured
dog, became audible to us.
Two, counted the governor.
"The perspiration streamed down
Procheroff's face and the veins of
his neck and forehead swelled as
though they would burst. After five
strokes, which really equalled As,
owing to the nine thongs, Procher-
offs back was covered with red and
blue stripes and with fearful swell
ings. After the sixth stroke these
swellings began to burst at every
blow. We could see the skin crack
ing and the blood flowing from the
lacerated flesh. Mercy shrieked
Procheroff.
"After the twentieth, Prooheroff
began to weep Historically, crying,
j am miSeraDle sinner. l am dy-
ing. Mercy, Mercy! What have
done to deserve this? oh, Godi
what have done to deserve such tor
ture?'
Z" Thirty, counted the governor,
as impassive as ever. Procheroff s
neck swelled more and more till 1
thought the blood vessels would GER
tainly break out and release the man
from pain forever. At last no artic-
ulation left his mouth, but he contin-
ued to moan and shrek and groan
and whine, sometimes breaking into
roar like that of wild beast in
pain.
1T seemed to me that years had
elapsed since the beginning of the
logging. 'Forty-two,' counted the
governor. It vac LONG way to 90
went out of the court yard, trem-
bling in every limb, but Procheroff's
cries pierced my ears as though I
were standing close to him. l re-
turned to the court yard. Seventy
Ave- counted the governor, with