Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-02-11

Associated with it as corrective measures
were the ducking stool for the lewd and
the iron Bride for Scolds. The church
and city records of England show how con-
StdEtly the post and the piliory-for the
two were usually found together-were in
Voked to perform their large share of legal
and restrictive duties In the reign OF
Henry VIII a famous whipping act was
passed, by which all Migrants were to be
whipped severely ''at the carts tayle until
their bodies become bloody by reason of
such whipping Certainly there could be
no fault found with that statute on the
ground that it was ambiguous. The enact
ment was in force nearly through the
reign of Queen Elizabeth, when the whip
ping post became the usual substitute of
the carts tayle." But from all contem-
pOraneous accounts 1t does not appear that
the force of the blows was whit lessened.
AS a good sound British institution, and
in order that there might be familiar and
hcmeiike surroundings in the new and
strange land, the whipping post was
promptly set up, and the nine-t honged lash
started to work, in all the American colo
MES. In an order sent over from England
for the government of the first settlement
at Salem whipping was prescribed in the
phrase, "correccOn is enjoined for the fooles
back Scourgings Were made feature of
the Sabbath and usually occurred on lee
ture days as well. From that time on the
whipping post was a leading feature of THE
system of punishments in the blue laws
of New England. In Boston in particular
the post was early in operation. The rec
OrdS of that city show that at the session
of the court on November 80 1890 one man
was sentenced to be whipped for stealing
half loaf of bread; another for swearing
on the Sabbath; another for leaving his
vessel without a 'pylott." For "stryking
his mother and derfding her. John Pease
was sentenced to be severely '.whipt.'
In 1881 an order of the general court OF
be whipt, his ears cut off, fined forty pounds
and banished out of the limits OF this Juris-
diction for uttering malicious and scan
dalous speeches against the government"
Strangely enough. the sentence was not ap-
proved of in London. although infinitely
worse punishments were carried out there
every day In the year. 1t was only In the
previous year, 1880, that John Taylour, the
water poet" wrote
I'm London and within a mile / ween
There gaols and prisons full fifteen,
And sixty whipping posts and stocks between"
1t is not of record that the sympathy OF
| the English people was received with graft
| tTde by the unfortunate Radcliffe, who had
| already received his laShes, and lost his
| ears and his citizenship.
| In Boston In 1913 pious regard for the
| Sabbath. IN appearance at least, was en-
| forced with the lash. Roger Scott, for RE
peated sleeping on the Lords day and for
| stryking the person who wakened him. -
vas sentenced to be severely whipped. The
| gift of prophecy was also subdued by STINT
| lar means about this time.
| Every week In Boston there were frest
! whippings, and forty lashes was the ordi
nary dose. The post was on the Boston
| Common near State street In revolutionary
| times. In iii Samuel Brock q resident OF
| Boston. who was evidently good dea
| ahead of his generation in his views with
| respect to this particular phase of eight
| zenith century civilization. wrote to friend
| In New York the following brief account OF
| his observations:
I 1.-THE large whipping post, painted red.
| stands conspicuously in the most public
| street of the town. It Is placed on State
| street, directly under the windows of the
| great writing school which I freauented,
| and from there the scholars We're INDUCED
| in the spectacle of all kinds of punishment
suited to harden their hearts and brutalize
| their feelings. Here women were takenin
a huge cage. in which they were dragged on
| wheels from the prison. and tied to the post
| with bare backs. on which thirty OF forty
| lashes were bestowed among the screams
| of the cuiprft and the uproar of the mob"
In New Haven. Conn, the city magis-
| trates were early In favor of the whipping
| post, and declared that stripes and whip
| pings is correct At and proper In some
/ cases, when the offense Is accompanied with
british or childish folly or rudeness, or
with stubborn insolvency or beastIy cruelty,