The Hope pioneer. [volume] (Hope, N.D.) 1882-1964, 1909-05-27
CRUELT|ES IN CHINA,
Torture Of Prisoners Carried to
Point of Refinement.
HOME OF THE WATER DEATH.

A Worse lnfliction Than That Of Being
Tied to Beam by the Thumbs and
Big Toes-Ths Rastinado and Floa-
slno With Split Bamboo.
China is a land of contradictions and
mysteries. 1t bristles with surprises.
The phlegmatic nature Of its natives
Is in marked contrast to their Inherent
cruelty.
"What poor, weak looking babyv'
you might say to Chinaman about
bis offspring, and he will merely shrug
his shoulders in reply. Meet him in a
months time and ask him how the
youngster is getting on.
1.-The disease was a fatal one" he
will answer, with another significant
shrug. If the child were girl you
could safely draw your own conclu-
sions as to its fate. John Chinaman
has no use for deformed or very sick
b children. particularly girls.
Torture Of prisoners has been car
ried to point Of refinement. One Of
the rlost terrible was surely the cage
In which man was placed so that his
head just protruded at the top, while
his toes only touched the ground suf-
6ciently to prevent dislocation of the
neck.
His hands were bound behind him
so that he could not relieve himself,
and he was left to be jeered at by the
public until hunger and exhaustion put
an end to his sufferings.
The day Of the bastinado, too, is by
no means over. The prisoner is strung
up In reverse condition, and the
naked soles of his feet are pounded
with cane, with the result that the
victim seldom RECEIVERS.
But the more common form of fog
ging Is to beat the thighs with the
concave side Of split bamboo, which
cuts at every stroke into the flesh.
China, by the way. was the home Of
that terrible death by water drops.
The victims head was placed on a
low hard, block, and drops Of water
at short intervals were allowed to fall
from height on to his forehead-a
far, far worse infiction than that Of
being tied to beam by the thumbs
and big toes.
The cangue is regarded as COM
paratively mild sort of punishment.
This consists Of wooden collar, about
four feet square and four inches thick,
which Is placed over the prisoners
head, 80 that it's full weight falls on
the shoulders.
A description Of the onense Is also
attached to the victims body, and as
he cannot feed himself he has to rely
on the public for sustenance.
Conservative to degree, it is not
surprising to find that the wheelbar-
row as passenger conveyance is still
in vogue, as, too, is the ferry, consist
ing Of light canoe, towed across the
water by number Of swimmers.
Machinery for the most part is de-
spised, and the mill, still used for win
moving the staple diet, rice, is Of the
simplest and most out Of date descrip-
ton possible.
The rice is placed In a cement basin,
over which Is a heavy stone at the end
Of long lever. This Is worked up and
down by two boards, in the form Of a
cross, attached to the axle Of huge
hand turned wheel.
For simplicity Of keeping city in
formed Of the time Canton would be
hard to beat In one of the temples
are four large earthen Jars on success
sive shelves.
Water descends by slow drops from
one to the other, a brass scale on a
noat In the bottom one indicating as 1t
rises the hour of the day.