The Irish standard., 1912-12-14

British soldiers to strip the women Of
the neighborhood naked and toss them
in a blanket. We extract the follow
ing account of one of these outrages,
as given in the "History Of the Bar
ony of Gaultier," now appearing in the
"Waterford News" 1t is only one of
many similar instances, but it gives
us a true, but horrible insight into
the inhuman and depraved character
of the ascendancy class, even of the
so-called gentleWoman the grand
mothers of the squires and squireens
who call themselves the Irish aristoc.
racy:
In Watty Cox's Irish Magazine for
February, 1915, there is a vivid ac-
count OF the 'blanketing' of Mrs.
O'Neill at Geneva Barracks in 1898.
This lady had travelled all the way
from the County Antrim to bid fare
well to her son who was imprisoned
i'll the barracks. BY bribing the SEN
tries she was permitted an interview,
but as soon as mother and son had
saluted each other she Was peremp-
torily ordered into the presence. of
Colonel Scott (g) and his wife who,
having subjected her to a rigid exam
ination handed her over to some
highlanders to be 'blanketed.' These
soldiers obtained a blanket, stripped
the woman stark naked, put her on
the blanket and then hoisted her up
into the air, whence she fell back into
the blanket, and the process was re-
pcated and kept UP for twenty min
utes. The inhabitants Of the sur
rounding district could see the naked
body repeatedly rising above the walls
of the barracks during this time.
when the woman found that she
was to be completely stripped she i'm
plorcd the soldiers to allow her to
wear such clothing as decency re-
CURED; this was permitted, but on
Colonel Scott and his wife putting in
an. appearance to watch the arnuse-
'ment,s tfi16' former vas SO much an
noyed at this departure from the usual
custom that with his sword he cut
the clothing off her.
"The performance having gratified
the company, the unfortunate woman
was allowed to be taken to a neigh
boring village, where she died next
day."
(g-Probably fictitious name, as
at that time it would have been dam
gerous to give the correct one.)
The violation of women, says Plow-
den, the English historian, "is univer-
sally allowed to have been exclusively
on the side of the military. "
1t has been boasted by officers of
rank that within large districts a
woman had not been left undefilcd; +;
and upon observation in answer, that
the sex must have been very comply
ing, the reply was that the bayonet
removed all squeamishness!"
The pitch cap torture has never
been ascribed to the Turks, it was
conceived and put into practice by
tho North Cork militia, an Orange
body officered by the great-grand-
fathers of the Cork gentlemen whom
O'Brien is SO anxious to conciliate.
Speaking of the fendish sergeant.
TON the Devil,' it's inventor, Will
liam Sampson whites in his MEM
oirs.'' of one OF this ruffian's varia :
tions of torture:
"As specimen Of his 'savoir faire,'
he cut off the hair of his (the vic
tim's) head very closely, put the sign
of the cross from the front to the
back and transversely from ear to
ear closer still; and probably pitch
cap not being in readiness, gunpow-
der was mixed through the hair,
which was then set on fire and the
shocking process repeated until every
atom of hair that remained could be
pulled out by the roots; and still a
burning candle was continually ap-
piled until the entire hair was COM
pletely singed away and the head left
totally and miserably blistered."
The pitch cap itself was cap of
linen, cotton or strong brown paper
besmeared inside with pitch, which
when we'll heated was compressed to
the victims head, until it cooled and
could not be pulled off without TAX
ins the scalp with it. More f1endish
still, these Orange miscreants not in
frequently set fire to the cap, and II
there was no one to extinzuish the
flaming pitch the victim died in fear
full agony.
In newspaper article we can only
give a few illustrations to prove that
Turkish atrOcitv has never s1Yrna eed