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Punishment Of Slaves: Notes From The Journal Of "A Massachus...

Punishment Of Slaves: Notes From The Journal Of "A Massachus... image
Parent Issue
Day
5
Month
May
Year
1845
Copyright
Public Domain
OCR Text

The prornise made lo otir readers on the first page, whcn intmdticing {'A Weck il: Richniond," we are able to fuliil earlicr thnn we e.vpecled. The foliowing extract was ■rivon to us by v Massarhui-etlt; Clergyiuan,'' and isconirnendod to the epcci.il atteiuioi) of our readers. Our tiext i:urr.ber wil! contain another communicuüon fruin the tanie source. - Amer. Citizen.1 lus morniug I was awskened early by tiie cr.-icking of the wlup and the 6hrieklr.g of the victim. I arose liostily and looked into the back yard, where this operatinn had jusl been perfonned, for what ceii.-e I wüs not ub'e ío learn. I made some inquines of Ihe landlord about the correcliun of these elaves. flis reply was that "we usually send the.n to the w hipping post for correction. I have been ordered by the man of wiiom I hire mine, to have (hem wbipped there." The tnrmner of doing this business, stosendlhe oflending1 slave with a no'e, containinor asi-order for such a numbcrof lasbes, on the bnr? back, well laid on. At'ier I had breakrnsled, I had the curiusily, in tJotPjpany with n frièritf. to go and eee the modus operandi íjayeUT. - The placo Í visited was in the south east par; of the city, within a jail yard. Just as we arrived at the gate, two men wcre waiting for admi'tance; presenlly the door openH and wc were permitled to enter in witli ílicin. A1] wasstillas death, not a vord was spoken. - The poor fellows seemed to unclerstand perfectly well what was to be done, williout onc word. They haslily elripped off their clothes, and laid tliem on their market baskets, [for they were to go to market on their wnv back,] and then pbced their arms around íi large post, with iron clasps aro'ind their wristsand locked, and then the operation com menced. The instrument uscd was one of Lhe lar-est cow-Iiides, and the man [shá!l Isaj reaiij wuo useu u one or prodigiotis power. At cvery blow or cut [for it wns o cut literallv] iho skin and ilesh flew minglcd willi the ufe giving cut rent. And the pour victim ceased not to shriek bttween cvery lash, 'prnv massa,' 'please massa,' 'don't massa,' Sec. which scr-iricd only, fo far as we coiild ree, to enrage tle monster who was opplying the lash so efiectually - and dealing bÍB deotli blows with apparent delight. Uis wns a vig oroiis arm, and the order "to be well laid on.'' was fully obeyed. He not only obeyed frder6 to give thirty-nine, but exceeded orders by givintj forty-two in one insta:ice, ns I counted. And to thow his want of feclm;' when the last come, he waited a innmcnt to salher ip his strcnglli for a ihighty cfTrt - ai.d mighty t was, for he liteir.'ly buried hi.whip in Ihe flesh and gore. The men were now releneed and put on llieir clotlics olí in iheir blood, ond poseed out inío tlie t-ireef, es ihoogh Doihinp had iiapponed. As we were leaving the place I enw a iVmule who hnd been listening ouisido the witll to the stiück nid groans of one who she told ue was her Iiusband. Dtiring this ernel soene I ühnost foigo: tliat I was alive. My heart scenied to ceaso ils beating - :he currenl of lífe secmed to stand still- my eyes only were alive. In my rêverie, I doubled whether it was rcoliiy or o dream. I aslced the man who Ims the chirce ofthis placo, who is, as he infoimed me, n metnber of a Chriátian church. f he woulj sell me the whip with which the imape of God had been so strangely mulilated. He replied, "y ou may have it in welcome. Ii has not only torn the backs of ihose, bm of thousandi of men and womon before them.1' I have ploce'd the whip in my trunk, to preserve as a relie of t!ie barbarism of the pge. I trust in God I ehall live lo see the day wtiea thievvlnp wil] bo rcgarded as n relie of barbarii-m Riroughont llio entiru country. Jf Í do not, I will leave ita logocy to my or.ly darling boy. chnrging lm lo linie a syitem tTint wil! sufier Mich liiiigí.. "Thousands of otlicrs." But forthal crue] word, I vvould hope this liad bron n solilnry inslnncc. It is llie only one I biv. Gfiiernlly, I bnvosecn ihem wel' trentod. nnd spparcntly Imppy. ! atn soliafied ihe n nsoii we see no inore of the eurTcringH of llie r)vo on our visita South i?, becaii.-e we drj not pit oiirschca i llie places to see tt.- If wc sec il, vo musl go to iho places of 00rrecfion, J bc jai Is, lbo nuclions, r.nd on to the l'luntatioiis, etc., ele." lüchmond, V.. Marcii 2-2. 1845.

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Subjects
Old News
Signal of Liberty