Indian Antiquary Vol 31

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 26

22
THE INDIAN ANTIQUARY.
(JANUARY, 1902.
being spikes and hooks; pieces of wood, head-pieces or helmets of tin of Flanders foil for the sake of the heat. Before the Portuguese came they had no bombards, only some made after the manner of the pots of Monto Mór, 10 a vain affair. None of the people may carry arms except they do it under pain of death. The men of arms may not carry them at home when they have done their daty, the mandarins give them to them so long as they serve nndor them : when this is finished they are collected at the house of the mandarin. They have wooden cross-bows.
The capital punishment 11 in the country of China. - The most cruel is putting one on the cross, where they take from him three thousand slices while he is alive, and afterwards open him and take out his pluck for the hangman to eat, and cut all in pieces and give it to the dogs that stand waiting for it. They give them shigle to eat in the case of captains of robbers, for whom they have a liking 16 The second is cutting off the head, the private members being cut off and put in the mouth, and the body divided into seven pieces. The third is cutting off the head at the back of the neck. The fourth is strangling. Those that are liable to less than death become men of arms of China in perpetuity to son, grandson and great-grandson, that is, one that belongs to Cantão they transfer to another province very [f. 115v] far off, and nevermore does he return to his own; there they serve as men of arms. These are the men of arms of China. From this they rise to be mandarin knights, of those whom I have mentioned above ten thousand, some banished in their life-time for a term of years, and those who have been banished they transfer to various provinces to serve in the houses of the mandarins and sweep and carry water, split wood, and to fulfil every other service of this kind, and to serve in works of the king and other services. The tortures are to fasten boot-trees for stretching busking one between the feet and two outside with cords, with which they torture their anklebones, and with mallets they strike the boot-trees, and sometimes break their ankle-bones, and sometimes the shin-bones of their legs, and they die in a day or two. And there is also the similar one with pieces of wood between the fingers and toes: these suffer pain but do not ran risk of their lives; they are, however, beaten on the legs, buttocks and the calves of the legs, and on the soles of the feet, and are given blows on the ankles. From these beatings many without number die ; and all great and small are tortured. They hold very strongly to onstom, and the people are ill-used, and no one writes a letter against the mandarin because he is of the gentry. The whip. is a large dry split cane of the thickness of a finger and of the breadth of the palm of the hand, and they put it in soak that it may hurt the more.17
Every person that has lands. -The whole country of China is divided ap into lots; they call each lot 18 quintei :10 it will be sowing land of four alqueire:30 of rice. Every husbandman is obliged to pay from this land of his a certain quantity of rice. Now they sow, then they do not; now today they have good sensons, then bad ones. When the seasons are not favorable they become poor, and sell their children in order to pay: if this is not sufficient, they sell the properties themselves. They are obliged, every person that has this acreage of land, to give certain persons for the service of the mandarins, or for each person twenty or wados. They
1. There are two small towns of this name in Portugal. - Monte Mór o Novo and Monte Mór o Velho. To the former, doubtless, are to be oredited the pots to contemptuously referred to by the writer, since the country around Brons in famed for its pottery. (I am indebted for this information to Sr. David Lopes.)
11 f. Mendoza, L, III, chap. xii; Goapar da Orus, ohap. II. Mid. King. I. p. 511 f. 11 This is the well-known ling chim, or Bioing punishment. See Mid. King. I. pp. 512, 516. 11 That is, the hangmen.
14. The pluck. To Wella Williams says (Mid. King. I p. 614),-" It is not anoommon for bim(the exeogtioner) toont out the Kallbladder of notorious robbon and sell it, to be eaten i specifio for courago."
* Cl. Gwpar da Oras in Parohu, Pig. IIL P. 189; Mondore, I. III. Chap. I; Mid. Ling. L p. 507.. 11 OJ. Guapar da Crus, in Parohes, Pilg. III. p. 188; Vendosa (Hak. Boc, ed.), L p. 180. * The orig. bas paroi, which is unintelligible, unless it bes copyist's error for parte. 19 Ohin ung ti or kay to plowed land.
* An alqueire, s dry merur 18 litros.