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Show PUNISHING ANIMALS. A New-England line Tried und Untiled for Witchcraft. Ill tho mlddlo ages tho lowor animals ani-mals worn frequently tried convicted, nnd punished for various offenses, savs All the Year Ilouiul. Mr. Baring-Gould has collected sumo curious cases of this kind. In ll'Gfi a pig was burned at Fontnnoy-aux-Uosus. near Paris for having eaten n child. In 138G ii judge at Fnlaiu condemned n sow to lie mutilated and hanged for n similar offense. of-fense. Thrro years later n horso was ol-unitily ol-unitily tried ueforu tho maglstrato nud condemned to death for baling killed a man. During tho fourtconth century oxen and cows might bo legally killed whenever when-ever taken iu tho net of niaiT.udlng.aud ases, for a first oflfunse. had one ear cropped; for a second ofTenco tho other ear. and if uftor this thoy ivoro asses enough to commit a third ofTonso their lives wuro made forfeit to the crown. Ctiminnl animals frequently expiated tlicir offenses, liko other malefactors, on tho gallows, but subsequently thoy wero summarilv killed without trial, nnd their owners mulcted iu heavy damages. In tho (If teen century it was popularly popu-larly bolioicd that cocks wero intimately inti-mately associated with witches, nml thoy wero somewhat credited with tho power of lajing accursed eggs, from which sprang winged sorpents. In 1474 nt Balo it cock was publicly accused ac-cused of having laid one of tho dreadful dread-ful eggs. Ho was tried, sentonecd to rlcath. and, together with tho egg, was buruud by thu executioner iu thu market-place amid a great concourso of people. In 1691, during tho witch persecutions perse-cutions iu Now Englnnd, a dog exhibited ex-hibited such strange symptoms of ulllictiou that ho was believed to liavu been ridden by a warlock and ho was accordingly hanged. Snails, llios, mice, tints, caterpillars, und other obnoxious ob-noxious cruaturos havo beon similarly proceeded against mostly in ecclesiastical ecclesias-tical courts. And. stranger still, in-animate in-animate objects have sulTurcd tho same fate. Iu lGS."i, when tho Protestant chapol nt Uochullo was condemned to bo demolished, de-molished, tho boll was publicly whipped whip-ped for having assisted heretics with lis tongue. Aftur being whipped it was c.itechls'ed, compelled to lec.int, and thou baptizod and hung up in a Horn an Catholic placo of worship. Probably similar absurdities may havo beon penetrated hi our own country, for it must borcmuinbcrd that only iu thu present reign w.is tho law repealed which mado a cart-wheel, sv trco, or a beast which had killed a man forfeit to thu stato for tho benefit of tho poor. It Inn! been cilil that punishment is not likely to bo clllca-clous clllca-clous unless it swiftly follows tho ofTensu. This was linpiovud on by n B.ubary Turk, who, whuuover ho bought a fresh Christian slaie, had him hung up by tho lieuls nnd bastinadoed, bastina-doed, on thu pilnclple, it Is supposed though tho application Is decidedly singular that pruvuutlou is better than cure. |
