Russian Civilization

The Londo Anti-Sluvcry Reponer copie from the Gazétte dez TH'nmaur. a terrible account of the punishment ofwhipping inflicted on twonty-ihree serfs in St. Petersburg, last Jamiary. They wcre the scrfs oL Count Poeiwitch, ond, under the impression that by & ukasc of the Emporor. certnin righta hnd become their due, tliey dcmanded thetn Jrom tlieir master. He refuaed ihem in a peremtory manner;and threatencil ihem wiih corporal punighment f ever they dnrcd to speak to him ngain nbout changing or iinproving beir condition. Aggravatod beyond measue, hey entered hts room nt night, took him from )is bed, and inilicicd n severe chastisement upon )im. They were immediaiely arrested, tricd according to the military code, and condemn d to pass four times betwecn the switches of )01 solidiers. The purtishment was thu8 desribed."On tho morrw, (Monduy,) enrly n.ihe moring, 500 infantry soldiers of the garrison of St. Petersburg, eacli armed vih a long osier switch. vere drawn up m a doublé line on the parade.- The twenty-threo sentenced persons were brought out, with fetter? on their hands and feet; the executioner i-ncovered the upper part of their body as far as the haunches; ho fixed a. bal] of lead in their mouths to hinder tliem from crymg out; and in tliis condition thcy passed. one by one, slowIy, each conducted by two attendunt soldiers, receiving at every step '.hey made two heavy blows with the switches on their back. which made their blood flow copiously, reddening the snow under their feet.Alter havmg fínishetl their long and melnncholy walk, they ere placed, nlmost dying. on handbarrojvs, and taken to one of the militnry hospitals of St. Petersburg, ia order to be cured; bu , ;is soon as ihey are a linie recovered. tiietr punishment is to be infiicted a eecond time, uniil they shnll have gone throiigh it four times, uccording to thesen tence." Heil iiself is noi more merciless than the