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13.

or their inflictions of that barbarous and cruel sentence. The commend was formed in a hollow square about the whipping post with the officers near the center. The prisoners were brought in, the orders were read aloud by the adjutant. The prisoners were stripped to the waist one by one in turn and tied to the post by the sergeant of the guard. The surgeon then examined each and if found able in his opinion to endure the infliction of the sentence taking position one side of the prisoner used a small rawhide whip about a yard long high in the air, the officer of the day counted out? the whip hummed through the air and creased? the back of the man with a purple streak with a drop of blood sometimes at the end of it, the adjutant tallied one underlined, the officer of the day counted two underlined and so on to the end, generally thirty odd blows. Some would endure the infliction with very little writhing and few groans--others would yell and squirm from the first blow. The surgeon forbade the whipping of one young prisoner with bright gleaming eyes but a deadly pallid face and he was returned to the guardhouse on two occasions. Those who had been whipped were turned out of the Service to the tune of the rogues march. These savage spectacles may have served to prevent desertions but they were sickening to witness. The officers came away from these scenes silent and depressed, some muttering curses on the regulations which compelled them to officiate at them.