MILITARY PUNISHMENTS IN THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC.

Western Star, Issue 932, 21 March 1885, Page 1 (Supplement)

MILITARY PUNISHMENTS IN THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC.

Here for the first lime I witnessed the military punishment known as “ staking out,” which was inflicted upon two soldiers for some act of insubordination. Each culprit was placed flat upon the ground with his face downwards, and his ankles and wrists fastened with wet thongs of raw hide to stakes driven securely in the ground, in which position he formed a rude imitation of the lei ter X. According as the thongs which bound him to the stakes dried, they became shorter, stretching the unfortunate victim’s arms and legs in a way which must have been exceedingly uncomforlable. If to this be added the extra torture inflicted by mosquitoes and the innumerable other biting and stinging insects which infest the country, it must be admitted that the punishment is one of great severity, especially when continued for any length of time, as it was on this occasion A soldier of the escort having been guilty of insubordination, was bound hand and foot with bis rifle passed over his arms and' beneath his knees. Nor was the punishment thus inflicted sufficient to restore his respect for discipline, as, smarting under his disgrace, he poured out a volley of abuse against his officer, threatening to murder him upon the first opportunity favourable for the purpose, an outburst of tempter he would have been wiser to control, for, instead of bringing him relief, it caused an addition to his punishment, as he was then gagged by a bayonet inserted crossways in his mouth like a horse’ B bit, and fastened behind his neck by a leather thong, so that he had no further opportunity of publicly declaring the schemes of vengeance he contemplated indulging in when set free.