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The Condition of the Whipped Man Dencribed to the Governor.Dr. W. F. Westmoreland, the principal physician of the penitentiary, made a written report to the Governor Friday in regard to the condition of the four men at Bingham's camp, who had been *o unmercifully and inhumanly whipped by C. C. Bingham, thy .superintendent and whippingboss.Dr. Westmoreland's report was on file in the executive office, and it is given below in its entirety.Atlanta, Aug. 26, 1887.To Hit Ej'ceUenlt;*y, John B. Gordon:Hia— In compliance with your order I visited, on yesterday, Aug. 25, the convict camp on the line of the Georgia Midland railroad, known as Binghams camp, and carefully examined the convicts that, hadbeen so brutally whipped just one week before. I only saw four of the six that had been reported to you by the principal keeper and assistant of the penitentiary, the other two, less severely whipped, was with the working squad, six or eight miles from the hospital. The four that I found in the hospital, ordered there the day before by the principal keeper of the penitentiary, were Hardy Mobley, William vSlaugbter, Cornelius Fowler and George Burney.Hardy Mobley I found very severely whipped, not only had the skin been denuded from both buttock to the extent of three inches or more in diameter, but on one side the contusion or bruising beneattr the skin was very severe as I found yesterday, a week after tiio whipping, the swelling and enduration the thickness of an inch and n half or more beneath the abraded skin. In addition ho had other marks of the lash.William Slaughter had the same denuded point over the buttocks, more extensive per-Iiai»s, but did not have the deep contusions or bruises as in the ea*e of Mobley. He, like Mobley, had other points of abraded skin, perhaps more numerous than Mobley.The other two. Cornelius Fowler andGeorge Burney, did Jnot have abrasions ofthe skin from the lash to the extent of the other two, but sufficiently extensive and severe to demonstrate that they had receivedan unmerciful whipping. Respectfully submitted, W. F. Westmoreland,Principal Physician to Penitentiary.The four convicts who were so inhumanly punished received the unmerciful chastisement on a Friday night, and notwithstanding the pain and exhaustion tluit naturally followcxl upon such an outrage, they wore nevertheless put to work, and were found at work when the penitentiary officers visited the camp Wednesday evening. The sufferings of the poor wretches must have loen intense, as their bruises, contusions and cuts were enough to send an ordinary man to bed for some days.
Newspaper Details
Savannah Morning News
Savannah, Georgia, US
Sun, Aug 28, 1887
Page 6
Full Page
Clipped by
Sharon C.
USA 08 Nov 2020
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