The three prisoners that were brought with these additional forces,
constantly repining at their lot, and almost dead with their excessive
hard treatment, contrived at last to make their escape; but being far
from their own settlements, and not knowing the country, were soon after
met by some others of the tribes or nations at war with us, and brought
back to their diabolical masters, who greatly rejoiced at having them
again in their infernal power. The poor creatures, almost famished for
want of sustenance, having had none during the time of their elopement,
were no sooner in the clutches of the barbarians, than two of them were
tied to a tree, and a great fire made round them, where they remained
till they were terribly scorched and burnt, when one of the villains,
with his scalping knife, ripped open their bellies, took out their
entrails, and burnt them before their eyes, whilst the others were
cutting, piercing, and tearing the flesh from their breasts, hands,
arms, and legs, with red-hot irons, till they were dead. The third
unhappy victim was reserved a few hours longer, to be, if possible,
sacrificed in a more cruel manner. His arms were tied close to his body,
and a hole being dug deep enough for him to stand upright, he was put
therein, and earth rammed and beat in all round his body, up to the
neck, so that his head only appeared above the ground; they then scalped
him, and there let him remain for three or four hours in the greatest
agonies; after which they made a small fire near his head, causing him
to suffer the most excruciating torments imaginable, whilst the poor
creature could only cry for mercy in killing him immediately, for his
brains were boiling in his head. Inexorable to all his plaints, they
continued the fire, whilst, shocking to behold, his eyes gushed out of
their sockets; and such agonizing torments did the unhappy creature
suffer for near two hours, till he was quite dead! They then cut off his
head and buried it with the other bodies, my task being to dig the
graves, which, feeble and terrified as I was, the dread of suffering the
same fate enabled me to do. I shall not here take up the reader's time
in vainly attempting to describe what I felt on such an occasion, but
continue my narrative, as more equal to my abilities.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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