the band of infamy is taken from his back, and the executioner, by a single blow of a two-handed sword, strikes off his head with great dexterity. These headsmen, and, indeed, the generality of inferior officers of justice in China, are selected from the soldiery according to the custom of primitive barbarians: neither is this employment considered more ignominious than the post of principal officer of executive justice in other countries. Decapi tion is held by the Chinese as the most disgraceful kind of death; because the head which is the principal part of a man, is separated from the body, and that body is not consigned to the grave as entire as he received it from his parents. If a great mandarin be convicted of any atrocious offence, he is executed in this manner like the meanest person. After the head is severed it is frequently suspended from a tree, by the side of a public road; the body is thrown into a ditch, the law having deemed it unworthy the respect of regular funeral rites.

Wh a sentence is submitted toe Emperor for his approbation, if the crime be of the first degree of atrocity, he orders the malefactor to be executed without delay: when it is only of an ordinary nature, he directs that the criminal shall be imprisoned until the autumn, and then executed : a particular day in that season being allotted for such ceremonies.

The Emperor of China seldom orders a subject to be executed until he has consulted with his first law officers, whether he can avoid it without infringing on the constitution of his realm. He fasts for a certain period previous to signing an order for an execution; and his imperial majesty esteems those years of his reign the most illustrious, and most fortunate,

fortunate, in which he has had the least occasion to let fall upon his subjects the rigorous sword of justice. Punishments of China.

In Turkey, and other countries, the head is struck off with a sabre. See PUNISHMENTS, TURKISH.

In England decapitation is reckoned the most honorable punishment, and thus our great personages formerly suffered.-For high treason the head is severed from the body, but the offender is previously hung, though not, according to sentence, till he is quite dead; hanging in England being deemed the most ignominious punishment -Decapitation is here performed with a hatchet; the head being placed on a block of wood, with the neck bare. In France it is a common punishment, and is indeed most expeditiously performed. See GUILLOTINE. Editor.

THE BENEFIT OF CLERGY.

The benefit of clergy which for a long period, exempted clerical people only, from the punishment of death, in the cases of felony, was by several statutes extended to peers, women, and all persons able to read; who, pleading their clergy, suffered only a corporal punishment, or a year's imprisonment; and those men who could not read, if under the degree of peerage, were hanged.

This unaccountable distinction was actually not removed until the fifth of Queen Anne, (chap. 6) which extended the benefit of clergy to all who were entitled to ask it, whether they could read or not. The benefit of clergy originated in injustice and

Lord Ferrers petitioned that the punishment of hanging should be changed to decapitation; but it was deemed proper that he should suffer like other murderers. See vol. I. inhuma

inhumanity, and can only be palliated by the rude state of society, when so disgraceful a privilege was legalized and interwoven in the criminal code. It partakes of the nature of a compromise with villainy. It perplexes the system of criminal jurisprudence; and since its sting is taken away, it would be an improvement to discontinue it totally. Colquboun.

BIGAMY. See POLYGAMY.

BOTANY BAY.

The plan of transporting atrocious offenders to the then infant colony of New South Wales was adopted in the year 1787, when an act passed (27 George III. chap. 2) authorizing the establishment of a court of judicature for the trial of offenders who should be transported to New South Wales; and this was succeeded by other assisting acts.

To convey to our readers an idea of this place, when first visited on this occasion, we shall annex an authentic letter written by a very intelligent gentleman, at that quarter, to his friend in England.

"My dear friend,

"I did myself the pleasure to write to you from the Cape of Good Hope on the 17th of November last, and not doubting but you received my letter in due time, I shall not repeat what I then said to you; I will endeavour now to give you a short sketch of our passage from the Cape to Botany Bay, and from thence to our present residence, and of the country round us, &c. &c.

"As far as I can recollect, we sailed from the Cape of Good Hope on the 20th of November, 1787, having experienced three weeks contrary winds and tempestuous weather. We at last doubled the Cape, and afterwards had rather a favourable pas

sage

sage to Botany Bay, where we arrived on the 19th of January, 1788.

"Here we expected to find a beautiful country, &c. &c. as well as to rest ourselves from our fatigues, at least for two or three years: but you will be much surprised, as we were disappointed, when I assure you there is not a spot of ground large enough for a cabbage garden, fit for cultivation, within several miles of it, and barely fresh water sufficient to supply our present wants.

"The country, for several miles round it, is either swamps or rugged hills, covered with rocks and trees, and underwood; and some barren and sandy, covered with brushwood: here we lay for some days condoling our hard fate, while his excellency the governor explored the coast to the northward. However, he at last returned with the pleasing account of having discovered the finest harbour in the world. Highly elated with this discovery, we quitted Botany, (which by the bye, is a beautiful bay, but does not afford safe anchorage all the year round for ships) on the 20th of January, in the morning, and in six hours after arrived at Port Jackson, the harbour above alluded to, which is only ten or twelve miles to the northward of Botany Bay.

"On the day following we landed at Sydney Cove, (so called by the governor) where we have fixed our residence, and laid a foundation for a colony. I really am not able of describing this harbour, which is, without exception, I believe, the finest in the known world: suffice it to say, that it extends fourteen or fifteen miles into the country, forming many beautiful bays and coves on every side, which, in the summer season, abound with variety of fish; but now, being winter, not a fish can be caught. I heartily wish I could say as much

of

of the country round it, which is similar to that of Botany, but not quite so bad; there are some spots here and there, at two or three miles distance from this cove, which may be cultivated. The country has been explored for upwards of forty miles round us, and hardly one acre of ground could be found in any one place free from wood or rocks; and what is very singular, no fresh water river, or even a spring has as yet been discovered. The water we make use of is the ouzing of the hills and swamps, which caused many diseases at the beginning; but now that we are used to it, the bad effects have partly ceased.

"The natives are accurately described by Capt. Cook; (I wish he had as faithfully described the country.) They are, I believe, the most miserable of God's creatures; they are clad in nature's dress, and live chiefly on fish and nuts, which last we are not as well yet acquainted with. Their weapons are long poles, well mounted with hard wood, sharp pointed, and shark's teeth, and all barbed, which they use indiscriminately in striking fish or assailing their enemies. Their working tools are an axe and a chizel: the one a piece of stone, shaped and fixed in a piece of wood; the other made of an oystershell. Their huts are few and miserable; they in general inhabiting the cavities of rocks and hollow trees, which they burn for that purpose. When kindly treated, they seem to be familiar and goodnatured; still, in my opinion, they are treacherous, for they have murdered three or four of the convicts whom they met unarmed; I say they are treacherous, because they never attacked any one who was armed; the sight of a musket, if presented would make a hundred of them scout; they will not

suffer