第14章 A FAIR NECK FOR THE MAIDEN(6)

However that may be, Jean's conduct seems to have been heroic and unfaltering.She prayed, and one of her relations or friends brought a clean cloath'' to tie over her eyes.Jean herself had prepared for this operation, for she took a pin out of her mouth and gave it into the friend's hand to help the fastening.The minister-memorialist, having taken farewell of her for the last time, could not bear the prospect of what was about to happen.He descended from the scaffold and went away.But she,'' he says,as a constant saint of God, humbled herself on her knees, and offered her neck to the axe, laying her neck, sweetly and graciously, in the place appointed, moving to and fro, till she got a rest for her neck to lay in.When her head was now made fast to the Maiden'' the executioner came behind her and pulled out her feet, that her neck might be stretched out longer, and so made more meet for the stroke of the axe; but she, as it was reported to me by him who saw it and held her by the hands at this time, drew her legs twice to her again, labouring to sit on her knees, till she should give up her spirit to the Lord! During this time, which was long, for the axe was but slowly loosed, and fell not down hastily, after laying of her head, her tongue was not idle, but she continued crying to the Lord, and uttered with a loud voice those her wonted words, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit! O Lamb of God, that taketh away the sins of the world, have mercy upon me! Into thy hand, Lord, I commend my soul!'' When she came to the middle of this last sentence, and had said, Into thy hand, Lord,'' at the pronouncing of the word Lord'' the axe fell; whichwas diligently marked by one of her friends, who still held her by the hand, and reported this to me.

On the 26th of June, 1604, Robert Weir, sumtyme servande to the Laird of Dynniepace,'' was brought to knowledge of an assize.He wasDilaitit of airt and pairt of the crewall Murthour of umqle Johnne Kincaid of Wariestoune; committit the first of Julij, 1600 yeiris.''

Verdict.The Assyse, all in ane voce, be the mouth of the said Thomas Galloway, chanceller, chosen be thame, ffand, pronouncet and declairit the said Robert Weir to be ffylit, culpable and convict of the crymes above specifiet, mentionat in the said Dittay; and that in respect of his Confessioun maid thairof, in Judgement.

Sentence.The said Justice-depute, be the mouth of James Sterling, dempster of the Court, decernit and ordainit the said Robert Weir to be tane to ane skaffold to be fixt beside the Croce of Edinburgh, and there to be brokin upoune ane Row, quhill he be deid; and to ly thairat, during the space of xxiiij houris.And thaireftir, his body to be tane upon the said Row, and set up, in ane publict place, betwix the place of Wariestoune and the toun of Leyth; and to remain thairupoune, ay and quhill command be gevin for the buriall thairof.Quhilk was pronouncet for dome.

A `row' is a wheel.This is one of the very few instances on which the terrible and vicious punishment of `breaking on a wheel' was employed in Scotland.Jean Livingstone's accomplice was, according to Birrell's Diary, broken on a cartwheel, with the coulter of a plough in the hand of the hangman.The exotic method of execution suggests experiment by King Jamie.

The Memorial before mentioned is, in the original, a manuscript belonging to the Advocates' Library of Edinburgh.A printed copy was made in 1828, under the editorship of J.Sharpe, in the same city.This edition contains, among other more relative matter, a reprint of a newspaper account of an execution by strangling and burning at the stake.

The woman concerned was not the last victim in Britain of this form of execution.The honour, I believe, belongs to one Anne Cruttenden.The account is full of gruesome and graphic detail, but the observer preserves quite an air of detachment:

IVELCHESTER: 9th May, 1765.Yesterday Mary Norwood, for poisoning her husband, Joseph Norwood, of Axbridge, in this county , was burnt here pursuant to her sentence.She was brought out of the prison about three o'clock in the afternoon, barefoot; she was covered with a tarred cloth, made like a shift, and a tarred bonnet over her head; and her legs, feet, and arms had likewise tar on them; the heat of the weather melting the tar, it ran over her face, so that she made a shocking appearance.She was put on a hurdle, and drawn on a sledge to the place of execution, which was very near the gallows.After spending some time in prayer, and singing a hymn, the executioner placed her on a tar barrel, about three feet high; a rope (which was in a pulley through the stake) was fixed about her neck, she placing it properly with her hands; this rope being drawn extremely tight with the pulley, the tar barrel was then pushed away, and three irons were then fastened around her body, to confine it to the stake, that it might not drop when the rope should be burnt.As soon as this was done the fire was immediately kindled; but in all probability she was quite dead before the fire reached her, as the executioner pulled her body several times whilst the irons were fixing, which was about five minutes.There being a good quantity of tar, and the wood in the pile being quite dry, the fire burnt with amazing fury; notwithstanding which great part of her could be discerned for near half an hour.Nothing could be more affecting than to behold, after her bowels fell out, the fire flaming between her ribs, issuing out of her ears, mouth, eyeholes, etc.In short, it was so terrible a sight that great numbers turned their backs and screamed out, not being able to look at it.