細節
TAYLOR, Zachary (1784-1850). Document signed ("Zachary Taylor"), as Colonel, Ft. Crawford, [Prairie du Chiene, Wisconsin Territory] 12 May 1834. A requisition for tar to carry out a court martial sentence. 1 page, 4to, co-signed by Lt. George H. Pegram.
"SPECIAL REQUISITION FOR TAR TO CARRY INTO EFFECT THE SENTENCE OF A GENERAL COURT MARTIAL" during the Black Hawk War. Colonel Zachary Taylor signs off on the request and orders that "The Asst. Quarter Master will issue agreeably to the above requisition." The officer asking for the tar, Lt. George H. Pegram, initially wanted for two gallons of the substance, which says something about the nature of the offense (although the miscreant and his crime goes unnoted on the document). But "gallons" gets struck out and "quarts" substituted instead. That was quite enough to inflict this cruel if venerable punishment which dates back to the Middle Ages. The low tech and easily accessible nature of the materials (pine tar and chicken feathers) made it a common punishment in rural communities as well as military camps. The victim was stripped to the waist and sometimes had his head shaved. The hot tar was then poured over the exposed flesh and the victim rolled on a bed of feathers. While the hot liquid could cause burns, this was chiefly a psychological attack designed to humiliate and expel. The victim would be days picking the dried tar from his skin, and by the time he was finished he was usually far away from the scene of his degradation, and in no hurry to return. In this case the punishment--which was not an officially sanctioned Army procedure--was likely followed by the offender being drummed out of the camp. Taylor was the commanding officer of Fort Crawford, an active post during the Black Hawk War, and he received the surrender of the Black Hawk chief there in 1834. It was also there that future rebel president Jefferson Davis met, fell in love and eloped with Taylor's daughter Sarah.
"SPECIAL REQUISITION FOR TAR TO CARRY INTO EFFECT THE SENTENCE OF A GENERAL COURT MARTIAL" during the Black Hawk War. Colonel Zachary Taylor signs off on the request and orders that "The Asst. Quarter Master will issue agreeably to the above requisition." The officer asking for the tar, Lt. George H. Pegram, initially wanted for two gallons of the substance, which says something about the nature of the offense (although the miscreant and his crime goes unnoted on the document). But "gallons" gets struck out and "quarts" substituted instead. That was quite enough to inflict this cruel if venerable punishment which dates back to the Middle Ages. The low tech and easily accessible nature of the materials (pine tar and chicken feathers) made it a common punishment in rural communities as well as military camps. The victim was stripped to the waist and sometimes had his head shaved. The hot tar was then poured over the exposed flesh and the victim rolled on a bed of feathers. While the hot liquid could cause burns, this was chiefly a psychological attack designed to humiliate and expel. The victim would be days picking the dried tar from his skin, and by the time he was finished he was usually far away from the scene of his degradation, and in no hurry to return. In this case the punishment--which was not an officially sanctioned Army procedure--was likely followed by the offender being drummed out of the camp. Taylor was the commanding officer of Fort Crawford, an active post during the Black Hawk War, and he received the surrender of the Black Hawk chief there in 1834. It was also there that future rebel president Jefferson Davis met, fell in love and eloped with Taylor's daughter Sarah.