Page 222 - Early English Adventurers in the Middle East_Neat

222 EARLY ENGLISH ADVENTURERS IN THE EAST

lings stood staggering and devising of some probable fiction
the fiscal holpe him and said : ‘ Should not two Japans
have gone to each point of the castle and two to the gover­
nor’s chamber door and when the hurly burly had bin
without and the governor coming to see what was the
matter the Japaners would have killed him ? 5 J>
Eventually Codings agreed to all that was asked and
was dismissed, “ and very glad to come clear of his torture
though with certain belief that he should die for his con­
fession.”
Upon Coulson fell the next summons, and when after f
the usual process he had been brought out “ weeping, la­
menting and protesting his innocency,” Clark was put
to the torture. He proved the most resolute of the party.
After he had been plied with water “ till his body was
swolne twice or thrice as big as before, his cheeks like great
bladders and his eyes staring and strutting out beyond
his forehead ” and still refused to speak, the fiscal and
his tormenters “ reviled him saying that he was the devil
and no man, or surely was a witch, or at least had some
charm about him or was enchanted that he should bear
so much.” Having thus vented their feelings upon the
wretched man, they “ cut off his hair very short as sup­
posing he had some witchcraft hidden therein.”
Subsequently they again applied the torture, burning
him with candles “ until his inwards might evidently be
seen,” when at length, “ wearied and overcome with the
torments he answered ‘ Yea ’ to whatsoever they asked.”
At length, “ having martyred this pore man, they sent him I
f
out with four blacks who carried him between them to a
dungeon where he lay for five or six days without a surgeon
to dress his wounds.”

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