August 28th.—(1) A Decree.—We have received a Memorial irom Pien Pao-cli'uan stating that a prisoner condemned to strangulation at the Autunm Assizes was through some mistake decapitated, and requesting that the officers charged with the execution of the sentence should be handed over to the Board for the determination a penalty. The statement is that a criminal, named Chang Yang-zu, under sentence of strangulation, was beheaded by the directions of a lieutenant and the Masistrate of Lin-chang, and that the latter had tried to evade responsibility by giving falgo version of the affair. The blundering recklessness which led to such ess mise take is beyond all possible justification, and the mere infliction of a penalty by the Board would be a very inadequate punishment, We command that the magistrate and lieutenant be both degraded, and that the whole case be thoroughly investigated by the new Governor of Honan, Ni Wen-wei. The occurrence took place in December last and it is only now that it is reported to Us by Pien Pao-ch'tian, For-this dilatoriness let him be handed over to the Buard fur the determination of a penalty
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.