Knout

(noot.) [Ru . knut.) An instrument of punishment judicially prescribed in Ru ia. It consists of a handle two ft. long, having a flat leathern thong abt. 4 feet in length attached to it. At the end of the thong is a bra ring, to which is fastened a strip of hide which has been soaked in milk and dried in the sun to make it hard, and is abt. 2 inches wide at first, but terminates in apo int. A practised hand will deeply indent ade al board with this cruel instrument. If it happen to strike the culprit with its edge, it cuts like a knife. From 100 to 120 lashes are the maximum number afflicted, and are considered tantamount to a sentence of death. Should the recipient survive their infliction, he is exiled for life to Siberia. [s. 518]