By Joshua Ryan
Chapter 6: An Environment Planned for Your Security
We walked back along the slab, and he pointed to something I hadn’t noticed on my quick walk to the loading area.
“Here,” he said, turning toward a strip of shade cast by one of the buildings, “is the pillory.”
That’s what it was, all right—a pillory, looking just like they do in pictures: a wooden upright and a wooden crosspiece, fitted with three round holes, one for your head and two for your hands. You put them in, the top of the crosspiece is lowered onto them, and now you’re locked in the holes. You have to stand there, maybe forever.
“Amazing!” I said. “And after the first one, two more!”
“Yes, we have three pillories. In the beginning, slappies have a great need for punishment. And any serious problem usually arises out of a combination among them. One of them gets an idea; then the others get it. So before any trouble starts, we punish the troublemakers.”
