Roman Virgins
In Rome no virgins could ever be executed.
If a offender was discovered to be a virgin,
the executioner was required by law
to rape her first before killing her.
The Pathans Punish Adultery
The Pathans found adultery so intolerable
that they punished it with excruciating consequences.
The man convicted of that crime was staked to the ground
in the sweltering sun with chili peppers thrust up his anus
and sharp thorns stuffed into the urethra of his penis.
Then after sufficient shrieking, he was kicked in the testicles till he died.
The woman also was staked to the ground with her legs
wide apart. Then a quickly growing vine was planted in the earth
between her legs and directed to grow into her vagina,
where it wound through her viscera. After a week of agonizing suffering,
the plant would rip through her entrails as if they were topsoil,
and she would exsanguinate.
The Smile of a Stranger
While St. Brendan the Navigator waited in a carriage
for his mentor, Bishop Erc of Kerry, an attractive
young girl happened to smile at him. St. Brendan,
outraged at this challenge to his celibacy in broad daylight
by a succubus in the form of an adorable young girl,
attacked her, beating her concupiscent flesh
with his walking stick until the crowd pulled him away.
Bill Wolak
Bill Wolak is a poet who has just published his fourth book of poetry entitled Warming the Mirror with The Feral Press. He is currently working on a translation of the Italian poet Annelisa Addolorato with Maria Bennett. Mr. Wolak teaches Creative Writing at William Paterson University in New Jersey.
