The Samurai - Everyday Life in Traditional Japan - page 30

(19) Jitte : various types of jitte , chains, and handcuffs.
Oncethearresthadbeenmade,theprisonerwastakenofftotheofficeofthemagistrate
on duty. The Edo jail was in Denmacho, and dangerous criminals would be lodged there
immediately, with a warrant from the magistrate, while less dangerous ones could be de-
tained at the magistrate's office. With the prisoner in detention, the next stage in the pro-
cess of administering justice was to persuade him to confess to his crime, for this was a
prerequisite of punishment, especially when this involved execution. Basically, this was
probably founded on principles of justice, to avoid punishing the innocent; confession is
still, of course, preferred by the courts of many countries. (The Anglo-Saxon concept that
a case should be decided on the evidence, and that a man can be expected to lie to conceal
his guilt, is by no means universal.) However, the necessity for a confession implies the
necessity for persuasion, if the prisoner is unwilling to confess of his own free will. Flog-
ging, pressing with stones and water torture were among the methods available, and were
no doubt put to use, just as in England it was possible to press to death prisoners who re-
fused to plead guilty or not guilty and who therefore could not be tried. In Japan, however,
the power of authority was such that few guilty men would have persisted in any denials.
Whentheconfessioncame,theprisonerwastakenbeforethemagistrate,andthereon shir-
asu, the“whitesand” ( 20 ) , anareabeforetheofficewheretheprisonersandwitnessesknelt
before the magistrate and gave their evidence, they heard his judgment. The “white sand”