Paper 1 · June 2024 · the First Chimurenga in Mashonaland, 1896-1897
A death warrant issued at Umtali on 13 April 1898 orders that the sentence of death on the prisoner Kaguvi be carried out within the walls of the Gaol of Salisbury. The clearest sign in that document that the authorities meant to go through with the execution is that it...
Aasks the Registrar to look again at the evidence given
Bnames the gaol, the date and the hours for the hanging
Coffers the prisoner a discharge if he gives information
Dleaves the day of the sentence for the gaoler to choose
Explanation
A warrant that fixes the place, the day and even the hours between which the sentence is to be carried out is an instruction, not a proposal. The only escape it allows is a discharge according to law, which is the ordinary legal formula, so nothing in the document holds out any prospect of mercy.
Derived from ZIMSEC History Paper 1, Jun 2024, Q1