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About The McCook tribune. (McCook, Neb.) 1886-1936 | View Entire Issue (Dec. 1, 1893)
TIIE MINE SORCERER. MALAY FAKIRS WHO WORK THE IG NORANT AND SUPERSTITIOUS. They Are Not So Potent an They Were Some Yearn Ago—Ceremonies Observed by the Pawaug Id Invoking the Ifanta, or Tutelary Spirit, of the Mine. Miners in nil countries have been noted for their superstitious beliefs as to va rious matters affecting their good or ill luck. Soothsayers, sorcerers, or at least lode finders, wore in past ages trusted to secure the satisfactory results which are now nowadays more reasonably hoped for on the report of the mining expert and engineer. The latest survival of belief in the occult powers of the “med icine man” or sorcerer is probably to be found in the Malay peninsula, which contains the most important tin work ings yet known to exist. The individ ual who thus guides his employers to fortune, or the reverse, is known as a pawang. Until the practical termination of in dependent Malay rule throughout the major portion of the peninsula, about 19 years ago, the pawang was a recognized member of every mining staff, and recog nized not only by the mine owners but by the petty chiefs, who alternately en couraged or obstructed mining enter prise. So potent was he that he could foretell the prospects of amine, levy fines (which went into his own pocket), direct the offering up of animal sacrifices and en force rules respecting the workings of a mine which but for him would have been simply ridiculed by the miners. Al though in many districts his pretensioi a are now discredited, he still lingers on. superstition with the existing generation of miners having yet a firm hold in the more re;.: to districts. The pawang may or may not be the hereditary successor of a predecessor. In some cases lie is self made, and at tains his position by a few lucky fore casts as to the valueof a projected mine. In a territory where, as is sometimes said, “If yon dig up the highway, you aro sure to find tin,” the supernaturally gifted prospector has a tolerably easy task. Not that tin is always found when a hole is sunk. But a moderate ac quaintance with the usual indications is quite sufficient. Chinese of limited means do not often trouble a pawaag in the initiatory stages. But when the mine—“stream tin,” or tin sand, with an overburden of 10 or 20 feet earth and gravel—is fairly started, the pawang suggests that he alone knows how to keep good luck in sight. Sometimes he is politely informed that his services ar6 not wanted, and he leaves in wrath, pre dicting all sorts of disaster to the unbe lieving towkay or manager. Upon the whole, however, ho manages to get his way. A fine physical appearance is indis pensable. When engaged in any duty, such as invoking spirits or offering sacri fices, he is allowed to assume only one of two positions—with his hands resting on his hips or with them clasped behind his back. He alone is allowed to wear a black coat in the mine. As in the case of camphor hunters in Formosa and gutta percha hunters in Malaya, he uses a peculiar vocabulary. Thus cats, ele phants, tigers, buffaloes, etc., must not be mentioned by their usual designation, nor are such animals (tigers unfortu V nately sometimes prove unpleasant ex ' ceptions) ever allowed upon a mine. Perhaps the oddest article in the pa wang’s “index expurgatorius” is the lime fruit or lemon, which under no cir cumstances may be brought to a mine, and should the juice be thrown into the mine water dire results are dreaded. Raw cotton, glass and earthenware or an unsheathed spear or kris are equally anathema, all the articles mentioned be ing offensive to the hautu or spirits which haunt the mine. Assuming that the pawang is engaged by a mine owner at a fee varying from £15 to £80, his first business is to erect a platform or altar, constructed of a spe cial kind of wood. The four branches, which serve as supports, have the bark peeled off for about 4J feet from the ground to where the twigs begin. The leaves on the latter are not removed. A square platform, measuring 15 inches each way, of peeled sticks is fixed to these supports at about three feet from the ground. A foot above this comes a railing round three sides of the plat form, while a railed ladder with four rungs reaches from the open side of the platform to the ground. Fringes of co coauut ornament the railing, and the whole construction is bound together with creepers, rattan, however, being forbidden. Upon it offerings are laid, and the pawang invokes the hantu or tutelar}' spirit of the mine to bless it with good fortune. A bag of tin sand from the first washing is the fee paid for this service. sometimes a cheaper kmd or altar is made by placing in the ground a single peeled stick with its upper end split in four, upou which is placed the little platform above described. The next process is to hang an ancha, or square frame, about 18 inches each way in the smelting house just under the eaves of the roof. This serves as an interior altar, upon which the miners place their offerings to tbo bantu. The accurate hanging up of the ancha is a matter of special care. These preliminaries accomplished, the mine is considered sure of luck.—Pall Mall Gazette. Under the Monroe Doctrine. Should European vessels land their forces and interfere in the affairs of Bra zil, there is no escape from the conclu sion that such act would constitute a cause of offense to the Unit 'd States government. Under the light of the Monroe doctrine the administration can construe such acts as nothing less than an offense. If Europe can without let or hindrance land troops in Brazil and menace the security of that republic, Europe can do likewise in every Amer ican republic.—Minneapolis Tribune. TRIAL BY ORDEAL. Remarkable Story from India About Catching a Postal Thief. The narrator of the following story some years ago had charge of a postal division on the western coast, parts of which had seldom been visited by a European officer. The people were for the most part simple country folk and very superstitious. One morning the narrator received information that a considerable sum of money, forming part of the contents of the mail from a head to a suboffice, had been stolen on the road. The whole affair was wrapped in mystery. The only clew the police had been able to obtain was that one runner, whom we shall call Rama, had since the theft paid off certain debts in the village which had long pressed upon him, but there were no other suspicious circumstances, and the man had 10 years’ good service. As a last resource it was determined to re sort to trial by ordeal and for this pur pose an aged Brahman, who was sup posed to j>ossess occult powers and to be in daily communion with the gods, was consulted and readily undertook to dis cover the thief. All the runners—a good ly array of sturdy Mahratts peasants— were summoned to the office, and under the guidance of a cheyla, or disciple, of the old Brahman we all proceeded to a small deserted temple of Mahadeo, situ ated at some distance from the village. It was a desolate spot and bore an evil reputation. The temple, owing to some act of desecration in the past, had been abandoned and was almost buried among weeds and tangled brushwood. The hour selected was about 6 p. m., and the long twilight shadows gave the place a weird, uncanny look. The old Brahman was awaiting us, and as we ap proached appeared to be busy mutter ing incantations. The runners all seemed to be more or less under the spell of the hour, but the look of real fright in Rama's face was quite distinct. The Brahman, having finished his incanta tions, roso and addressing the men said: Yon are about to tace the gods. To the innocent the trial will be nothing, but to the guilty much. In the temple a magic wand lias been placed on the altar. Each of you must go in by turns, take up the wand and turn round three times, repealing the name of llaliadeo. The wand i'l stick to the hand of the guilty one.” Dy this time it was nearly dark. I glanced in through the door of the temple. A solitary oil buttee threw a fitful light on the altar, on which an ordinary bamboo stick about two feet long reposed among grains of uncooked rice and nut limes, the whole sprinkled with red powder. A curtain was drawn across the door, and the men entered one at a time. As each one appeared the Brahman seized his hands and raised them to his fore head, and then allowed them to pass on and join his fellows. Coming to Rama, he went through the same pantomime, but instead of allowing him to pass on bade him stand aside. When the last man had gone through the ordeal the Brahman turned to Rama and said qui etly: “Tell the sahib how you stole the money.” “To my utter amazement,” continues the writer, “Rama fell on his knees, confessed that he was the thief, and of fered to show where he had hidden the balance of the money. He had succeed ed in opening the mail bag without seriously disturbing the seals. The post master had not really examined them and so their having been manipulated had escaped notice. Needless to say, the Brahman was rewarded and poor Rama was sent to repent at leisure in the district jail.” Now the natural question is: “How was it done?” Very simply. The tem ple, the lonely glen, the uncanny hour, the incantations, all were merely acces sories to appeal to the superstitions of the ignorant peasants. The “magic wrand” was thickly smeared with strong ly scented sandalwood oil. Rama’s guilty conscience prevented him from touheing it, as he firmly believed the wand would stick to his hands, and his of course was the only hand that did not smell of oil.—Times of India. Overdressed For His Part. A justice of the peace, who exercised the functions of that office in a portion of the state where such officials are per mitted great latitude, had before him a suspicious character arraigned upon a charge of vagrancy. The prisoner, who was quite well dressed, secured the services of a lawyer in court to defend him. The man pleaded not guilty, and the lawyer in concluding his remarks said: “What, your honor, that man a va grant? Oh, no! I insist upon his dis charge. Why, see the good clothes he is wearing!” “Yes, I see them,” replied the justice, “and in consequence of their excellent condition I shall discharge him on the charge of vagrancy and hind him over for simple larceny.”—New York Herald. Uses For Bats. Of all living things rats seem to be among the most repulsive, and when dead what can be their use? But even they are the subjects of production in the industrial arts. The fur is valuable and finds a ready sale. The skins make a superior glove—the gant de rat—and are specially used for the thumbs of kid gloves, because the skin of the rat is strong and elastic. The thigh bones were formerly valued as toothpicks for clubs, but are now out of fashion, while the tendons and bones are boiled up to make the gelatin wrappers for bonbons.— North American Review. A Battered Legend. A hotel in Switzerland bore on one of its walls the time honored inscription, “Hospes, salvet” (“Welcome, stranger!”) After rebuilding the legend had to be restored, bnt the painter, who most have had some experience as a traveler, made a very slight alteration in one of the words, and caused it to read, “Hos pes, solve!” (“Pay, stranger!”) — San Francisco Argonaut. I SHALL NOT DIE FOR THEE. For thee 1 shall not die. Woman high of fame and name; Foolish men thou muyc t slay, I and they are not the same. Why should 1 expire For the five of an eye. Slender waist or swanllke limb? Is't for them that 1 should die? The round breasts, the fresh skin. Cheeks crimson, hair so long and rich: Indeed, Indeed, I shall not die, I'iense God, not I, lor any such. The golden hair, the forehead thin, Th ■ chaste mien, the gracious case. The rounded heel, the languid tone— Fools ulone Hud death from these. Thy sharp wit, thy perfect calm. Thy thin palm, like the sea foam; Thy white neck, thy blue eye, 1 shall not die for these alone. Woman, graceful as the swan, A wise man did nurture me; Little palm, white neck, bright eye, I shall not die for ye. —Douglas Ilyde in London Sun. An Old Family. Several years ago there was an old family in Pennsylvania named Roth. Indeed the long line of Roths was about all the family had to show by way of distinction, and so much did they make of the long branches of the family tree and the Niagara of blue blood that had in centuries past coursed through their veins that people of the more recent gen erations really began to think these Roths were of some account. One evening there happened to be a party in the little town of 51-, and beside the great Roth family the guests numbered among others young Dr. Sharp. He was a popular and rising physician and considered by matchmak ing mammas a particularly desirable catch. Mrs. itotn naa tour inarriageaDie daughters, so at the first favorable op portunity she cornered the young doctor and sought to impress upon him the im portance of her wonderful family. “Why, doctor,” she said, “we all came over on the Mayflower, so I know you will not think me bold in asserting that the Roths are really one of the first fam ilies.” “Pardon me,” replied the young phy sician, “but I have no hesitation in say ing that your family enjoys even a great er distinction.” “Oh, doctor,” gushed the old woman, giving herself a congratulatory hug on her coming triumph. “Indeed you flat ter us.” “Not at all,” he replied, “for I know you are the first family.” “Who told you that, dear doctor?” “The Bible,” he replied reverently, “for it says the Lord was Roth.”—Bos ton Budget. Count D’Orsay and Lady Holland. A story going the rounds is one told of the famous Count d'Orsay. On the oc casion of his first visit to England, while he was very young, very handsome and not easily disconcerted, he chanced to ba seated at dinner next to the brilliantand singular Lady Holland. That remarkable and many sided wo man was in, as it happened, one of her imperious humors, and her young neigh bor soon felt its weight. She dropped her napkin. The count picked it up gal lantly. Then her fan, then her fork, then her glass, and as often her neighbor stooped and restored the lost article. At last, however, the patience of the youth gave way, and on her dropping her nap kin again he turned and called one of the footmen behind him. “Put my plate on the floor,” said he. “I will finish my dinner there. It will be so much more convenient to my Lady Holland.”—New York Times. Growth of the Human Heart. Dr. Benecke of Marburg has made known his observations on the growth of the human heart, the fact appearing that the increase is greatest and most rapid during the first and second years of life, its bulk at the end of the second year being exactly double what it origin ally was. Between the second and seventh years it is again doubled in size. A slower rate of growth then sets in and continues during the period of maturity of other portions of the body. After the fifteenth year up to the fiftieth the an nual growth of the heart is about .061 of a cubic inch, the increase ceasing about the fiftieth year.—Leisure Moments. Royal Pin Money. The Princess of Wales’ long retire ment lias enabled her to save much of her pin money—£10,000 a year—and bring it up to a comfortable amount. In the past Alexandra has had plenty to do with that allowance, dressing herself most elegantly, her daughters very much less so, and fitting out the boys. Times have changed, her children have an annual income of £36,000 to divide among them selves, and the princess has lived aloof from London society since the death of her eldest son, thereby incurring but lit tle expense for dress.—New York Adver tiser. “Neither is a dictionary a bad book to read,” says Emerson in his essay on books. “There is no cant in it, no ex cess of explanation, and it is full of sug gestion—the raw material of possible poems and histories. Nothing is want ing but a little shuffling, sorting, liga ture and cartilage.” German papers give detailed descrip tions of six statues recently unearthed in a crypt under the sacristy of the “Peter Panl Kirche” at Liegnitz, in Silesia. The statues, which are all connected with one another, are supposed to represent apos tles, and to date from the twelfth cen tury. Queen Victoria’s “Jubilee Book,” the volume containing the jubilee speeches and addresses, is 18 inches thick, haE leaves 2 by 3 feet and weighs 63 pounds. An advertiser in a New York daily a few days ago offered a reward for the return of two sets of teeth and no ques tions asked. Method is like packing things in a box; a good packer will get in half as touch again as a bad one.—Cecil. ELECTIONS IN CORSICA. The IiOii of i Life or Two Apparently Not of Much Account. The elections for the council gent ral were going on all over the island of Cor sica. The canton of Soccia comprises several villages, among others Guagno, noted for its famous mineral springs and also for the turbulence of its people. The elections took place in each village, and on tlie morrow the presidents of the several bureaus were to meet at Soccia for the formal declaration of the poll. In consequence of certain disorders that had already occurred, the mayor of bue cia issued an edict to the effect that none of the inhabitants of Guagno was to en ter the village that day. The inhabitants of Guagno chose to ignore this order, and CO of them, all armed, and all angry that their candi date had been defeated, marched upon Soccia, headed by their mayor. Two gendarmes—not armed—had been placed at the entrance of the village and warned the advancing troops that they were to come no farther. The mayor of Guagno cried "Fire!” There was a general vol ley from his followers, and the two gen darmes fell dead. “They both bore ex cellent characters. One of them had been 24 years in the service, had been proposed for the military medal and leaves a wifo and three children.” Such was the first account in the daily paper of Dastia. It occupied about seven inches of one column. The next day the editor had had time to reflect (or he, too, may possibly have had a significant warning), for in an article three inches long the account was somewhat quali fied, and there was this important emen dation, “It seems we were not correct in stating that it was the mayor of Guaguo who gave the order to fire upon the gen darmes.” Tho third day there were just two lines, “In consequence of the unfortu nate affair at Soccia it is probable that the mayor of Guagno will send in his resignation.” That was all. I took in the newspaper regularly for a week, for I was curious to see how the affair would end, but there was nothing more—ap parently no inquiry, no prosecution of the offenders.—Contemporary Review. The Tower of Silence. The Parsees will not burn or bury their dead, because they consider a dead body impure, and they will not suffer themselves to defile any of the elements. They therefore expose their corpses to vultures. On9 sees nothing but the quiet, white robed procession (white is mourning among the Parsees) following the bier to the Tower of Silence. At the entrance they look their last on the dead, and the corpse bearers—a caste of such —carry it within the precincts and lay it down, to be finally disposed of by the vultures which crowd the tower. Meanwhile, and for three days after, the priests say constant prayers for the departed, for his soul is supposed not to leave the world till the fourth day after death. On the fourth day there is the Uthanna ceremony, when large sums of money are given away in memory of the departed. The liturgy in use is a series of funeral sermons by Zoroaster. Of superstitions the Parsees have had more than they retain. Connected with burial is the popular conception as to the efficacy of a dog's gaze after death. Dogs are sacred and supposed to guide the souls of the dead to heaven and to ward off evil spirits; hence it is custom ary to lead a dog into the chamber of death, that he may look at the corpse before it is carried to the tower.—Nine teenth Century. Eccentricities In Palaces. The King of Siam, who, according to late reports, has had a palace construct ed which he can submerge in the sea at will and so live under water whenever he chooses, is not the only monarch who has indulged in eccentricities of this sort. For instance, history has preserved the memory of the ice palace built by the Russian Empress Anne, who pun ished several of her dainty courtiers by compelling them to pass the night in this great chamber of state, where they were almost frozen to death. The Czar Paul, ancestor of the present Emperor of Russia, constructed a room formed entirely of huge mirrors, where he spent hours walking to and fro in full uniform—-a singular taste for the ugliest man in Russia. One of the native princes of Java cooled his palace by making a stream fall in a cascade over the gateway, and the Indian despot Tippo Sahib placed be side his dinner table a life size figure of a tiger devouring an English officer, the roar of the beast and the shrieks of the victim being imitated by hidden machin ery.—Harper’s Young People. Triple Pillar Saw Frame. Among the recent mechanical con structions of note is a triple pillar saw frame, conveniently designed to occupy a space not much wider than an ordina ry vertical log frame. In carrying out this plan the cross girder, which carries the saw frame and the crank shaft bear- i ings, is in one piece, the whole being supported on three turned pillars, on which by means of screws connected by suitable gearing they are raised and lowered together. In order to limit the distance between the pillars as much as possible, the connecting rod is attached to the saw frame that is farthest from the crank shaft. There is a bell crank and flywheel at each end of the crank shaft, which enable the machine to work steadily at high speeds without excessive vibration.—New York Sun. One For the Turk. One of the stories that drifted out of the plaisance is of the mosque where prayers were said daily at regular inter vals for the natives. A pious woman passing accosted a young Oriental and chatted with him, finishing with a nod toward his prayer house and the remark, “I hope you go to church every Sunday, like a Christian.” “No,” was the quick reply, “I go every day, like a Turk”— which must score one for the heathen.— New York Times. Greatly Reduced* On November 15th, the Price of the Tfie Qmafia Wee&Jjj Ree Was Reduced to ' 65c Per Year! 4anBBlfla» No other paper in the country publishing 12 pages, or 81 colums of reading matter, can be had for less than $1.00 per year. 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L.?t Manhood, J>.; Nerrour* ness.all drains and Itos i>i p<.\\erl:i General.vet.. i tviat-r sczca; .o broverexertlon,ycuthl**?! ' excess; re u ■ < • • • opinta or ulants, which load to luUrn;ity, Consumption or Insanbr *5*0 nr* carrtevi >rr. pocket. perbnx, by imi'.i pr* nr:’^ v rive a written lo tare nr tvfueii ih« ru Sold fc? nil nirofartsts. Ask tor ft. taKo no other. Write tor free.\teuie:%; i «*ok eentaea! a in plain wrapper. Address 7« EK VJ38££il CO.,«.r-« IV to pi e ,X5mCA(¥*. forsaie m mccook. sea , by L. w. McConnell Jt Co., D up*{‘st*%