The Dorset County Express and Agricultural Gazette.
Dorchester, Dorset, England, 1874-05-26 00:00:00

SHA.FTESBORY.

TINE REV. G. L. IiARKNI7K. M.A., Rector of St. James's,
has been been...Nl ,to the chaplainry of the Westminster
Memorial Cottage Ifovital, Shaftesbury.

Sontrrsctsbirc.

SugglAsTITIoN AND Irs Derm—A number of incidenta
have recentle- oceorrol in Somerset which tend to show
that, however zealous Englishmen may be in sending mis-
sionaries to foreign lauds, the time has not yet arrives),
when it would lie well to relax a single effort for the
spread of enlightenment at home Only • few weeks
lock, a poor w an conituitksl suicide whilst labouring
under the delusion that she was "overlooked" by •
"white witch" residing at Taunton, and ellaes of a some-
what similar description are frequently brought under
notice. One in the most recent ie•curred at a village
within five. inikw of Yeovil. on Monday. On the day
named a yeung labouring :nen went to a Idackillilith and
sought a private interview. When they were alone, he
inform:l the son of Vulcan that he wanted him to make
a new horse shoe, and, as he would have to he very parts.
cuter about it, he Wiadd not mind paying an unusual
price. This naturally aroused the sturdy militia curiisiity,,
and. in answer to his enquiries, he was informed by his
custs .r that his wife Was bewitched, and that he had
consulted a " wise unman" at Somerten with a view to
olitaiiiiug a reme e .ly. Ile then went on to relate that he
was to get a new horseshoe made, which was nut to be
allowed to tonal the groom! upon sane consideration, nor
was anyone excepting the smith te take part in its mane-
fokitre, and, molter, not a drop of water Was to he
alloweil to rouse into contact with it. When it was ready,
It wso to he hung on the si.oeof the bellows until the man
who gave the order fetched it. The smith was anxious
to know what wa.s to be the fatnt of his handiwork, and,
by dint of lt perseverance and a • lisplay of considerable
tack he ascertained that it was "to go through a process."
In other words, his euiployer was to take it Ileum, and,
having lucked the sl.ssr if his Inane, he was, with the ea-
sistaiire of his wife. te procure water if a particular kind,
which was to he Pla,ol in a certain utensil. Into this
the she was to he dropped when it had been made
" white hot," and, after the steam had passed away. the
face of the person liy whom the woman was " hag.ridden"
was to be seen iii VI. ,tor. The result has not yet tran-
Aldred, hut our readers will readily imagine whose face
was most likely to lie redacted. In connection with the
above, it shoal.' be mentioned that, altl ghi the famous
Hannah Andrea-4 11A, Ion,: lance been numbered with
dead, ~he hes left behind. at Sosuerton, a disciple who is
frequently consultel Iguarant and superstitions people
wnnin they have lost property, when their cattle suffer
from diseases w ith which they are net familiar, or when
they or their friends are in trouble. We are informed
that on the Smithey mei i.sis to the commencement of a
recent Somerset Aoise the relatives of a person who hail
robbed several Vero ii tisolealien went to this line, and
paid her a consideralde sum of money for the purpose of
playing the Judge ler the intbsenee of a spell, and thus
preventing him from pronouncing sentence on the thief.
Their faith in witchcraft twist afterwards have been
shaken, however, for their fraud WAS sentenced to several
months' imprisonment. A- a still further illustration
that the belief in witehenift has nut died out, it might he
lUelitioneil that a man le tog near a neighlentring town
rerently b I his pigs fri-king alsest in All extraordinary
rnskieu. and gain° to tisc conclusion that they haul St.
Straigiaa ay he went to :Somerton, but,
whether the charm 11.. purchased was a costly one, or
whether the ea‘e 55. lot very serious, we cannot say
one thing, however, 14 certain, the pigs got better, and
the pretended witch gut the credit of having effected their
cure.