Spirit of the age. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1849-1865, 1852-11-17
C ON unicatiOn.
The Demon Of PerversiOn.

tNAAo WIN u Ollu SlCUly u he Is HOL,
by himself, the demon, he is often represented
You have promised TO make me visible, said ],
dear celestial spirit of Beauty, and reveal to
me the mysteries of demoniacal agency, on
my unhappy race. If this is an hour, when the
great soul of the Universe is propitious to
permit, satisfy my natural curiosity on this
great subject, at the present moment. See
the moon is yelled behind yon gorgeous cloud,
and the whole world is locked in the death-like
stiffness of sleep. All, save you and ], my
loved servant, are as though they were not
"You are greatly in error, my beloved she
replied, 'and | proceed at once to show you
some deep arcana of nature and society, to
which yeu have long been a stranger Your
ardent thirst for wisdom, your untiring pursuit
of useful knowledge has earned you this dis
tlnctiOn. BE strong, and fear nothing" Let
Gabriel sound q replied) | follow, where
you lead.
In an instant my sight was dazzled, and
almost blinded, by the most terrible flashes of
vivid lightning, and n peal Of thunder shook
creation to its centre around me the earth
rocked to AID fro. like \ drunken man, and
-uIeveUrs OF amazing size, and the most fantas-
tic shapes, shot through the atmosphere, from
all parts of the horizon The spirit laid
her hand over the region of my heart, passed
her fingers over my eyes, and touched the YER
tex OF my head, my nose, my ears and tongue,
and the next moment ! witnessed a scene, that
only supernatural power could sustain.
A large saloon lighted, up by lamps, was lit
orally filled with men, and above their heads
the most hideOus familiar spirits poised in
space, invisible to all but MS, and we were to-
tally invisible TO them. My guide placed me
IN u chair, elevated above the company of NOR
tails, and by a look, babe me observe and
k,o~Eon II mae q ,,,,lI;r. IL 1.:I:. -
loon of one of our largest cities. The Bar
room was crowded, and the whole air of the
apartment was filled with the fumes of spir-
ituous and tobacco exhalations, which the foul
and uncLean spirits that lowered over their
heads seemed to rerel Ia tasting, inhaIing and
devouring with wild delight. Just over the
heads Of the topers at the bar, ! noted some OF
the most revolving. strange and grotesque
Sends, part ape, part scorpion, part toad, and
part serpent, with fiery iurid eyes Others
were sitting on the rims Of the cups! and to
my horror and amaZement. | saw TRANSPARENT.
~, these horrid real fiends descend down the
throats Of all who drank, and beheId these un.
clean spirits, in an instant, after having enter.
cd, take possession of the infatuated drinkers
phunging down into their hearts and ther
stcinaing up with wild demoniac gust, and cours
ing along the arteries, and then dancing upor
the nervous ibres of the heart, the lungs, the
brain, the optic nerves, the auditory, olfactor,
fngual and nerves Of feeling al over tn,
limbs! The Barkeeper escaped not, for in his
occasional function, he too, compounded tn,
most disgusting sfend-broh for his own in,Ua1,
consumingl while just az his ear a horrid
CHASTITY, carewOrn hend of great size, %continu
ally whispered in his ear, Bloody money!
good ! wife-murder! good! child-ruin! good
1aupaoF.opt hrara I' ,ou, - ,..- a.. -
of a%varice, by the gift of discerning spirits
had received.
The other jewellers attracted my earnest scru
tiny. Many were seated at tables, on whicI
were heaps of gold, silver, bank notes and de
posits OF gold watches, pearl necklaces, dia
Inend ear rings, and breast pins, gold pencils
diamond set-snuH boxes pear and cora! cab
fends were balancing themselves, and dancin
on the sensitive nervous fibres of these gan
bling inebriates, as / had often seen a perfoI
mer on the slack wire. One man [ noted es
pecially, who uttered loudly and shamcIessl-
the most profane oaths, and obscene tests, /;
whose ear the most disgusting, loathsome an
filthy mend sat; at every whisper into tn
mans ear, the man opened his mouth. and M
sther fiend with eyes like burning sulphu
threw shorels full of burning, blue, spotte
Goals upon the unclean swearer's tongue,
saw " his tongue 10GS set on fire of hell - an
Aoto it was effected! One thing greatly q,
tonished me, that while these horrible iiend
were laughing and yelling ard vociferousI
expressing their fendly relish of the scene
and still more while they continually goade
and dashed on these men, OVer uh0m the
erd,cled like spotted lightning for speed, wit
Hery stings from their fangS and Scrpentit
tails, the wretched jewellers seemed to hes
nothing, see nothing, and scarcely to heed ii
sqin, or if they did, ascribed it to disordere
bodily sensation of the animal economy, an
only called for more tiend-broth, and swallow
cd more unclean and ferg spirits, in hopes /
allay just like throwing engines full of spirit
Of Iurpentlne in a house on fire, to put it out
l was just about to rise up, to look TO III
further end OF the room, having heard tn
noise OF men as in a quarrel and a sudden IN
earthly nloGilr but my Angel instantly and tim,
ly laid her hand of power on me, and fixed m
!mmovably. In the twiEkling of an eve, tn
whole house trembled, the joints and timber
and ceiling and floor, all sprang apart and d
vded, as If elastic, and then suddenly came (,
gether; when a gigantic tiend, 10
ty, towering with wings taloned at their tin
ito which the wings of the other iends I 81,
were as butterfly wings) his arms like tn
masts of a ship, his head like the dome of
palace, out OF the front Of which glares 4 dar
red, bewildering and binding light, as fror
two large circular tUindbus, the mouth opene,
disclosed large rows of teeth like mastodon'
and with a voice like thunder, he cried ont
"euH IS good CONVERT wHo! PERVER'
NIL In heaven aud earth, and HELLREIGNSl
And the Tyrant of Hell, For twas he! shoe
the whole city to its foundations with helis
laughter! Casting down his eyes upon. III
victim who had just fallen under the bowie
snife with hend-Iike eompIacency, evincedb
= sardonic grin, and rolling sidewise his hue
spotted eyeballs, he turned to the murdere
snd said, as he vanished eHa! dldst tho
Deem would dwell so long in thee. and r,
GIVE no tribute! I've plid nv rent, in feedin
sayiustS! Now, here is part of my wages !
And saw that the wages of sin was indee
death ~
Scarcely any attention was paid to this dreaC
fnl murder, and after the remeval of the bod
and n slight washing of the floor, everything
visible aud invisible, went on us before. III
gamblers gloated over the money tables. th
Tinkers devoured more fends to dwell i
hem; and the hours on the clock of the saloo
old that !" the night was far spent" and sti
Tho ptnftp~ nA1 - 49,