Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1864-07-29
EXTRAORDINARY AFFAIR.
How n Gipsy Woman Conxcd Lizards frou
n Mans Stomach
Correspondence of The Halifax IN. S. Sun.

BATHURST, Gloucester, July /, 1854.
A circumstance of an extraordinary nature
having happened in this community, take the
liberty Of bringing it before the public through
tie medium OF your journal
farmer in this coTty, James Mulock of
the flat lands, has been forssone three years
and half confined to his bed through weak
ness proceeding from emacaton the cause of
his sickness was unknown, and the symptoms
bore 40 resemblance to any other disease that
has appeared in this community. All the doc
tors have prescribed for him, and all with the
same result-complete failure. few weeks
ago, however, gipsy woman, who has been
telling fortunes for some time past, offered 10
cure him for 800, the sum to be left in the
hands OF Mr. Ferguson, who was TO be judge
of the cure Mulock was 10 put himself com
pIetely in her hands, and leave his home for
one week. lie did so, although his wife de-
INJURED TO the arrangem mt and tried to per-
suade him from 1t he, however, persisted, and
went with her, accompanied bv his younger
brother, Charles, and now we miy as well take
the story of the letter:
ave went with her to her camp immediate
ly after entering we had some bread and ham,
Jim and both eating heartily. After dinner
the gypsy said she wished to speak with me
alone. / went into the woods, back from the
camp, when she at once asked me il [ was will
ing that Jim should he handcufed and his feet
bound, and TO submit altogether to her. | said
| was not. Then said she Its no use wasting
words about the matter; if you don't do so
he'll never he curcd;' asked her to explain
herself; she said she would not. | at last con
sented. thinking to myself there can be nothing
wrong while am here. At tea we had some
salt pork fried, and good brea1. Next morning,
on waking after very watchiul night, for
never closed my eyes. found Jim tied up. He
seemed rather put out, but the gypsy told him
at once tha, she had done so because he was to
suffer good deal of pain before being cured. |
assented TO this. He said he was willing 10 go
through with il, since he had begun. We had
breakfast, salt pork aud bread fed Jim, and
we laughed al the farce as we considered it.
had no faith at all in her. After breakfast,
talked with the gypsy, and asked her what she
meant, told her was no child and must either
know her plans or 1 would unloose JIM and 90
home again. She .hen told me that she knew
that jim had some living reptile in him, and
that the only way to cure him was to feed him
with salt food for day or two, and then stop
him from drinking altogether, when the animal
would come Out to seek water.
'She had cured Others but must expect to
see him suffer awful pain AID torture when his
water was stopped, but it would only be for
| tweLty-four OF thirty hours. | went 10 jim,
told him all, aud asked him if he was willing to
undergo it. Says he, Charley, that woman
has it III stand it, We'll, that day passed
salt pork and bread, and Jim very limited
supply of water; the next day the same, till af
Ter dinner, when the water was completely stop
ed Now commenced the work. He begget
and prayed for water he howled till he wa
hosrse the woman then gave him drink o
what | considered water, but which she told
me afterwards was salt pork-fat, melted, will
water on the top he drank it in a few mouth
fuls, and in few minutes more he was wors
than ever. lie begged me to shoot him, Il
drown him, to do anything with him, only no
leave him in that state toward evening he wa
lIie ont of his mind water and springs wa
all he raved tbout lie lay that way for SOM
time, almost until morning wnen he got into
high fever. got alarmed, and told the gips
thought it had gone far enough; that Jir
was too weak to stand it. She told me coul
do as liked, hut If would leave him tw
hours longer | would see whether she or III
doctors were right. She likewise told me tina
if loosed he would kill himself drinking at tn
first water we met tried her. In about a
hour alter she asked me to drag him to tn
spring, few rods away from the camp. w
got him beside it. She laid his head with hi
lips almost touching the water she took up
birch panakin, and commenced lifting up wa
ter and letting it fall just before his lips. II
was all this time quiet as if he was dead somt
times only he gave a slight shiver, his mout
wide open and his eyelids opened and shut
The white of the eye only was seen. After abol
ten minntes, she said TO me, Now whose right
i. But keep quiet leaned over and saw larg
green lizard peeping out of his mouth it di
not seem as il ii wanted to come out, but DIRE
itself in again. 1T will come out again. sa,
, the GYPSY. While she was speaking two lizarC
glided out Of his mouth into the water; tn
gypsy quietly killed one with small stick an
| killed the other. We waited again for ii,
minutes when three came out but not together
, these we killed although one almost escape
from the water to his mouth ere it was con
pletely dispatched. We then waited nearly @
> hour longer but no more made their appea
= ance. The gipsy then said There's no more
/ and proceeded TO pour water on Jim's forehea
She did so twenty minutes she then gave hir
Y about a spoonful of water TO drink it actual
hssed in his mouth. She kept him confnt
E that day and half the next, before she let hi
| free, gradually increasing his allowance of W
ter"
5 Such is the story told by Mr. Charles NJ
lock, and although am not personally acquai
e leu win tHe SeullemAni am inloTUeu tndl I
3 is one of the last men in the county to tell
a wiful untruth. One fact however is clear
e his brother has completely recovered his heal
and not only his health but his flesh, and no
n weighs lG0 pounds. his former weight beil
e only 70 pounds. The lizards are Of a bott
= green Color about five inches long, red ey
# and forked tongues. There is q pcculiari
J. about them different from the ordinary liza
IS tribe, these being only two feet and slopII
from thence In a wedge into a tail. Two
e them have been preserved in spirits and f(
warded to Prof. Agassiz OF Harvard Universal
b, One is preserved in skirts and is kept in \
n Ferguson's office, and the other two were ft
warded TO Prof Jack, who has written to a LEI
gentleman here to say that those are the OF
= specimens he has ever met with, with the {
of ception of one found in the Museum ofthe U
1. versly of Munich that is called the Lace
Of homo in the language of the schools; and
Of Munich specimen was supposed to be the ol
A. one cxtani, although il is well known to be
rs ancient. "rhe description given by Pythal
is ras," says he, 81 have read with your spe
n mems before me, and have yet failed to d
re cover in any respect, the slightest difference
le their formation or color" He thinks that
20 Mulock must have received them in an emb
,e otie state by some of those mysterious seer
III that are found in every path of science.
Or species, he says corresponding to il, is |
n known to live on land and all naturalists hi
ID agreed that it requires the local action OF
@ human stomach to produce it,
IN This is, he SAYS, the only exclamation (