Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1866-01-13
Casting Cut Devils In india.

Ihe Cafnatlo llndla) Telegraph says:
Casting out devils in India is extern.
| sively practiscd by the natives; bu;
there is as much difficulty to get al
the truth as it is TO get the spiritualists,
the Davenports, to declare themselves
consummate cheats. We were present
q few weeks ago, at an exercise of exor-
cism. The possessed was a young
woman of about sixteen, hale and hearty
in appearance, and withal ''very good
looking" as is the expression applied
to native women. She was much excl
ted as she accompanied, or rather pre-
coded, her eXorcist, and broke out
occasionally into singing and dancing
with an energy and manner which
showed that she had no self-control. =
The party which went with her stopped
ut tree on the way, when the exorcist
desired to halt His command instantly
brought her PROSTATE before him, and
she rolled on the ground in violent con-
tortions. But, it was objected by her
father to fix the demon to that tree;
and accordingly the exorcist addressed
his patient In tone of sternness to rise
and go on further. She did go, and
with running dance, to the sound of
the tom-tom and the Pujari's hand
drum, she rushed along, seemingly
unconscious of all around her. They
halted them under palmira tree, in a
desert place near the foot of hillock,
when the poor girl was desired, to the
music of the priests hand-drum, to
balance herself gracefully. anu approach
the tree. She did SO and then en-
braced it with tremor, the effect of
compulsion rather than free will. The
exorcist then went through few
strophes of incantatory singing; then
taking a lew locks of her hair, and knot.
ting them together, he fastened the
bunch to the tree by nail, and then
seizing live cock in one hand over
her head. with the other he cut its
throat, and shed its blood freely over
the STOPPING, trembling girl. He then
cut off her hair, and thus freed her
from her fastening to the tree. The
blood. stained bunch of hair thus left
behind, it is said, detains the devil also,
and that he, or legion thus exercised,
will haunt that tree till he or they
shall choose To take possession of some
other unfortunate. The girl seemed,
now, weak and exhausted, and could
hardly walk forward with steady pace.
She was held by one of the male assist
ants of the priest, and conducted TO q
tank, where she was bathed, somewhat
like our Baptist sisters, in her clothes,
and came out of her own accord, hardly
yet in her right mind But the scene
was not yet over. Pnjari broke a cocoa
nut. and after placing it over the smoke
of the incense, for a little while, he
lifted the smoking censor to her with
the usual incantatorv music and sing
ing. She again gradually lost her con-
seriousness, and swayed to and fro, with
wild dissbeveied locks. Her exorcist
demanded of her to tell him her de-
moniacal name. She sharply turned
upon him, and with scream uttered
her name. He then inquired how many
devils possessed her, to which she ans
wered five. Have they all taken their
departure, he asked. Yes, was the
reply, and, Immediately, she ran
along, dancing frantically, while the
party ran after her to her house, where,
after other devilish ceremonies, she
recovered consciousness, and the next
day was married. We ought to have
remarked that the demoniacal posses
sion took place on the first day of her
nuptial rites. She is now all right
again, and lives happily enough with
her young husband.