New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1876-04-29

Brutal Rslisieas FaSasicas..
A Saguaehs, Colorado, correspondent
writes, under date Of April is:
Exoiting mining news from the San Juan
FL Dorado has been completely oversha.
dowed this week by tho most terrible and
disgusting performances of the ''Penlten-
tes." In Ssguache county there il quite .
numerou9 Mexican population, and during
the last three days Of Lent, in Holy Week,
their penance oulminates in the most afro
cious acts. These "Penitentes" are never
Early in the week here it was reported
In town that . man Nas to be cruci6ed
on the Friday following. To the south Of
Saguache about fifteen miles there is .
large settlement Of Mexicans, called Car
neros. lt'1its close to the foot of the noun
tain range, and ito inhabitants no engaged
in stock herding snd agriculture. In COM
pauy with ex-Nayor Barker, Of Denver,
your correspondent left Saguache at 10 A.
u; to witness tn tins p strange performance :
p. M, and after hasty lunch repaired to
the scene which was taking place about .
mile up the creek from his house and i'm
mediately back of his rancho. We were
informed by Mr.. Royal that the fun had
lust commenced and We were in time. -Four
heavy wooden CROSSES about fifteen feet
high had been erected at intervals, about
800 feet each, with one exception, bearing
Q Latin inscription.
uisi cruel naught but the CROSS. On the
next, "Nisi DOnissus fust'a," "Lest God
be with you. toll is vain," and on the third,
"Omnia ad Del gloriam," "All things to the
pondent has forgotten. There were
eighteen peniteuts-divided up into groups
of four and six attendants in each group.
Each penitent, with two exceptions, wore
. black mask or sack drawn completely
over the head, and fastened about the neck.
The other two wore red masks. Whether
the difference in color of the masks repre-
sented different degree of crime or not We
failed to ascertain. The leader of each
band carried something resembling q
watchman'a rattle. He was followed by
another attendant playing q small reed
flute. The other four attendants chanted
in Q low, mOnotonOus tone some Spanish
words that We could not understand. Aside
from the mask, the penitents wore nothing
but q pair of the thinneet kind OF net
drawers. Each one the group, penitents
and attendants carried an .'a1ote," or
0COuEXcs kU0u0 lIOVA VuO AOOA Va ChO 1oOP-
weed. It is very tough and fbrOus, and
was braided into clubs, about four inches
wide and perhaps three feet long. The
line of march Was from one cross to the
other. and at each cross halt was made of
about five minutes.
At every step they lash themselves with
these "azotes," until the blood fairly
epurted from every pore. They took sharp
pieces of flint and lscerated the fleshy
parts of the body until they were literally
q mass of bleeding flesh.
Whenever one fell down from exhaustion
and loss of blood, which occurred every
moment or two, ono of the sttendants took
his scourge and beat him until he got up
In one group . heavy log chain was
fastened to each ankle of the penitent, and
the attendance took hold and dragged him
feet foremost over beds of cactus, or prickly
pear plants, which abound in this country.
Occasionally they would all give sudden
Jerk together and fairly lift him from the
ground: This dragging would continue continue
penitent had Q cowhide cut up into strips,
and would wind it as tightly as possible
around his arms and legs until the circula-
ton was completely stopped, and the flesh
seemed to be bursting and black. He re-
NAMED, or was to remain. in this condi-
ton for twenty-fou hours. Every time
they reached . cabin that stood near the
upper cross, an attendant came out, and
with large sponge washed them with
vinegar. Occasionally the monot0ny was
varied by penitent taking on his back .
huge cross, and bearing it until he fell pros
trate under it's weight. This cross was
about foot thick either way, about eigh-
teen feet long, and the arm about nine feet
On this cross was actually painted in let
tiers of blood, La passion en- credO, Span
isb, and. signifying suffering by faith"
Two Penitentes had died the night before
we got there from this treatment, and one
of them had been actually crucified. We
were not permitted to 60 to the spot where
the crucifxtion took place, rs, being total
strangers, they feared our mission on the
grounds. The only American gentleman
who saw the body on the cross was q ranch
man living in the immediate neighborhoOd.
Nails had been driven through each foot,
lust above the ankle, and through the
hands. A gentleman who was on the
ground on Saturday says that three more
will not recover.
Last year, on this same spot, man was
crucified also, and the same atrocities per-
petrated. No one dares say word, and
the whites in the vicinity are powerless to
interfere, as their stock, barns and houses
are at the mercy of these people.
These peuitents believe that if they die
undergoing this self-imposed torture they
and all their relatives 60 straight to heaven.
If they survive, their sins are pardOned for
the remainder of their lives.
The Ship Channel an Accomplished Face