Morning journal and courier., 1880-02-03
Price Four Cents.
Experiments wilh a"Mad-stone.' ;
Hts RemarlxabIe Efficucy in the Nrost

I cluueo compound, Juggler of striking 3D.
 pearance, indeed. He was evidently Raj l poot, for his complexion was swarthy, he wor, l his beard and brushed it from the centre ot
 the chin each way after the Rajpoot fashion and his shining ebon hair hung in heavy i tresses to his shoulders. He had two baskets of snakes, and carried a stout staff in his righ hand. Hindoo gentleman, who happened to be calling at the moment, recognized him as the cleverest snake charmer in Bombay. so be made him welcorie, as you may believe. His first care was to hand me to read mum Der Of certificates from former patrons, testi- flying to his cleverness as @ snake catcher ; among them, one from rich Parsee, who
 certified that the bearer, Bichu Nath, ha6 captured aud removed two cobras from his grounds at Lenowlie. This looked well.
 Bichu Nath, through an interpreter, ex- plained to us that he would play first upon his vagouday, or pipe, and then produce for us cobra from any corner or spot, inside the bungalow or in the garden, we would indicate, So, throwing of the cotton wrap that he wore over his shoulders and leaving upon his person no other covering than his dhoti, he took hls gourd instrument of music and began to play. It was unexpectedly sweet and smooth in tone, and really seemed quite cal culated to exercise an attractive influence over serpent. But no wriggling ophidian came rom ms hiding place to twine about the charmer's legs-principally, suppose, for
 the reason that we have none in our neiehbor- hood. Bichu Nath looked hither and thither as though waiting for them, and then shook his head to signify that the service rendered
 to the Lenowlie Parsee would not have to be repeated here. He then turned his back to
 us, as If for decency's sake, and unWound and
 held out his dhot1 to show that there was no
 chance for him to hide anything about his
 yerson, had he so desired; and then readiust
 ing the dhoti, grasped his long staff and stole
 stealthily toward the spot outside the bunea-
 low where we had told him to produce his
 hrst cobra. He was at that moment & most
 artistic figure, with his swart, spare body, in
 which the muscles were sharply defined: his
 thick suit of glossy hair shaking in the wind.
 and his outstretched hands clutching the staff
 He was repeating to himself in half tones
 what seemed to be mentram, and elided
 forward by long strides, in a panther-like
 way, much as an American. Indian is supposed
 to do when in the vicinity of an enemy. We
 all lsft the verandah and followed him; I
 close after his heels, 50 that I might watch
 his tricks. When at the chosen spot he made
 sudden stroke forward with his stick and in
 the next instant there was veritable cobra di
 capello on the ground, erect on it's coil. with
 head extended and hissing at us. Our first
 thought was to run, but as I saw the mans
 naked foot and leg within foot of the crea-
 lures fangs, and he rot discomposed in the
 least, concluded that the danger was more
 apparent than real, so did not budce Bv 8
 dexterous movement the charmer caught the
 reptile just under the head, and, sliding his
 thumb up under the jaw, held it firm, and
 fast though it wrapped it's coils about his
 naked arm and wrggled to free itself He
 carried this snake to his baskets and slipped
 it in, whereupon he returned to our group
 and went through the same performance again. This time he produced @ much larger and finer snake than the other one at the foot of banana tree as requested.
 Sba,, .
 of the bungalows, where the Rajpoot appear ed to make 6 cobra drop out of a towel that
 hung on nail and, having by this tins sat
 lsied our curiosity for this branch of his art.
 he asked us to bring chicken, so that we
 might be satisfied that the Stakes had not had their fangs drawn. While a servant was gone in search of the fowl the man erasped the last cobra, and opening it's mouth by squeez- ing 1t under the lower jaw, and pressing splinter of wood transversely against the zygomatic muscles to prevent the jaws from closing, showing us it's large, needle pointed fangs. Once when Dr. H. 0. Trumbull, the Hartford philologist and librarian, was de- scriblng to nS the feats of snaka charnasz4it Cairo, Egypt, he affirmed that the serpent's fangs had been drawn and the corners of it's mouth sewed together. I am now able to affirm that at least in this instance, the deadly reptile had not been so doctored
 Our cobra being replaced upon the cement uooE oi tue rOOHl, ana the cllcken gwen to the operator, the latter clutched it in his hand so as to make the wings partly serve as a shield, and teased the serpent into 8 rage, It rose upon its coil, drew back, expanded it's hood to the widest extent and hissed with sound like the drawing in and expellinp of one's breath through the closed teeth. It seemed hardly willing to look at tine poor fowl, but fixed it's gazs upon the Hindoo's hand. Presently it plunged forward as quick as flash, and struck as the hand where it was unprotected by the birds wings. The man never finched, and the angry snake then struck the chicken again and again. The charmer dropped it on the floor, when it was again struck, and then it's enemy as if satis- fled, rose again and resumed it's hissing. The chicken staggered about for few seconds dropped, turned over on it's back, kicked con vuisively, and soon died. The charmer pinched the back of his hand, and squeezing out drop of blood showed us where one of the fangs had pierced the skin. His coolness at once surprised me and excited my suspi- cion, though we had just witnessed the end of the fowl He went to small tin box that he had placed conveniently near, and, turning over what appeared to be some small dried roots, took out dark, hard substance, about the size of vest button, which he applied to his wound. Its diameter, as I subsequently, ascertained, was 17-32 of an inch, itsthickness 3-16 of an inch. Not having any weight small enough to weigh it by, put rice grains in the opposite pan of the scales, and found it just balanced eighty of them. It's color above is dark brown that beneath a dull lead color, and the two lauinse are joined in such feels to the touch more like fine grained horn than anything else. This was one of the fla nous ''mad stones" of India
 It stuck fast to the wound at once, and the Hindoo then turned his whole attention to the hissing snake, which had now moved from it's position. He teazed it with towel until it struck it half dozen times, but never taking its eye from his face. All this while the hard button stuck to the one drop of blood on his hand, as I ascertained by taking hold of it stuck fast After awhile it dropped off of it's own accord I could not perceive that it had changed ct all in color, nor was there on the surface that had been applied to the mans hand any gummy or sticky substance that would account for its having adhered so tena- ciously. He said that was due to O magical (say magnetic or odic if you choose) property it had, which caused it to attract to itself the cobra virus, and, while so attracting, to cling to the wound Be this as it may, it certainly did stick tighter than the gumminess of a sin gle coagulated drop of blood would explain.
 That this ''stone" or substance had curious resident properties was now shown in Q re. manner. The Raipoct, taking it between his thumb and finger, held it toward the serpent, whose rage seemed not to have at all suDslOeQ. AS tnOuRn some electric current bad suddenly struck it, the reptile drew back it's head as far as it could, and, without at tempting to strike, hissed less and less violent ly, swayed from one side to the other, folded its hood, loosened it's coil and sank lower and lower, until it lay silent and relaxed on the floor, tho charmer constantly pushing the mad stone nearer and nearer toward it's head. until he touched the skin and held it there. We were amazed, indeed, for we could not that the reptile could so per- fectly simulate the state of narcotization or Stin, to satisfy myself that we were not witnessing either the effect of the mans own mesmeric power upon the ami nal or clever bit of ophidian acting, I took the stone in my own hands, and, first arousing the snake by teasing it until 1t had risen in rage at me, and was hissing as ven omously as before, I moved toward him. The result was as before, the snake coming rapidly under the power of the stone, uncoil- ing itself, and falling limp in heap.
 The friends present, who had been ready to pull me back by my oat-tails for fear might be bitten, now pressed near, and Mime. Blavatsky at once struck bargain for the snake stone and took possession of her prize for a few rupees. will not attempt to explain this seeming mystery; you have the exact details, and may draw your own conclusions. am quite aware that Dr. Fayrer. in his splendidly |