The Manitowoc pilot. [volume] (Manitowoc, Wis.) 1859-1932, 1882-03-02
WITCHCRAFT IN ALASKA.
4 HORRIBLE STORY OF SUPERSTITION FROM
FORT wRANGELL-oLD WOMEN AND
CHILDREN BURNED.

FORT wRANGELL-oLD WOMEN AND
CHILDREN BURNED.
st. Louis Republican: Those who at
tended the meeting of the Women's
| Board of Missions at the Presbyterian
rooms were grieved and astonished when
they listened to the reading of very
sensational letter from Miss Maggie j.
Dunbar. a Presbyterian missionary, sta :
toned at present at Fort WrangelL
Alaska. Through the letter its author
described the terrible suferings of sew
eral families, old men and young children
recently tortured to death for the alleged
crime of witchcraft. The victims, in
cluding persons of various ages, from
to 70 years, were tried by the heather
tribunals of the place and sentenced to
death. At Lock, a portion of Alaska
where the ancient population of the place
predominates and enforces their unwrit-
ten law, which consists of all the super
stitions their ancestors found leisure to
devise and hand down to their posterity,
a family found guilty of being spiritual
jugglsrs, of type supposed to be in
league with the devil, were taken out
and tied to trees. The grandmother of
the family was tied to large forest tree
and left there to starve. After giving
her salt water whenever she asked that
her thirst might be quenched, the demons
about the tree finally hacked her to death
with knives. The balance of the family
succeeded in breaking away from their
captors, and escaped by plunging into
dark, and, to all appearances, impene-
trable forest filled with wild beasts
These prosecuted people wandered about
through the dark recesses of this wilder
ness, cold and hungry, until they could
stand their sufferings no longer, when
they concluded to cross the enemy's
country under cover of darkness and
reach, if possible, Fort Wrangell, where
they knew they would be safe in the
presence of the United States man-of-war.
They reached the ocean and took to
canoe. In this frail bark they pursued
their journey, hugging the coast as close
ly as possible, until they arrived at the
fort, almost dead and scarcely able to
talk. The missionary, who was walking
on the beach on the evening of their
arrival, saw the canoe land. The craft
contained an old man and two children,
who related their frightful adventures
and asked for protection. The children
were taken into the Missionary Home of
the fort. The two girls, the letter states,
looked rather odd, walking to the Home
along the beach robed in blankets latter
ed and torn.
A little girl whom the missionary calls
Georgia, only s years of age, an orphan,
resided with an aunt. This aunt took
sick one day, when the child was accus-
ed of bewitching her and "making her
bad medicine" AS soon as this accusa-
ton was made the little creature was
locked up in room, where she was kept
for three days without food or water and
whipped numerically until her body was
literally covered with discolored marks.
The chief of one of the Christianized
communities heard of the outrage and
reported the matter to the military au-
thorii;es of the fort, who visited the place
where the child was confined one night,
rescued her and took her to the mission
ary home. Both the cases described haYe
been reported to the captain of the man
of-war stationed at the fort, and the
savages, it is thought, will ultimately be
punished.
"This week." says the writer, "Mrs.
Mcfarland took in two interesting young
girls who had fed from Cape Fox village,
where some of their friends had been
killed for witchcraft. Tie people of
Alaska have believed in witchcraft as far
back into the past as their traditions
carry them. If native doctor is called
upon to administer medicine to patient
and the patient fails to recover with great
suddenness, he accuses the nurse or some
other defenseless person with being
witch and tampering with his herbs and
roots. The person SO accused is prompt
ly taken out and tied to tree. He is
starved for some time, fed on salt water,
and then roasted to death or hacked in
pieces with knives. When an epidemic
or any other calamity prevails, all the
old women and defenceless children that
can be caught before they have time to
take to the woods are murdered accord
ing to the regular forms approved by the
traditionary lea non scripto of the coun-
try. There is certainly great demand
for missionary labor in such country.
In fact, In any country where old, gray
haired women and little children are
starved. whipped, roasted alive, and fed
on salt water, there is plenty of work
that ought to be accomplished in the
interest of humanity. The witchcraft
outrages in Alaska, it is strange fact,
are spasmodic, and occur only at periods.
When one person is accused, the chances
are that alleged witches will be discover
ed In large numbers all over the country.
Mrs. NANCY HARMAN, of Mansfield, O.
writes: 81 have been under the care of
physician during the past seven years.
Sometimes I would feel better, and then
again would feel worse. The past two
years nothing seemed to help me. About
two months ago my doctor seemed to be
getting discouraged, and lay completely
bed ridden. l grew very nervous; the
least noise gave me great irritation. The
doctor, l suppose more to get me off his
hands than anything else, as he said
would never leave my bed. sold me
might try Browns Iron Bitters. at the