Morning journal and courier., 1883-04-05
Exercising the Devil.

correspondent at San Luis Key Indian Agency gives the following description Of the manner in which the savages drive the evil one away: s'The Indians do not like to take medicines, but they held few days ago 8 fiesta for three successive nights for the pur- pose of decoYing the Demon of Sickness and if possible catch and kill him. It was the best I have yet seen in the many years of my &C., quaintance with the hfe and customs of these Mission Indians. After Q lot of bucks, naked but fixed up with paint and feathers, had ex- hausted themselves by dancing and stamping the ground about an hour around big fire and got hoarse from grunting and bowling. an old gray buck, the 'chissero, stepped into the centre of the ring and began, in a low, mournful voice, to sing. He was dressed or rather, undressed-the same as the others, with the exception that he held a rattle made out of the tails of rattlesnakes in his right hand, while on his head was a tiara formed of three punches of plumes.
 ''From time to time he went outside of the ring up on the hillside and looking up in the air in all directions, called in decoying voice for ths ghost. When he returned he always explained in a few whispered words how diff fcult 1t was and how dangerous it was for him and that he was very much afraid. At last, when he came back again from the hill, he danced three times around the fire, when he was seized with heavy convulsions, which brought him, under fearful moans (and seem- ingly he suffered terrible pains), to the ground. But he had still force enough left to pull out the bundles of feathers from his head With these he rubbed his chest, and this releasing him from the power of the demon, he jumped up and with fearful yells everybody followed him in 8 wild tumult men, women and children crying 'Matalo, matalo,' (kill him, kill him), and beating the ground with the sticks they had ready for the occasion
 
 "I got out of the way then, for they seemed to be lot of loose maniacs. When they re- turned to the ring they all stood up in circle, the old 'chissero dug little hole in the cen Ire and after some more singing and stamping the ground, pulled one of the bundles of feathers from his head, and going around rubbed it against each person. From time to time he returned to the hole, and seeming to suck some juice from them, he spat it into the hole. Then he filled it again, stamped the ground down, and with fearful yells the same wild beating of the ground followed, in which even old Vicente took part. This concluded the ceremonies and everybody went home feeling satisfied that he was the one who had hit or killed the ghost and no more sickness was going to pre- vail in the village. The whole made pictu- resque scene-the swarthy old bucks with their sweaty faces illuminated by excitement and dancing; the huge fire burning in the middle, of which once in while a kick would send the flames and sparks away up to the tops of the trees the stern face of the cap tain sitting on chair with long rod in his hand and the audience with eager expectation sitting on the ground; the flair sex doing their part in singing Then owls would fly overhead through the branches of the dark, shadowing oaks, joining in with their voices and adding to the awe of the whole, while fair Luna's face rose, shining in it's soft splendor, above the mountains to illumin ate oil