The Central Nevadan. [volume] (Battle Mountain, Nev.) 1885-1907, 1885-02-27
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 20, 1885
WITCH-FINDING.
Ordeal by Water Among the Tribes Of
Central India.

The ordeal by water is universal
among the barbarous non-Aryan
tr;bes OF Central India, from the
Bheels in the west country TO the
wild men in the almost unexplored
jung,es OF Bustar and the far east,
toward the Ray Of Bengal.
Here is d ,scription OF one water
test, taken Il few years ago from the
mo ith OF an expert witch finder
among the Ehe Il who got into a
ssrare tor applying 1t TO an old wom-
an:
"A bamboo is stuck up in the mid
die of any piece of water. The ac-
cused is taken TO il, lays hold of it,
and by il drseends Ia the bottom. In
tie meant He ole o he villagers
shoots an arrow from his boz, and
another runs to pick. it up and bring
it back TO the place whence it was
shot II the woman is able to re-
main under water until this is done
she il dccla5ed innocent, bat il she
comes up to breathe before the arrow
Is returned into the woman's hand
she is a true witch and must be
swung as such."
In the case from which this ac-
count is taken the woman failed in
the test, and was consequently swung
TO and fro, roped up to tree, with
bandage of red pepper on her eyes.
But il is obvious that this kind OF or
deal. Ike almost all primitive ordeals,
as c, we'd go as to depend for it's cf
feet much upon the manner N which
it is conducted, whereby the opera
tors favor becomes worth gaining. A
skilliul archer will shoot just as far
as he chooses. Ordeal by water is
the question ordinary, which may
probably be constructed as an in
quiry whether tine water fetch or
water spirits will ACCEPT or reject the
witch-whcther he is on her side or
against her; and this seems to be the
best general explanation of world
wide custom.
Another ordeal is by heat, a., for
instance, the picking OF a coin out OF
burning oil. But the question ex-
traordinary is by swinging on o sa-
cred tree, or by flogging with switches
OF q particular wood. Swinging be-
fore an idol, with hook through the
muscles of the back, is the we'll
known rite by which a Hindoo de-
votes himself to the god, and fog
g;ng with rods from a sacred tree
manifestly adds superhuman virtue
to the ordinary effect OF vigorous
laying on.
In 1865 a woman, suspected OF
bringing cholera into the village, was
deliberately beaten to death with
rods of the castor oil tree, which is
excellent for purging witchcraft. 1t
az usual also to knock out the front
teeth cf a notorious witch; the prac-
tice appears to be connected with the
belief, well known in all countries,
that witches assume animal shapes;
dor in India they are supposed oc-
casionally to transform themselves
INTO wild beasts-a superstition ana
logous to our European lycanthrophy.
a good many years ago there was an
ola man practicing as n physician
near Srngar, in the Himalayas, who
was notorious as sorcerer, in so
much that his reputation OF having
eeVonred many persons, under the
iofm oil tiger, cost him most OF his
teeth, which were extracted by the
ra]ah who held that country, 30 as to
render him less formidable during
his constant metamorphoses.
Shaving the heads OF female witches
ls very common among the the tribes
much infested by sorcerers. 1t is
employed as an antidote, not merely
as degrading punishment, SO that
one Is tempted to trace its origin to
some recondite notion of power resid-
ing in the hair, and thus, even back
toward samson, to Circe, with the
beautiful locks, and to the familiar
devils OF early Christian times, who
are said TO have peculiar attach
ment for women with fine tressee.