Daily Republican., 1885-08-05
WITCHCRAFT IN WEST INDIES

Obeah in the West Indies Ia q two.
fold art-the art of poisoning combined
with tue art OF imposing upon the Gre
dulity OF ignorant people by a pretence
of witchcraft. The Obeah man or wo.
man is one of a great guild or fraternity
Of crime.
Hardly criminal trial occurs in the
different colonies in which he is nor
Implicated In one way or another. His
influence is unbounded, the credulous
peasantry holding him az prophet,
priest and king OF the district over
which he holds sway. Ifa negro mai
den wants n charm to make her lover
good to her - if a man wishes to
avenge wrong, orf 70 know the secrets
of the future, the Obeah man is at hand
to supply the means and to protfer his
assistance and advice.
Under the title of " bush doctor" he
wanders from place 20 place at the cost
OF his dupes supplied with food by one,
with money by anotl er, denied nothing.
His pre'ensiops are high but he has
IN tans q: hand 70 enforce them. He de.
cla es himself powerful to cure all disea.
ses. He can protect man from the
Consequence of a crime ;ie can even
reanimate the dead.
OBEAH AS DANGEROUS AS CHOLERA,
His knowledge Of poisons is i'm IN ense.
Every bush and tree furnish weapone
for his armOry. Unfortunately, in too
many instances, more effective agen Is
are not wanting to his hand, How
many planters have had poison admin
lsCel ed to tht M in their coffee; how
maby bookkeepers have come to there
untimely end by the mixture OF ground
glass in their food may be seen in the
records of the slave courts of the differ
ent colonies--Bar BADGES and Jamaica
especially. Next to cholera and yellow
fever. Obeah was the greatest DANCE,
which every white man connected witt
he administration of q sugar estate
had TO encounter.
There Is something 1ndescribably
sinister in the appearance OF the Obeal
man, which is readily observed by per
sons who have mix. d much with TIL,
negroes. Sometimes, az an outward
and visible sign of his trade or calling
he carries about with him a staff ol
wand, with serpents wreathed about i,
or the rude likeness of q humap face
roughly delineated On the handle
Lizards bones, cats claws, ducks
skulls, grave dirt-tkat is, eartL taken
-
fcorFse-hang in bag at his side, He
has his cabalistic book (albeit he can
seldom read), full OF strange charac
ters, crude figures and roughly traced
diagrams and devices, which he pre-
tends TO consult il the exercise of his
lcalling.
AN ILLUSTRATION OF THE BLACK ART
On Que occasion ] happened to be in
court house during the trial of a no
tor,ous thief, when l noticed one o.
| these gentlemen enter the room very
dirty handkerchief was bound Tight 5
| round his head, and from under hi.
shaggy bcows l couid see a pair of smnll
cunning eyes which never took theii
gaze from the face of the judge. Th,
prisoner was undefended and finally
lconvicted, but l was after wards tolt
that instead of employing lawyer h,
| had retained for his defense this Obeat
man, and had actually paid thin
the sum of three guineas for his ser.
vices. The wizard had undertaken t.
fix the eye" of the judge, and had
persuaded the miserable dupe that thii
would infalibly ensure his acquittal.
| On another occasion young negress
was brought up, charged with assault
and battery on very old woman. He
had scarcely taken his stand In the
witness box when she fell down into q
fit and had to be carried out of tn.
court, The case WAS adjourned till the
next day, whep, to my intense aston.
ishment, the same thing was repeated
ION the third occasion, when she was
put into the dock, noticed her tremb
ling all over. Soon her face began to
twitch, and suddenly she fell down
foaming at the mouth. 1t turned out
that the witness was an Obeah man
and he had trumped up ais charge
against the child, and the mere sight
OF him standing up to accuse her had
| b Onp bit ON The attack have dbscrihad