Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1886-03-20
STRANGE CHARMS AND SPELLS.
English Farmers I'm This Country VINO
Believe I'm and Practice Them.

From the New York Sun
Years ago q number OF emigrants rom De-
vonshire, Lancaster, Cornwall, Yorkshire, and
other counties of England settled in northern
pennsylvania, near the New York line. They
have made some of the finest farms in the state,
and are the best OF citizens; but many Of them
cling with singular tenacity, to a strange belief
| In the efncienoy of certain charms that have
been used for centuries among the class to which
they belonged in England.
|. The charmed ring cure for epilepsy is one OF
these: Only few days ago a jeweler in one of
the villages was called upon by resident of the
settlement, who had with him his daughter, a
slckiy girl OF O. The girl produced nine English
requested to make ring to fit the girls middle
ringer: 1t was necessary, the farmer said, that
rest of the pieces saved and returned to his
daughter. The coins were given her by nine
which would give civ ito to the ring charm which,
when she put 1t on, would cure her of epilepsy,
from which she was SUFFERING This be main lin,
victim of epilepsy was a male, the nine coins
must be presented by nine females.
Some of these farmers keep the skins of adders
in or on their house or buildings, believing
them to be a certain charm against fire.
TO cure ague the patient is taken to spot
the spot possible. A lock of his hair is lifted
up and driven into the tree with an ash peg.
The patient must then tear himself loose, leaving
the hair stick in the tree, and walk away with
out looking behind.
Fufferers with erysipelas, by wearing in a
silken bag around their necks a toad from which
the right hind leg and the left fore leg has been
cut, until the mutilated reptile dies, will get
we'll of the disease.
The tongue cut from a living fox these charm
believers say, carried about the person, will
ward off disease of all kinds but as the person
If he should happen to met fox at any cross
roads, the charm is seldom invoked.
One old resident of the settlement carries in
his pocket constantly an immense tooth from
human jaw. The tooth, he says, was taken
| from the mouth OF a man after he was dead,
who was hanged in HertfOrdshre more than a
hundred years ago. and was carried by the
present owners father, grandfather and great
grandfather: 1t is carried as a preventive of
tOOthache, the tooth from dead PERSONS mouth
being certain charm against that malady. The
owner OF the tooth says he never had the tooth
ache in his life. double hazel nut carried in
the pocket or about the person is also pre-
ventive of this painful ailment.
The charms for the dispersion of warts be-
lieved In by many OF these honest farmers are
| numerous and most singular. For instance, if
person with warts on his or her hands will
wfse dGwn h the number OF them on the band Of
he will carry the warts away with him-that is
they will gradually disappear from the persons
cutting notch on green elder s stick for every
wart person may have, rubbing the stick on
every wart, and then burying it in the barn
warts may be cured. Warts may also be re-
moved by taking black snail, rubbing it
snail on a thorn bush, repeating the process
nine successive nights, by which time the warts
and the snail will both be shriveled up. Another
way to get rid of warts is for the person to see
funeral pass unexpectedly, wherever he may
be- and as 1t passes rub his warts quickly and
repeat the words: Warts and corpse pass away
and never more return" Green peas may also
be used to advantage in taking off warts. Let
the afflicted person take as many peas as he
has warts and touch each wart with different
pea. He must then wrap each pea in a separate
piece of paper, and bury them secretly in the
shade OF an ash tree or under hazel bush. If
No not fv,c f1,n
warts does not care to try the efficacy of any Of
the above named charms, let him select many
pebbles as he has warts Sewing them up in
small bag, he must take them to where four
roads cross and throw tine bag over his left
shoulder. This charm will never be resorted to,
however, by persons who have no malicious.
ness in their hearts, for if by chance any other
person should find the bag and open it the
warts will appear on his hand.
a Wen is usually q troublesome and unSightly
thing to be afflicted with, but the victim of
Wens need not suffer long If they believe in the
it by the head and tail, and draw it backward
and forward nine times over the wen; then
cork the snake in a bottle and bury it. II that
fails, the patient must not repine, but simply
wait until the next May day. Rise early in the
morning OF that day before the sun has disturb
ed the dew Go to a graveyard, and by passing
the hand three times from head to foot over
the grave, collect the dew that lies on the
grave of the last young person who was buried
IN the yard. IL the victim o. the wen is WO-
man the grave must be that of man, and vice
versa. Apply the dew Immediately to the Wen
ana a cure Is guaranteed. In England accord
ing to an old resident, the 'dead stroke" was
considered a never-failing cure for wens. This
was the stroking OF the affected part with the
head OF a dead criminal.
The charm tor curing nOsebleed is a curious
one. II a person is subject to nosebleed, he
may effect q cure by going to a person of the
opposite sex and requesting him or her to pur.
chase piece OF lace, such as may be speci.
fed, for the person making the request. When
the lace is brought the person must take it
and neither pay for it nor return thanks for it.
He must make necktie out of the lace and
wear it for nine days, and he will never have
the nosebleed again. If the person is too modest
or gallant to get the lace in that way, let him
catch a toad kill it and wear it around his neck
in bag until the stencil sicken him. His nose
will never bleed again.
II q person has cramps in the legs or feet at
night, he has but to place his stockings in
shape Of cross on the floor in front of his bed
when he retires, or lay his slippers under
the bed, soles upward. Placing the shoes
under the coverhd at the foot of the bed SO
that the toes protrude is also a sure preventive
Of cramps.
No one who wears a snake skin around his
head need ever have headache. II one feels a
sty coming on his eye let him take hair from
the tail OF black Cat, rub the eye with it nine
times before midnight on the first night of the
new moon, and the sty will die. A ringworm
may be disposed OF by simply holding between
the thumb and fingers pinch of hazel ashes
before breakfast for three days and saying:
Ringworm, rngwOrm red,
Never mayest thou speed or spread
Pf oxvnfV Hasa