Wichita eagle., 1888-06-07
MODERN WTTCHCRAFT.
MARVELLOUS POWERS ATTRIBUTED
TO WITCHES IN NEW MEXICO.
Many OF tho Natives Still Believe in and
Fear Them-Some veracious Stories of


Fear Them-Some veracious Stories of
Uncsnny Expioits-RidinE With the
Witches.
New Mexico. acquired by the United
States in 1913. under the treaty Of Gua6a-
lupe Hidalgo, has q present population Of
about 10000. including about 10000 In
dams and %. 600 Americans las we use the
term in the eastl The rest are Mexicans.
with few fine old Spanish families scat
tered here and there Among the native
population superstition is practically uni
versA and has many strange manifesto
tons Despite the laudable efforts Of our
Pilgrim forefathers to exterminate the
pestlent breed Of witches. there are still
witches and to spare in New Mexico. and
the natives. almost to q man, believe in
and fear them They are generally women.
but sometimes men: usually of middle
age. but occasionally very old, and rarely
very young 1t was my privilege the other
day to photograph three live witches
the first. venture to say. that ever faced
camera They live in San Rafael
Our MYTHOLOGY Is full, detailed and
graphic. Every paisano in New Mexico
can tell you their strange habits. their
marvellous powers and their baieful deeds
They never injure the dumb animals but
woe to the human being who tnonrs their
displeasurel Few indeed are bold enough
food wood. clothing or anything else
zone dare say her nay Nor dare any one
eat what witch proffers for il he DO.
some animal. alive and gnawlng will form
in his stomach By day the witches wear
their familiar human form. but at night,
dressed In strange animal shapes, they fly
abroad to hold witch meetings in the
mountains or to wreak their evil wills.
In dark night you may see them flying
through the sky like SO many balls of fire.
and there are comparatively few Mexicans
in the territory who have not seen this
weird sight For these nocturnal sallies
the witches wear their own bodies. but
take the legs and eyes of coyote or other
animal. leaving their own at home Juan
Perea, male WITCH who died here in
San Mateo some months ago. met with
strange misfortune in this wise he had
gone off with the eyes Of a cat and dur
ing his absence dog knocked over the
table and ate up Juan's own eyes. SO the
unfortunate witch had to wear cats eyes
all the rest of his life
RIDING WITH THE WITCHES
Before they can fly. witches are obliged
= -,
without God and without the Holy Viz
GIN. Whereupon they mount up into
the air without difficulty If you are on
good terms with witch you may persuade
her to carry you on her back from here to
New York in second She blindfolds
you and enjoins strict silence If you ut
ter word you find yourself alone in some
vast wilderness. and if you cry God save
mel you fall from fearful height to the
ground-but are luckily never killed by
the fall There are several courageous
people in the territory who have made
journeys thus upon the backs of witches
At least they are ready to swear so. and
they find 10000 believers to one skeptic.
One striking peculiarly about New Mex
leo witches is that any one named Juan
or Juana John or Jane) cali catch them,
and that no one else can except a priest
with holy water To catch witch, Juan
draws a nine foot circle on the ground.
''Veuga brutal" tcome. witch( where
upon the witch has to fall inside the cir
Gle and Juan has her completely in his
power This ability to catch witches
however, is seldom exercised. for let Juan
once catch witch and all the other
witches in the country join hands and
whip him to death
And now. having briefly outlined the
nature of witches here let me give you
some veracious anecdotes of their exploits
-religiously believed throughout this
section Lorenza Labadie, man of
in New Mexico once unknow
ingly hired witch as nurse for bis baby
He lived in Las Vegas Some months
afterward there was q ball at Puerta do
Luna, a couple Of hundred miles south,
and friends Of the family were astouished
to see the nurse and baby there Where
s Senior Labadie and his family" they
asked. The nurse replied that they were
At house few miles distant, but too
tired to come to the ball The friends
went there next day and found the Laba
lies had not been there. Suspecting the
nurse to be witch. they wrote to Don
lorenzo. who only knew that the nurse
md baby were in his house when be went
n hoA odd Yhara olpN -har h.
t being plain, therefore, to the most
'asual observer that tho woman was .
witch. he promptly discharged her.
PECULIAR EXPERIENCES
A pretty girl at San Rafael. just mar.
led. had quarrel with one Of the witches
here. That night strange cat came
nto the room Feeling sure 1t was q
witch. she locked the door and window.
nd her husband came with bis six
hooter, but the cat melted into thin air
'efore he could shoot. A little later an
wi suddenly appeared. few against Mar
'arita's cheek and cut it. and then dis
ppeared as mysteriously a. the cat had
one A horrible sore formed on the
heck. and could not be cured till Marga-
ita appeased the witch with presents
Jose Patricio Marine one Of the most
men In San Mateo. had most
experience not long ago
here was then in town . witch named
iarcelHna- thin. withered woman of per
APPS SO years Marino hsd the bad luck
, offend her. and she retaliated BY turn
lg him into q wonnani BE was m this
for several months, a. he Il
cen TO swear. and recovered only BY