Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1889-01-18
LOVE CHARMS.
One Which was Said to be Almost Al.
ways Successful.

From the Boston Globe
The manufacture of love charms and philters
is practice nearly as old as the race The
medieval astrologers found their principal
revenue from the sale Of charms, which were
to attract indifferent eyes to the owners Of
them or bring back to its allegiance some err
rant heart The male sex when driven to en-
tire despair by some heart-whole, fouting she,
did not scruple to use the charm or the philter
as a last resort; but the gentler sex were the
astrologer's better customers. Perhaps be-
cause men are naturally more given to vanity
and more confident of the power of their IN
aided charms; perhaps because immemorial
custom has decreed that the woman must wait
to be wooed and forbids that she should put
forth her powers Of persuasion and eloquence.
At all events women are to this day the chief
users of charms and secret devices for compass
sing their ends in matters of the heart. Here is
love charm which is declared to be absolutely
infallible and was recommended and manu-
featured for years and in great numbers by
a very old New Orleans negress, who was
Voudou priestess and who was said to be more
than hundred years old. She was a native
African and never learned to speak English
very distinctly. She lived by telling fortunes.
the sale of herbs and Voudou charms and this
love charm, which had very high reputation
for efficiency, not only among her own people,
but among the Creoles as well. 1t was made
by catching small tree toad, one of the sort
who make night resonant in those warm
regions and which are not very much larger
than the first joint of mans thumb provided
the man be a big one, but with a voice out of
all proportion to their size. Their backs are a
smooth, delicate green in color, without
speckles. and on the under side they are pure,
silvery white. These little, noisy reptiles are
very shy and difficult to catch, and it was al
ways a mystery how this antique darkey man.
To- fhnra thatr oil afar
to sing from the upper branches of the largest
trees. She did get them, however, and COM
passed their demise by the kindly barbarc
device of driving a large pin through
their heads. She then looked for an
ant-hill and in Louisiana the fOrnicg
are numerous and voracious near
which she buried her wretched little victim
whose bones were Immediately picked and pol
ished to snowy whiteness by the ants. In the
course of a day or two the remains were dis
inferred and went through certain Voudou for
mularies- mysterious African words-and were
passed through fire upon which salt was
sprinkled. The charm was then ready for use.
and the purchaser having paid $3.50. all in
silver half dollars, for this treasure, was then
required to wear it about her neck for seven
nights in succession. She was then to lie in
wait for the insensate wretch who had failed
to properly appreciate her attractions and. I'M
observed, hook the little skelt ton to the gen.
tleman's coat by its sharp, white claws. He
probably crushed it or dropped it very shortly
after. but If it remained only a very few min
utes, five or six at most, the charm was sure to
work. so great were its mysterious powers The
ancient African managed to dispose of some
forty or fifty of these charms every year, and
she was wont solemnly to assert that out of
several hundred cases in which the charm was
used but seven had entirely failed. and in
those cases because the charm had been APP
piled ''in the dark of the moon. it being neces-
sary that all love charms should have their use
when the moon was waning.