, 1889-02-26

is considered bad form to introduce the topic
in conversation among the upper Glasses ]
asked for IN explanation.
Because it Is true that voudooism and Its
occasional c-oncomitant, cannibahEm, prevail
everywhere and Haytians Of intelligence and
education are ashamed of it They do not
like to be thought beyond the pale of canni-
balistic practices merely because they have
been taught better. You will never meet n
mulntto among tho worshipers Of the ser
pent, and IL is rare that a negro possessing
any education ~sympathizes. Many persons
outwnrdly profess solely from polite mo-
tives The late President Salnnve, a mulatto,
used 10 take part in the midnight meetings,
but he was n politician seeking tho support of
the papaloi He used to ridicule voudooisn
privately TO his intimnteA ! know this pG
sonally.
TIE BELIEF AND PRACTICES
Tho explanation becomes Of interest because
Spencer St John In his book on Hayti charges
Salnhve with vaudauxism. My informant
was n mulatto who possesses IN intimate
knowledge Of Hnytian affairs. Tho alteration
Of serPents Is n heather religion imported
from the jungles Of Africa Officers of the
First West India regiment Of the British
nrnly, who have done long service on the gold
coast, have given 10 me n detailed description
Of voudooism as II there prevails under tho
name OF vodun- There is apparently but lit
tie difference in the disgusting rites, except
that the horrible orgy which follows many Of
the Haytinn meetings is not met with among
tho voiaries on tho native heath OF voudoo
ism.
The story Of Naudnux IL too wcll known to
DO recounted in detail here Sufficient TO
mention that it is the religion Of a conddera-
bic portion Of the savage tribe ri Africa.
In the kingdom Of Dnho.ney hundreds OF
thousands Of human victims have first and
- - r. =
AxhnnteO tho serpent h possesszcd Of super
natural powers in the minds Of tho followers
Of oh There is n large yellow snake which
is used as tho medium OF tho mysterious power
Of Vnudnux- Naudnux Is tho God on high,
but the all powerful controller Of the negro's
universe dcigns to employ Intermediates,
and tho serpent becomes tho black savagc's
Jesus Of Nazareth. Tho priest of Vaudnux is
called papaloi, a corruption of papa roi papa
king. Ho shares his regal honors with a
dusky dame, who is generally his ''plncodn
wife, as they say in Hhyti, which means no
wife at all in n legal or religious sense. She
is known as mhmnnloi, and that she plays n
highly important part in tho midnight con
clnve will DO seen rs this story proceeds
II yon arc awake mt n late hour Of the even
ing at Port au Prince, you will hear n dull,
m-onotonous sound waited down tho heavy
nir from the direction of thnt portion of the
town which lies near the plain of the Guido
Sac. II is tho noise of tho ~bamboula, or
Congo drum-weird, uncanny and sugges-
tive. Tn beats arc slow and ut regular In
tervals. Black men and women dance the
uncouth measures they witnessed in their
childhood, tho snme us their fathers and
mothers beheld In their childhood in Africa
To dance tho bambouln Is one of tho few APP
parent pastimes the Haytian negro enjoys
Tho drum is also nm invarinble associate OF n
vaudnux meeting. Without II tho black mnn
would be bo~eft of his closest intimate friend.
The papalois call their meetings Mt night
time, generally ut a lnt5 hour. The place Is
secret 10 nl ssvo the initiated, and as a rule
only tho initiated can by my means secure
attendance. Tho mystery Is no doubt n
legacy Of the French colonial days, when tho
aSsemblngo Of n vaudaux circle WINS a crime,
punishable by death or terrible %whippings.
The vaudaux rites of that period were not
attended by some of the horrible excuses
which mark those of tho present day. Ac-
cording to st. Merry md other writer's canni-
bnlism WINS unknown, and tho principal OBJ
lection urged by the French law makers was
tho danger of conspiracies against tho whites
being concocted when many slnves were
drawn together uncontrolled by the presence
OF their masterR
sAcRTICEs OF BLOOD.
In Hnyti at the present time, by n careful
estimate based ON the expressed opinions Of a
number Of residents of the island, there are
over one-half the population directly under
the sway Of tho papalois. The great majority
Of h .belicvers are of the harmless wing Of
tho society, who satisfy themselves with
offering to the serpent a white goato or several
Of tho white long tailed cocks which are n
cross between the gnme fowl and the Leg
horn breed. The minority, in cases of, to
them, extreme Importance demand tho
sterncr sacrifice. In the slang of tho papalois
tho goat without horns can only nssuage
the Indignation or tho indifference of Vau-
daux- Tho goat without horns Is a human
being, n child, whose life blood Is spilled over
the altar on which the medium of Vaudaux,
n semi-torpid serpent, rests. According to
papalois tencts there Is no crime that cannot
10 condoned; no desire which may not be nc
complished; no earthly happiness which may
not be attained, and no enemy too powerful
to DO crushed II the faithful believer pros
tratos himself before the serpent and nnoints
his head with tho blood Of a sacrificed goat
without horns"
There have been three presidents of Hayti
who have consented to radical measures
being employed TO check the cannibalistic
tendencies of a portion Of the population.
Tn late President Gefrrard, Whose family at
present reside in a fine PEN near Kingston,
Jamaica, endcavored to extirpate vaudaux-
ism Gen. Boisrond-C Canal during his short
-+AN6AANA va III AoAult Opponent OF INC
rites Of the serpent, and tho lnta President
Solomon likewise in his crafty way evinced a
desire 10 rid HRyti Of her c~rewuing shame,
The Emperor Faustin, or S~oulouquc, wus a
member of the Vaudaux society, and Gen.
Dominique, who wns president in lsT4-5, was
an active follower. He was a born African
and vas undoubtedly the most ignorant and
savage ruler the Haytians were ever cursed
with His nephew, Septimus Rameau, whose
murderous deeds have boon r~ecounted in tho
course OF this correspondence, WINS popular
during the period of his infamous occupancy
OF the position Of primo minister under Do
mingue.
have been assured In Hnyti that the oppo-
sition Of Gefrrard and Boisrond-Canal to tho
vnudnux practices was an Important element
in creating the opposition which led to their
political downfan-Cor. New York Herald.
Squirrels Fly Into tho Church
The flying squirrels arc quito q nuisance at
tho Episcopal church in Bainbridge, the trees