Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1889-03-01
Preventing Being Conjured.
QUEER MEANS RESORTED TO, TO BREAK A
SPELL.

/ SPELL.
Bergman White is a quiet and orderly
colored man of about the average intelll-
gence of his race. He is the JanitOr OF the
Opera House, and also of the law offices OF
Sheffey & Bumgardner, and A. G. Braxton,
which adjoin each other, on New street.
For some months past every morning, there
has been on the outer doors of both of these
law offices, a smearing resembling soap
suds, very disagreeable to the eye. The
Janitor would be ordered to wash it off and
did so. A watch was set to find out who the
perpetrator Of the outrage was. One night,
while two policemen were watching inside
one of the offices, a colored girl who had
been sent on errand to a neighboring
house mistook the place and tried the office
door. The policemen jumped out and caught
her, and she, thinking the ''White Caps
had her, raised such a scream as alarmed
the neighborhood. After explanation she
was released. Last Saturday night, Mr.. w.
| w. FretWell was on watch. He saw Janltor
White, with tin-can of water going up the
street. He followed him. White went into a
grocery store and got a lot of fish salt and put
it in the can. He stirred it up as he walked
back to the offices. Arrived there, he peered
cautiously around and then. proceeded to
sprinkle the doors with the mixture. The
secret was out at last. Mr.. Fretwell sprang
out and caught him. He said he did it to
prevent being 'sconjured" by some other
colored persons.
When the case got before Mayor Fultz,
Wednesday morning, further particulars
were elected. 1t appears that Bergman
cleans up, besides the offices already named,
the City Treasurer S office land the law offices
of MI. Jos. A Waddell and Mr. Charles
Curry 1t was at the two offices of Sheffey
& Bumgardner and A. G. BraXton alone,
that the doors were defaced. The evidence
showed that Bergman had frequently
spoken of being ''cOnj that he had
come down to work with cotton stuffed in
nose, as check to the spell which had been
put upon him. He was put upon the stand
himself and told his own story. He denied
having put offensive matter on the doors,
but admitted having put fish brine, salt and
other compounds. He said the offensive
compound had been put on by two sisters
named Givens, to conjure him, and that he
put his own compounds on to break up the
HConjure.' These women, he claimed, had
conjured him, because he testified against
their brother in court. He said the conjure
affected his left leg, and swelled it up. He
wore fish salt in his shoe to break the spell.
He was not the same man as he had been, on
account Of the spell that had been put Oh
him. He had been to Charlottesville to try
and get it broken, but could not. A for
tune-teller had told him that if he did not
get it broken, he would die.
Capt. Jas. A. Bumgardner, A. G. .Brax-
ton, B. B. Eskridge, J. 7. Parent, w. w.
Fretwel, Officer Fretwell, Clint. Butcher,
Constable George A. Hutcheson, and
Drs. F. L. Henkel and B. Catlett, were
examined in the case, as was "Tootsy';
Owens, one of the conjuring sisters, very
black girl of twenty years, who Indignantly
denied knowing anything of the black art
OF having anything against Bergman.
Mayor Fultz fined the accused $40 in each
case-the two law offices-and gave him sc
days in jail if the fines were not paid. MI
Edward Echols conducted the prosecution
The novelty Of the case brought a hundred
OF more white spectators to the police
court, and a few negroes.
This superstition is not unusual among
the colored people. 1t has not been very
long since, that DR.. John w. Harris, the
City Physician, was attending colored
man for a disease of the jaw He found the
man was not taking his advice and upon
inquiry, discovered that he had sent tc
Clifton Forge and gotten the advice of a
''voudoo'' Negro, who had prescribed fol
him to hold a piece of silver between his
| teeth and to commit other fooleries for a
cure.