Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-12-02

neighboring well; led in a hymn, and
prayed, aad then tested the contents OF the
jar and found nothing but water; and her
leadership was gone, even though her faith
remained
A brother and sister named Boland at
High Prarie, Kan. became SO excited at a
religious revival that they went home and
built a fire on the floor of their house,
danced around it, and would have burned
to death had not the nelghbors come to the
rescue. John Kuhni, a quiet laborer in a
Wisconsin cheese factory, could not convert
his room mate, and so he killed him, be-
cause he would be better dead than alive;
cut out his heart to see if it was black, and
buried 1t separately from the rest of the
body, that it might not cause the whole body
to go to hell. The people of a certain por-
tlon OF North Carolina were greatly stirred
up early this year bv the preaching ofa
number OF Baptist ministers that the world
would come to an end before the end of the
year. In Alabama certain churches of the
Shermanlte denomination had the end set
for certain day in February, and when it
arrived they met at their various places OF
worship and spent the forenoon in singing
and praying, and only went home when
sunset showed them that some one made
serious miscalculation in the date.
DRINKERS OF HUMAN BLOOD.
Early in 1888 one Silas Wilcox made his
appearance in Western Missouri, preaching
but one doctrine-the care of the sick. OF
course, he soon gathered little band around
him, the members OF which took unto them
selves the name Samaritans. As his in
fuence extended his creed expanded, and he
finally declared that the drinking of blood
would heal all manner of diseases, because
the Bible declared that the blood was the
life. In many cases children were found
who had been bled that their elders might
be restored, and the strong arm of the law
had to be evoked before the practice was
suppressed Before the Rev. Stephen Nolan,
of Kentucky, died, in January last, he de-
clared that he had had three bodily vista
tions from Christ. In Indiana, in April,
Clvde Long, boy of17, declared that he
was Christ, and must be crucified. He
erected cross and begged to be nailed upon
it, and when refused took a knife and cut
himself in fearful manner.
Another instance was that remarkable ex-
odus from Oakland, CAL, last April, when
Mrs. Woodwork prophesied that many cities
would be buried by earthquakes and tidal
waves on the 14th, and many persons be-
came so impressed that they packed their
goods into wagons and fed to the hills,
where they sat down to wait for the destruc-
tion that never came. Patrick German set
out to starve himself in a Connecticut Jail
because, he said, God had ordered him so to
do, and for many days kept it resolutely up.
William Thompson, of Kansas, attended
Adventist meetings in Ell Dorado to such
purpose that he went home and attempted to
put his family out of the world a little be-
fore the end that he believed was near, but
was overpowered and kept under restraint
until the excitement wore away.
COULD CURE BY TOUCH.
James Baily was arrested in Alabama
orly three months ago for obtaining money
from the colOred people upon the pretense
that he was high priest of the queen of
heaven and could cure an i'll by touch.
Mrs. Sullivan, of Springfield, O., became
exceedingly devout, sat up at night and read
her Bible, talked and thought of nothing
but religion, and finally constructed an altar
in her house, upon which she prepared to
sacrifice her 6-month-old babe. She stripped
It naked, placed it upon the altar and
reached for a knife, when the opportune el-
rance of other persons saved its life.
In October the newspapers told the fear
ul story of that religious-crazed son
Ind daughter in Michigan who determined
hat their bedridden mother needed to be
baptized, and poured water over her until |
The died. Mrs Woodwork, who was re-
ponsible for the Oakland exodus, moved |
Ter tent to st. Louis and for weeks kept up
scene of religious frenzy. scores falling |
each evening, seeing visions, |
eceiving communications from the dead,
Ind being cured of physical evils.
None OF these events-and scores of like |
characters might be added-bears testimony
against true and reasonable religion, but
hey plainly show what human belief can
,e led to, and the harm that can be done by |
or misguided men and women. |
The recent Indian craze is only portion of |
hat mysterious wave that has swept over
he human emotions from the beginning of |
ime-the Indian showing that he is neither
tronger nor weaker than his brother of other
lues.