Morning journal and courier., 1890-09-26
The EVIL Eye.
From the London Standard

From the London Standard.
A superstition that is common to all
ages and all peoples is at least not unwor-
thy of investigation. If we may discount
the overwhelming mass of evidence of the
existence of belief in the fell powers of
the evil eye amongst all nations, we must
confess that the theory of fascination
which lies at its base rests upon founda-
ton of positive truth. The doctrine of
the evil eye, its causes and effects, is
among the most curious of all that make
up the mystery of magic and the history
of witchcraft. 1t is almost startling to
find belief which is common to South
Sea Islanders and Scandinavians. When
we read the Abyssinian proverb, Beware,
oh my child, beware of the venomous
eyes which like to wound the fair, to
strike at the fairest," and find among the
Australians and the Maories almost analo-
gous saws, we seem to come into contact
with primitive tradition that must date
back to the very beginnings of the world.
By what strange chances it first came to
pass that the eyes, "the windows of the
soul" should be looked upon as an agency
of evil, it is not uninteresting to inquire.
The most popular explanation is SO closely
akin to demoniacal possession that it can
| hardly be distinguished from it. 1t was
not with mortal glance, but with the un-
| hsllowed fire of some unhappy soul, that
| the evil eye was regarded as looking at
and blasting those upon whom it rested.
| There is much that Is uncanny in those
| mythologies, in which the spirits of the
| dead were regarded as malignant demons.
| But, whatever its source, the tradition is
curiously widespread. 1t is well known
that to this day North American Indians
| 60 in terror of the vengeance of the spir-
its of their slain foes. And on more than
one occasion there are authentic records
that fear of the ghosts vengeance has
prevented many murder. In China,
again, those wretched spirits in the world
below who have the misfortune to be des-
| titute-for the Chinese cults do not, it
seems, believe that any compensations are
made in the unknown world for the mis-
fortunes of the present-are propitiated
by offerings of food. When a Chinaman
is indisposed, or threatened with financial
misfortune he prudently burns some
| worthless clothing or base coin in order to
appease the wrath of some irate gentle
man in the lower regions. Apparently it
does not enter into his comprehension
that the spirit in question might be dis
cerning enough to detect the fraud and
visit it with condign punishment.
| "Dio vi guardi d'occhio di letterato,
which may be freely rendered, "May God
preserve you from the glance of a man of
| letters" is proverb which is still current
among the extremely ignorant inhabitants
of Sicily and Sardinia. We have alto
gether failed to ascertain by what reason
| ing they have arrived at such a strange
conclusion as that a man of letters is a
surviving exponent of the black art. But
the fact remains that, in common with
writer's of every degree, poets, painters,
musicians, as well as men of science of ev-
cry age, have been widely credited with
the possession of this embarrassing pow
er. Everybody knows that NJ. Offenbach,
the distinguished composer, was credited
on the continent with being jettatore.
Pope Plus TX, too, was always believed to
possess the evil eye, and superstition
seems to reach the climax of absurdity
when we find that those who attended fol
the Pontifcal blessing, at the same time
took such precautions as they could to
break the weird spell of his glance. In
this case, at any rate, it is not, as in many
others, merely the tradition of hostile
sect, for good Catholics were as convinced
of its truth as the most bigoted Protes
tants We can afford to smile at such
compliments mutual as those by which
Christians and Moslems endowed one an
other with it. And we suspect that the
popular belief that it is possessed by thu
Jewish race had its origin in GENTLE pre-
iudice. Gipsies and Hindus, too, hay,
been wisely regarded as possessing tn
evil eye by hostile and unsympatheti
neighbors. But there are records enougl
and to spare of whole populations havin
: been similarly credited with its possession