The Cambria freeman. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1867-1938, 1891-12-11
PORTUGUESE sEGeAaS.
Always Ready to Change Your None.
and Keep n Trific for Themselves.

Always Ready to Change Your Money
and Keep n Trific for Themselves.
At Braga. a few miles from Oporto, is
a temple, dedicated, j believe, to the
sun. and leading up to it's principal en-
trance there are three hundred and
sixty-five steps, says a letter from Por-
tugal. At each end of step there is
generally beggar. Every beggar
prides him or herself on some horrible
deformity. which is exposed so as TO
present its most hideous aspect to the
view of the unfortunate pilgrims to the
temple.
Having heard beforehand of this
ghastly spectacle, says writer IN the
Chicago Times. / determined not to 90
beyond the human malforr.-.tions which
creep about the city of Oporto- They
are absolutely a recognized institution,
and might almost be said to occupy the
position of money changers to the gem
eral public. Their method of begging
is peculiar. When they espy your ap-
proach they begin a long prayer IN
vigorous, sing-song voice They start
in something like this style: 1t Is IN
your excellent honor's power to be
thankful for your own riches and mind
full of the wants of others Dogs shall
lick your hand. The rain shall bedew
your doorstep every morning. Assist
the manned, the deformed, the stricken
in every limb. l can change two hun
dred. three hundred or five hundred reis
at your excellent honor's pleasure
Then follows a curse or blessing, ac-
cording to the manner in which you
have responded TO their supplications-
You may give one of these creatures
almost any piece of money, and he will
return You that sum in small change
minus about half a farthing with com
plete satisfaction. Indeed. he VIII
think he has done good morning $
work. Whenever i went out i made II
a rule to place few coppers in Ger
tain pocket to present to these objects
of distrust and ward off as many male
dictions as possible. One day / plunged
my hand into the wrong pocket a,id
without examining the piece, gave 1T to
trunk possessing only left arm and
an incomplete Uranium The fragment
set up an uproar and n crowd collected.
l was summoned back. and, with wild
gesticulations, was presented with
two-hundred reis piece. ! thought II
was too late then. so bowed and SHOOK
INV head The trunk showered bless
ings (assisted therein by the crowd)
and heard that no more was seen %
him for ten days.
There was one gentleman whose
body, head and arms We're all right, but
he was minus his legs, and he had in
| geniously supplied this deficiency with
| a pair of cab wheels. On his hand:
We're fixed some sort of claws, and thu:
he used to canter' around, ladies being
his especial prey. He would hide in ar
| obscure alley-and as Oporto is nearly
all dark alleys, he had many lairs-un
| til he marked some unconscious victim
| then off he would go, and if the lady
took refuge in shop he would wait
outside. / hear that this bogy man ha:
| since died, leaving Il lot of money
In Braga children are bandaged in al
sorts of postures and subjected to great
torture TO enable them To live at ease
| when they grow up. Such, among many
is man with Il fourteen stone body,
who daily blesses his parents for pro
viding him with legs which would have
caused Barnum'S skeleton dude" &c
cry with envy. But were | TO describe
the horrors so prepared the paper or
which | write would curl up and revolt