Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-09-26

or bright star II IL be in the night time, pray
ing, May my child be as bright as thou art
and may my suffering be as swift AZ the flight
Of this stone" Soon as the baby il born she
battles 1t and herself in the cold stream, no
matter how inclement the weather, and then
returns to her home. But even then her
trials are hardly begun, for instead Of finding
friends to receive and care for her, the house
ing gone elsewhere. Even the furniture. such
as 1t is, the cooking utensils, food-everything
except some skins for her to lie on and q new
suit Of clothes-have been removed. For eight
days she must remain there alone, to live or
die, starve or feed herself. as best she can,
when her friends return Then there is great
rejoicing and the baby is named with cere-
mony, generally after some bird. flower or
animal, and period Of feasting eusues.
CAREER OF HARDsHIrs.
The tce-cold bath which the infant has re-
ceived in the stream, upon whose banks he was
born, is an appropriate commencement to his
career Of hardships. He is firmly bound to .
board, 80 that he can conveniently be set up
in corner, and his cold bath continued daily
without fire and with but q scanty allowance Of
ciothing. In order to make him hardy he is
compelled throughout babyhood to sleep out
Of doors in all kinds of weather and is never
given mouthful of meat, though the dogs
may sneak in to the fire and are generally well
fed. Should the lad become too fat off his
hand. He is sent on a very long errand, on
which he is required to be fleet, and il he does
not run fast enough he is pursued by trained
runners, who prick him with sharp thorns and
bits OF bone to let the blood out so that he may
run faster. He is then denied salt. as his
parents believe it is that which makes him
heavy. II the poor child dies Of exposure
through this ordeal the relatives rejoice that
he has 80 soon become q happy humble bee,
which Is infinitely better than to have grown
up sickly Araucanian.
1t is survival of the fittest, and the urchin
who thrives under such harsh treatment (and
most OF them do) soon commences his educa-
ton. The great schoolmaster il the mischiev-
GUS Cici. When tho lad arrives at proper age
he is taken every day to some dark recess and
there the evil one teaches him the art of pub
lie speaking. This exercise is kept ND until he
becomes man and has learned how to appear
well before an misunderstanding to
Araucanian ideas-and to entertain the wise
men with fine flow Of language. The edu-
cation OF the majority ends here, but if q youth
is particularly bright and can obtain the con-
sent OF the council he may also learn how to
detect and cure witchcraft. 1t is believed that
all sickness is due to witches, and when an
Araucanian becomes proficient in detecting the
witch and the poison she has given to the all
ing individual he is at once a full-fedged
medicine man and enjoys high honors
among the people.
Wo6h oF THE MEDICINE MAY.
When the medicine man is called to see
sick person he converses long time with the
evil one, in loud. gruff voice, demanding to
know how the illness may be cured. Sometimes
ne gets instructions to plant young tree in
'front.' OF his patients house; sometimes to hold
religious services by rafting gourd contain
Ing some small stones over the sick mans body,
and sometimes, when the afflicted is rich in
sauaws and ponies and the medicine man ,ie-
slres a fat fee, he decides upon a wonderful
surgical operation. 1t is attended with a great
deal OF ceremony. The PHYSICIANS assistants
beat loudly upon drum-Iike instrument,
raise an internal din with gourds, tin pans and
cast on Buckets and sing in fearful monotone
to drive away any lingering witches.
Meanwhile the doctor, bending over the
patient-.with blanket covering them both
and shielding them well from view-proceeds
to remove the sick mans stomach, heart,
lungs, liver and bowels, in search of the poison
administered by the witch. He always finds it
after a long search, and shows to the patient
and his astonished friends lizards tail,
which is considered the most deadly poison.
and which he claims to have found secreted in
one OF the vital organs. Then he calls upon
the friends to witness the fact that, though he
has just cut the man open and turned him in
side out, as 1t were, not trace OF the wonder
ful operation remains so that the man is not
only free from poison. but perfectly healed
ally works. assisted by universal belief but if
the patient dies, the DOCTOR invariably claims
that another witch visited him Just after the
great operation and inserted some more deadly
poison. In that case the medicine man is
called upon to point out the witch, who is at
once killed--generally some old woman who
has incurred his displeasure, or a maiden who
has discouraged his advances or the sweet
heart OF some enemy upon whom he wishes to
be revenged.
In Araucania the evil one teaches doctors
many skillful tricks in s!eight of hand-such as
changing noses with people, taking out the
eyes and vital organs without pain and Of
thrusting sharpened stick clear through the
stomach of any individual. The last named
trick is said to be performed in full view of all
the people, to their unbounded admiration,
and the man who has learned to do it is q COM
plete graduate from Cici's college and an
honor to his tribe and generation.
FANNIE B. WARD.