The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-06-03
HOODOOED BY A PICTURE
A CHINAMAN'S A WFUL DREAD OF
A PHOTOGRAPHERS CAMERA.

PHOTOGRAPHERS CAMERA.
This Poor Fellow Was the Victim OF a
Snap Shot, and Thereafter He Had
No Peace-A Pinholein the Card Gave
Him Headache, and When the Pict-
ure Was Lost He Went Stark Mad.
From the Nel0 York Recorder.
Len Yen, Chinese murderer, closed his
existence in the county jail at Oroville,
CAL, without the assistance Of a trial by a
Jury or the intervention Of a sheriff and
scaffold All alone, in the still hours or the
night, he constructed from the silk that was
braided into his QUE, from strips Of his
! clothing and few bits OF leather, a rope
with which he suspended himself from the
/ ventilator grating, and without any strug-
| gle, so far as can be discovered, faced the
| mysteries OF the future world rather than
longer remain in this, where he was a vic
tim Of as strange a series of events as could
be written about, and a superstition that
seems to enlightened minds as absurd as the
mans sufferings were pitiful.
In all seriousness, Len Yen was the vic
tim of a photograph. The fact that it was
| his superstition made him such O victim does
| not alter the fact that he was the victim Of
| his own picture, taken by a photographer.
| Last fall this photographer was visiting
one of the many mines that are run by
| Chinese and taking photographs o. one in
| teresting feature of each. In the course OF
| his trip he visited the mine on the Garden
ranch, about three miles from Palermo,
| and found at that place one OF the
most curious of all Chinese mines,
and consequently numerous subjects for
| photographing. The Chinese never allow
themselves TO be photographed if they can
| help it. and the pointing of the camera in
| their direction was the signal for them to
| quit every time. At the Garden ranch,
| however, there was one Chinaman who
| proved to be an exception to the rule, for
| he readily permitted himself TO be taken
| alongside of the curious overshot wheel
which was used to pump out the workings.
| This Chinaman was Len Yen, and the pho
tograph then taken finally resulted In his
death.
| AN EVIL STEP.
About a month after the taking Of the
| picture the man stopped at the mine and
| gave Len Yen copy or print from the
| plate, at which Yen Len was pleased and
| his companions looked grave. He packed
the picture away among his treasures, and
| nothing was said about it after the first re-
marks Of curiosity or disapprovaL But Len
| Yen had an enemy, and one night this enc
| my got into Len Yens treasures and took
| the picture. That same evening Len Yen
| was unfortunate enough to fall and hit his
head. which naturally gave him a severe
| headache. The next morning, while Len
| was still suffering, the picture was found
| outside the shanty with hole punched In
it Just where Len Yen's head ached the
worst and all hands considered that the
headache was the result OF the hole in the
| picture.
The hole in the picture was patched up
| and Len Yen's head got better, but he al
| ways declared that his head ached at that
place after that. and the fear that something
would happen to that picture never gave
the unfortunate man a moments peace
| after ward. He carried the picture about
with him continually, and was in continual
terror lest he might be robbed of it at night.
He did not dare to destroy it for feGr that
| in so doing he would destroy himself, aud
| altogether his sufferings can only be
imagined. Small sympathy was accorded
Len by his companions, who all regarded
| him as a man who was suffering only
| the Just reward for piece OF the most reck-
less and inconsiderate trihtng with fate. Be-
sides this, Len was one OF a nation OF slave
Cinnamon who had run away from his
master to get to this country over the Next
can border, and, while tolerated at the min
ing camp by reason OF his abilities a
laborer, he was only tolerated and nothing
more. When about three months ago, the
picture was really stolen, the Chinese at
Garden ranch in real terror drove him out,
fearing the effects of the curse upon Them
selves if he remained.
SLOWLY GOING MAD.
Len went over to another camp on the
river road near the haunted house, and sue
ceeded in inducing the Cinnamon there to
allow him to stay for a while. Each day he
imagined himself suffering fortunes in q
new spot, and was in hourly terror lest the
one who now had the picture should destroy
him. 1t was only week or two after bis
taking up his residence there that the pho
tographer saw him for the second time. He
was taking some more photographs, and
noticed back in the shadows of the shanty
which formed the subject of his picture. g
huddled-up figure with bright eyes which
did not rise and fee as the camera was
focused, but sat there in an attitude which
suggested despair If not indifference.
On nearer approach he was Mortified tt
discover that it was Len Yen. but looking
years older than when he had taken the
former picture. Len himself did not talk
much English, but after the camera had
been packed the other Cinnamon return eG
and between them managed to give an ides
of what was the matter with their unfort
innate fellow countryman. One seemed Il
express the sentiments of the crowd wheI
! he said:
"HEAP BIG FooLp
Him heap big fool let um take picture
Him all die by and by" Len himself haC
become resigned to expecting death at any
time, and so didn't care what happened t
: him, though he attended to doing his shar,
of the work about the mines and earned hi
living. A few weeks ago he took the notion
that II he could only discover the person
who had the picture and get it back h
might yet be safe. This idea took posses
sion of him and became mania, in6uenc'
ing all his actions. Few Of the Cinnamon be
met escaped the suspicion Of having the i'm
; portant photograph in their possession, nc
the immediate result was that his com
t, panions at the mines speedily tired Of hi
l crazy accusations and unwarranted suspi
cions and sent him adrift again. After tina
|, he drifted from place to place. seeking con-
stantly for his picture and the mania of th'
I. search constantly growing upon him, unit
at last in a quarrel with Chinaman who
he supposed had his picture, he committed
the murder for which he was arrested, anc
for which he was to have been tried mex
! week.
The death Of this man furnishes a strik