Waterbury evening Democrat., 1893-11-13
THE DEVILS AGENT.
How . New York Woman swIndIes Super
 atifioua Itai Ana


 stitious Ital-Ans-
 A queer superstition has a strong hold upon the more ignorant members of the Italian colony in New York city. This su- perstitiou is based upon the positive belief that the devil has more power in the direc- ton of human affairs than any other agen- ey. The devil has not only the capacity to lnfiict evil, but he can hand over good things as we'll under certain circumstances. Designing persons who take advantage of this startling notion are known as the dew il's agents, and they have, or pretend to have, the power of inducing the devil to withhold from certain individuals such things as will give them trouble and mis- cry, and to give them only such things as will bring wealth, joy and happiness
 The chief of the devils agents is a wom- an, says the New York Recorder. Philo- mena Sicardi is the name by which she is best known, though she has several other titles, which are assumed under the direc- tion of the devil to suit particular cases. Philomena is short, slender, stoops slight ly, and her age can be fixed anywhere at from 70 to 60 The only remarkable fea- ture about her is her eyes, which are coal black, abnormally large and so brilliant that they seem at times to blaze with emo tion.
 Where Philomena came from nobody
 
 she pretends to have the secret of the foun- tain of youth at her disposal she probably has come down through the centuries in the sunny Italian cline with but little change in her external appearance. She landed in the Bend about 10 years ago and has survived other devils agents who have fallen by the way, owing to the practice of such barefaced swindlinG methods that even the devil would not longer cover them l.1 70 l. them out of jail.
 Devils agents, according to the belief of Italians who have faith in them, are born and not made. They are selected by the devil when they first see the light of day, but they do not become full fiedged agents or aware of their power until such time in after years as the devil makes himself known to them by signs which cannot be mistaken. When the devil comes around and tells the agents that they belong to him and must do his work on earth. they become sick and die. They take a trip to hades, make a contract with the devil in his private workshop, which is written in words of fire, and woe be unto the agent who departs in the slightest from the strict letter of the agreement. The devil is a ter rible master, but as he rewards the agents bountifully with worldly goods and chat tels they do not complain and will do his bidding until the end of time. The special work in which Philomena excels, as told by Prospero Ronoco, a money lender in the Bend, is as follows:
 When sickness comes into the family of the poor Italians, they do not send for a physician, but go posthaste for Philomena, the queen of the devils agents. She is a wonder, indeed, and the way she can work the coin out of the pockets of these people would make a bunko man turn green with envy. When she goes into the sickroom, she falls upon her knees, closes her eyes, mutters something in a language which no