The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-12-01

The Child, Little Girl, Has Suffered
from Epilepsy-Her Parents Are Good,
but Ignorant People-The Child Was
Horribly Mutilated About the Head
Her Tongue Pierced with Hot Wire
and Peas Rubbed Into Wounds on Her
Head.
Scranton, Pa, November 3O.-In this
enlightened century it seems almost in
credible that an ignorant witch doc
I tress" should be able to successfully
practice her black arts among intelligent
| people, but here and there cases come to
| light where superstition seems to reign
supreme, and it's subjects willingly sub
NIT to the most cruel and barbarous
| practices. If these victims of supersti-
tion were themselves the only sufferers
the more enlightened would offer fewer
protests, but when innocent children are
subjected to cruel torture because of
their blind faith. strong sympathies are
aroused and the indignant demands are
made that such practices must cease.
The little mining hamlet of Dixville,
Kingston township, was recently the
scene of brutal outrage, perpetrated
under the guise of medical treatment by
an ignorant, strolling Arab woman. The
subject a little girl of eight years, was
made the victim of terrible torture for
days, and will probably die.
]8sJ John Moore, a coal miner, keeps a
small hotel at Dixville settlement. He
has accumulated little of this worlds
| goods, and is spoken of by his neighbors
| and acquaintances as "a good fellow in
his way" harmless, honest and industri-
Gus. John, although only about As years
of age, is the father of IA children, nine
of whom are living and residing at the
| tavern or in the immediate vicinity. Mrs.
Moore is a kind-hearted woman, who
loves her family. Unfortunately, how
ever, both Mr.. and Mrs. Moore are firm
believers in mysterious charms and
witchcraft.
| Little Anna, girl of eight summers,
has been afflicted with epilepsy for some
time, and the disease has stubbornly re-
sisted medical treatment In fact, the
| parents lost faith in medical science al
| most entirely, and hearing of the mira
cles performed through the laying on of
hands, charms, incantations and other
humbugs, were thus prepared for the
advent of a strolling Arab woman, who
walked into the hotel one morning re-
Gently and attempted to sell few small
articles.
Although she could talk but little Eng
lish she managed to impress Moore and
his wife with the idea that she possessed
marvellous curatve powers. Little Anna
had just been suffering from one of her
| epileptic spasms and her parents availed
themselves of, the opportunity to place
their daughter in the hands of the witch
DOCTOR" who claimed to be able to cast
out the devils which, she said, were af
| fiicting the child.
Preparatory to her barbarous treat
ment OF tie suffering child, the woman
shaved the top of her head, and then
taking heated wire burned furrows in
the scalp, penetrating to the bone, in the
form of cross. Then taking from her
pack several specimens of fruit which
she said were peas from Jerusalem, she
pressed them into the burrows and bound
up the head.
By this time the child's sufferings
were intense. but the heartless woman
| persisted in her acts of cruelty and the
deluded parents offered no objections to
a continuation of the torture.
Large places were burned by the wo-
| man on the back of each little hand, and
the arms above the elbows were also
treated in the same cruel fashion, after
which the heartless woman stood over
the child, who was writhing in agony,
and uttered what were supposed to be
potent incantations for several minutes.
accompanying them with wild gesticula-
tions.
The parents were then informed that
their daughter might not improve very
| much in month, but that the ssevil
spirits would have to vacate before the
| treatment was over.
Tho woman remained over night at
the hotel where she was as tenderly cared
for as if she had been royal princess,
and when the morning dawned Mr.. and
Mrs. Moore were told that further heroic
treatment would be necessary to put to
rout the indwelling demons and force
the child from their spells.
The heartless wretch then piercedEthe
tongue of the suffering child several
times with hot wire, and INDUCED in
more incantations. The parents and
older children looked on with great in
terest, and, blinded by superstitious TO-
norance, thought they noticed an i'm
provement in the sick childs condition.
The physical endurance of the little suf-
ferer was truly wonderful or she could
never have survived the torture.
Finally, after the Arab woman had
been at the house for several days, some
neighbors learned what was going on
and a physician visited the scene,
Knowing she would be Immediately ar
rested and punished for her work, the
woman suddenly decamped, and has not
been heard of since.
Strange as it may seem, the Moore
family are mourning the departure of
the witch doctor and cursing the people
who interfered. The house is visited
day and night by strangers from many
sections of the country, and to each and
all the poor, deluded parents express
| their confidence in the woman.
II is feared the girl will not recover
from her wounds without proper medi-
cal treatment.