The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1894-06-14
AUSTRALIAN MAGIC.
Marvellous Things That Wild Men Can Do
by Slight of Hand.
Boston GIo6e.I

A long and disastrous drouth, which haC
almost ruined the small Australian tribe or
whose borders i was encamped, had resulted
in their demanding of the tribe wizard thai
the much needed rain be produced, and thai
forthwith.
The first act of this charlatan was to call
the people together and, during a sort of pow
WOW, to perform a few feats of simple magic,
such as any tyro in the slight-of-hand arts
could surpass Then he ascended into the
highest tree in the vicinity, where he re-
mained for some time in silent contemplation
of the sky.
was informed that he was working won
ders at that great hight-he was quite 200
feet from the ground-which would soon re-
suit in refreshing showers being sent by the
deviI-devil," who kept back the needed
rains at the solicitation of the wizards OF
nearby, envious tribes.
My field glass discovered the fact, however,
that he was sitting aloft, in the most comfor-
table manner he could command, straining
his eyes toward the horizon, whence his study
of past seasons had taught him the first
storms of the rainy season, then overdue, al
ways came.
The farce was kept up for several days.
After several days, but not until my bar
ometer had foretold an approaching storm, he
remained one morning but short time in the
tree. He returned to the ground with all the
airs of q conguering hero.
Then followed very interesting though
ridiculous performance. Tying cloth tightly
about his head, he went through series of
contortions, during which he carried around
a large gourd or calabash. He took much
care to show that this was empty, and then,
with much ceremony, marched to nearly
fallen tree, holding it upside down.
Here in the sight of all his dupes, he placed
it on the stump, and, removing the cloth from
his head began to wiring it out as though 1t
was full of water. As / thought the whole
performance was simply meant to typify the
tribes desire for water, I had not watched
him as closely as 1 should have done had /
been prepared for his next act.
Turning suddenly. with the gOuId in his
hand, he tipped it slightly, and from 1T poured
clear, limpid water. Then he marched tri-
umphantly among his people exhibiting 1t,
and proving to the satisfaction of all that it
was purer water than they had seen for
weeks.
This performance was greeted with shouts
of delight 1t was taken as a sure sign that
the ''deyil-devil" !" had relented and granted
this much water as sign of the blessing soon
The same slight-of-hand trickery was used
again in my presence by the wizard of an
other tribe I was hidden IN a neighbor1ng
clump of bushes, where l could not observe 1T
with sufficient closeness to see how it was
managed.
The test of this wizards skill arose from the
apparently serious illness of an old man in
the tribe As is always the ease, the wizard
claimed that the wizard of neighboring un-
friendly tribe had bewitched the man by
'!tangling up his intestines " so that he could
not live without pain.
After dancing around his patient for some
time, going through lot of grOtesque and
violent contOrtlons, the wizard suddenly
swooped down upon his dupe, and, with the
quickness of cat, apparently drew from his
mouth a double handful of what looked like
intestines.
These he triumphantly waved over his
head, while he danced around the circle two
OF three times more, and then threw them far
from him into the low branches of tree.
Knowing that no one of the tribe would
dare to examine the bewitehed intestines, so
magicalEy cast out to make room for the new
set provided by the wizard, and that they