The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1894-11-25
MADE A HUMAN SACRIFICE.
THE CRIME ron WITCH RUssIAE
PAGANS ARE 70 NE TRIED.

Members or the sect OF voushs Kidnsppsa
an old Na. and sscriacsd His 90 Pre-
pitiste Their Gods Psss. Rites ssss
Have Survived Two Cesturies sf Chris-
tinu Missionary EFFORTS ~ Ru--is.
Human sacrifices by the Russian votisks have
been reported at intervals for many years, but
they have seldom been followed by the arrest
and trial Of those guilty of such rites. The su-
thorities have moved in the latest reported css..
and at the next session of the District Court Of
Sarspool come men OF the village of Stsromoo-
tan, In the Malige country, will be brought to
trial for the sacri1cial butchery Of . PEASANT
named Matiushin. brief mention Of which has
already been made In The SUNS foreign nswA
Matiushin was an old man Of the neiehoorinn
village Of Martoff. of the Kassn Government.
In the Staromootan village were some member
Of the same eel, or tribe, who determined that
their gods were vexed because the people Of
the ancient votiaks had so long neglected to
make Offering of q human life, as they used
do regularly before the Russian Government.
gave special privileges TO the Notiaks who be-
came Christians. To obtain q sacrifice, Koasma
Samsonoff, Demtri Stefanoff, and probably one
or two other men offered to mako q secret
raid on Martoff and steal = man. This
resulted in the capture Of Matiushin
hnu " Mhr klNtn ONtT I Iub pTlehUl Oh the AA
20 which the raiders belonged. The accounts
which have reached the Russian newspapers do
not give the particulars of the sacrifice except
so far as the details can be judged from the
condition OF the body, the discovery Of which
led to the investigation and arrests. None Of
the pagan votiaks has confessed, and the
Christians were, Of course. kept in ignorance Of
the rites.
This much is known: when Matiushin was
- A A
the gods TO be propItiated. he was beheaded.
Then the viscera were removed, and probably
they with the head were consumed BY Ore In the
pagan rites which followed. After the sacrifice
the beheaded and disembowelled body was se-
cretly carried into q forest and thrown beneath
the trees far from any wood path, between the
villages Of Cholgi and AnniKi.
The discovery of the body was made acct-
dentally by a Christian girl, MARTA Golovisnen,
who happened to walk through that part of the
forest. She hurried homo and told the Christian
villagers Of her discovery, and a. the search for
the missing Matiushin had not been abandoned.
the officials soon proved the identity Of the body,
and came upon other circumstances which led
to the arrest OF the pagans. whose trial will
Although. Christian missionaries have been
among the Russian votiaks, who belong 70 the
latsst of isGS' s sIs %1Es saan the tSs. os o.Sod a IL. &:
$780, 900 Notiaks in European Russia &fe still
pagans. The number Is thought by the few for
eign travellers who have studied the people to
tSem %sfiH H 70 Re ceh..%sifaeeaY in Tie os,oIs SIr re.arns
ileges thus earned. The author OF "A journey
70 kasan v,otiaks,' published in 1874, gives Gre
Votiaks sacrihced the old and weak villagers
to the gods of their faith. Mr.. Marksinrof in an
@"fRa,s,dSl nR L Lib sr%S pf fssS. . SSsn that h IN ,ae
sacrifices were then made to the bad spirits Of
Msor TeH Set s%@ Of 52 the the tr sn%Sssi0 E ESs; G0s oss:
Gals In recent reports mention the finding OF
ing h'sG chr is2,S It IN" and d0t the e vi esssah rom pr %snS
these strange, old people of the Christian smypITs
Some OF their social customs are only less
abhorrent than their pagan rites. Until re-
TO marry women who were their elders. The
brides were taken into the homes 81 the boy
rage were known to be the offspring of the
fathers OF the young husbands. The custom APP
FOR p~olygamy. Until a woman is married she 10
permitted 10 choose her lovers. and q bride 10
most and the oldest children. 1T 10 better to
marry a girl who brings into the family .
than TO wait for a worker TO grow" was the eI-
PLANTATION OF this given by q, young. Votiak
I, ,Ro se d in24 = cc eraysllee' an s9 ofren %s r. Ia. az. saa
are denounced by the priests, but bribery very
often secures in the marriage record a legal age
: Most OF the Russian vo,Iak. live in small viii
government and in the Kasan and Perm gov
rpments between the rivers Kama and
porter by MIR. Goldeman, editor OF Free R,nstd:
They are OF small stature, thin. with .
lean, dry 'SSiad.'' Although they are indolenI
and clumsy in many ways, they are remarkably
suit, Of Which they are very fond, great DEXTER
~ and acutensss; They have reddish hair. and
noses are small. with DFOminant cheek b0naa
over hollow cheeks. In many respects they look
Ike savsgesi having q skin which ~ yellow.
and large mouths with strong, large white teeth.
The mems boards are thin and red. Their Ian:
Perniaks who, also, are of Finnish origin.
The Eotiaks have no trades or manufactures,
l~umbermen, and are very successful as honey
producers; Although their eyes give tho Inn.
With remarkable skin; their marksmsnship,
even with their old-fashioned arquebuse, being
Each Votiak family has two homes. or. rather.
each home consists OF u winter and q sum-
niislr, hq iitifs MORE more i tSsn . Is w% i Ils9s ~G ss.n.
yet IL Is. not only the domicile for .
family Of thirty or forty, bpt Is also a temple
an image OF tie domestic god. .vorshood. to
which prayers are offered, and sacrifices human
not leave their parents so long as the family can
be crowded into one house, the households con-
OF famiiy is always spoken Of as having 30
many "spOons"-ro many mouths 10 feed.
Their religion teaches that the universe 10
peOpled with the spirits OF the departed. and
many ~ their rites relate 10 the worship of tho
spirits Of ancestors. The controlling cause OF
natural phenomena il the activity or mae
tiyity OF these spirits. They worship, besides
he spirits Of ancestors, one head spirit called
or TumvOrt, "shy-mRn," and various
mia0r spirits or gods, such AS a god OF tho
wood, water, household, ac.. About the only
poetic or gracefulthing about their religion Is the
dedication 10 certain gods OF certain trees and
he prayers 10 those gods which must be offered
under the trees. The god most intimately wor-
shipped Is NOrshOOds, the protector OF the
house. who Is also capable Of protecting other
places { his idol be carried there with appropri-
ate aud sufficient ceremony.