The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1896-04-17
TRICKS OF A vENTRILoaUIsT.
A Samoan wild hoy Thought He
Was Possessed By q Spirit.

Was Possessed by spirit.
Early the other afternoon we heard
that Sina's foot was very bud, and
soon after that we could have heard
her cries as far away as the front
balcony. think Sina enjoys being
i'll, and makes as much of it as she
possibly can; but all the same 1t was
painful to hear the cries; and there Is
no doubt she was at least very I'M
comfortable. went up twice to the
little room behind the stable, and
found her lying on the floor, with
Tall and Fauna and Talolo all hold
ing on different bits Of her. I gave
her an opiate; but whenever she was
about to go to sleep one Of these silly
people would be shaking her, or talk
ing In her ear, and then she would be-
gin to kick about again and scream.
Palema and Aunt Maggie took horse
and went down to Apia after the doc
tor. Right ON their heels of went
Mitaele on Musu to fetch Tauilo. TalO-
los mother. So here was all the
island in q hustle over Sina's foot. No
doctor came, but he told lis what to
put on. When went up ut night to
the little room, found Tauilo there
and the whole plantation boxed into
the place like little birds in a nest.
They were sitting on the bed, they
were sitting on the table, the floor
was full Of them, and the place as
close as the engine-rOOm Of steamer.
In the middle lay Sina, about three
parts asleep with opium; two able
bodied work boys were pulling at her
arms, and whenever she closed her
eyes calling her by name, and talking
in her ear. really didn't know what
would become of the girl before morn
ing. Whether or not she had been
very i'll before, this was the way to
make her SO, and when one Of the
work boys woke her up again, I spoke
to him very sharply, and told Tauilo
she must put O stop to it.
Now suppose this was what put it
into Tauilo's head to do what she did
next. You remember Tauilo, and what
q fine, tall, strong, Madame Lafarge
sort of person she is? And you know
how much afraid the natives are of
the evil spirits in the wood, and how
they think all sickness comes from
them? Up stood Tauilo, and addressed
the spirit in Sina's foot, and scoldcd
it, and the spirit answered and prom
Used to be good boy and 90 away.
I do not feel so much afraid of the
demons after this. 1t was Faauma
told me about it. I was going out in
to the pantry after sodawater, and
found her with lantern drawing
water from the tank. "Bad spirit he
go away" she told me. That's first
rate" said I. "Do you know what
the name Of that spirit was? His
name was tautala (talking)."
ooh, no." she said; "his name is
TIL"
You might have knocked me down
with straw. "How on earth do you
know that?" I asked.
"Hear him tell Tauilo," she said.
AS soon as heard that, I began to
suspect Mrs. Tauilo was little bit Of
a ventriloquist; and initiating as well
as could the sort of voice they make,
asked her IL the bad spirit did not
talk like that. Fauna was very
much surprised, and told me that was
just his voice.
Well, that was very good business
for the evening. The people all went
away because the demon was gone
away, and the circus was over, and
Sina was allowed to sleep. But the
trouble came after There had been
an evil spirit in that room and his
name was Tu. No one could say when
lie might come back again; they all
voted it was Tu much; and now Talolo
and Sina have had to be lodged in the
soldier room. AS for the little room
by the stable. there it stands empty;
it is too small to play soldiers in. and
do not see what we Gun do with it,
except to have q nice brass name
plate engraved in Sydney, or in "Fris-
co." and stuck upon the door of it:
Mr.. Tu. So you see that ventriloquism
has it's bad side rs we'll as It's good
sides; and I don't know that want
any more ventriloquists on this plan
taticn. We shall have Tu in the cook
hotse next, and then Tu In I4afaele's.
and Tu in the workman's cottage; and
the end of it all will be that we shall
have to take the Tamaitai's room for
the kitchen, and my room for the boys
sleeping house, and we shall oil have
to go out and camp under umbrellas.
Well, where you are, there may be
sCHOOlIlhHlcTS, OuI IueIe ~ uO SUCH
thing as Mr.. Tu!
Now, it's all very we'll that these
big people should be frightened out of
their wits by an old wife talking with
her mouth shut; that is one Of the
things we happen to know about. All
the old women in the world might
talk with their mouths shut. and not
brighten you or me, but there are
plenty Of other things that brighten
us badly. And IL we only knew about
them, perhaps we would find them no
more worthy to be feared than IN old
woman talking with her mouth shut.
And the names of some Of these things:
are Death, and Pain, and Sorrow
Robert Louis Stevenson's Letters ito
O Boy" in the st. Nicholas.
TIP and Run-A New Game for the
Early Spring.
Tip and ruin is the name Of game
our English cousins IRE just learning,
both boys and girls. 1t resembles
cricket, so some one says, as carica-
ture resembles it's original.