The Wichita daily eagle., 1897-11-13
Suddenly there was a stir among II

Suddenly there was a stir among the
group of priests on the platform, and
| from the dark Granny in which the leer
ing image sttod a newcomer, a man o.
admirable proportions. not so tall a!
powerful and patriarchal looking, des
cended. He advanced rapidly forward
loosening his ragged garments as hs
came, until he was naked, save a small
cloth girdled aroung the loins.
AS the stranger turned toward the
stone image and raised his hand the
group of worshippers ceased their tur-
noil and fell prostrate TO the ground
the meanwhile keeping up an incessant
groaning Toward this grotesque, incon-
| gruous, dnanimate piece of carved stone
the eyes of all were turned in alteration
! For time, In which it seemed thai
| hours rolled on, the pro5trate horde lay
bowed to the floor in prayer, until an in
voluntary quickening of the pulses and
a quickly discernable stir and show OF
interest among the worshippers gave
! evidence ti1at some moment Of extraor-
dinary interest was at hand. Quietly
and unobserved dozen men mad been
carrying immense arnsful of wood on
10 the platform, and placed them be-
fore the stone image.
Soon the full import Of this movement
was apparent Here before our eyes was
to take place one Of those baroarous hu-
man sacrifices Of which We had been ap-
prised before setting forth. 1t did not
take long to confirm OUT suspicious. for
as quietly and without murmur Of any
Ii, l,ol l,o
ed the elevated space, absolutely naked
and bound with cords, the intended vic
tins of the bloody carnival that was TO
follow. The fire had already been touch
ed to the wood; the first faint flicker
had been famed into an open flame,
and in a minute the whole mass was
seething, roaring furnace, lighting up
the interior Of the cave as with the noon
day sun.
The bright glow Of the fire permitted
us to secure a better view OF the DOOM
ed sextet. Five were men in the sere
yellow leaf, scarcely able to totter along.
and whose lives could not be prolonged
many years. They were huddled to-
young girl, who could not have been over
gether apart from the other victim,
sixteen years old. She had comely nut
brown face, with dark, wavy clusters Of
hair tumbnng over her forehead and
reaching down to her waist. With a cool
IL not openly disdainful look she gazed
with exnalted dignity on the surround
ing group, with never 'waver in the
stole composure of her attitude.
At last the fateful moment had come.
One of the old men was seized and
stretched on a sort of stone altar raised
a few feet above the floor Of the plat
form. He fully realized that the last
moment had come, for his stoioism van
ished, and he struggled to escape from
the grasp of his captors, and gave vent
to Shrek after shrek, until, weak and
exhausted, he had fallen into a stupor
with spasmodic groanings and attempts
to rise. Four OF the minor priests held
the family struggling body down, while
from the gloomy niche stalked forth
the chief of the priests his hand hold
ing long, glistening knife. Once, twice,
thrice, he abashed himself to the ground
and, then, turning round like beast
leaping on it's sleeping victim, he rush
ed toward the PROSTATE form A flash
OF light, as Of a falling meteor, and the
keen blade sank to the hilt in the flesh