The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-10-16
WITCH KILLING IN CANADA
i HORRLBLES SUPE OFTHE
 CREE INDIANS.
The Story Of the Killing of Man Be-
 lieved to be Peculiarly Possessed of n

Devil.
 Murdered by Indians is now be. lieved to be the explanation of the mys
 terious disappearance of a number oi
 people on the upper Laird river and | along what is known as the EdmQntor | route in the far northwest of Canada.
 Some time ago two Frenchmen named | Florent and Collins set out upon the | Edmonton trail and were never heard
 from again by their friends until a
 clew was furnished by Indians selling a ] quantity of furs which their friends rec | ognized as having belonged to the miss
 ing men. Information was subsequent | ly obtained from other Indians that the | victims had been shot in their cabin
 and their bodies dropped through hole | in the ice.
 l A prospector named Charles Munroe, | who went up into this country and nev- | CT returned, is believed by his friends | to have been murdered by Indians, Last winter during Christmas week two ! Indians reported that a boy had fallen | through the ice and had been drowned. Later the body was found with the illdlh Ul all axe OH llle HGdu Five young women belonging to a family who had gone up the Laird river to trap were murdered by Indians, and, strange to say. the inquiry into the case which was instituted by the authori- ties was allowed to drop when it ap- peared that the young women had been done away with because a jealous Indi- an woman had proclaimed them to be witches.
 As a matter of fact, some of the dis tant Indian agents appear afraid of taking any judicial action to prevent or punish crime in their respective dis trictS, whenever such action would constitute an interference with the ab- surd belief and superstitions of the In- dians. A recent result of this policy has been the simple Imprisonment of one Indian murderer for two months and the acquittal of another because of the inexorable law of the Wood Crees the instant killing of so-called weh- tikos.
 The story of the killing is an interest ing example of one of the deep-rooted beliefs and superstitions of these unfor- tunate people, and better than a whole volume, shows up the devil worship and sorcery of the Crees. Napaysoosis one of the accused, tells the following story of the crime:
 Last winter a band of us, thirty-two in number, counting women and chil- dren, were living at the Bald hills some seventy-five miles west of Lesser Slave lake. We lived in two shacks and two tepees. Entominahoo, our chief, along with Kunuksoos and my self and our families lived in one shack, Moostoos and his family with some oth- CTS lived in the other shack and the other Indians in the two tepees. We were all on the best of terms with one another, and Moostoos was especially we'll liked by all of us.
 Some months before he was killed, Moostoos told several of us that he was afraid an evil spirit was getting the better of him, and that he would turn wehtiko or cannibal adding: if ever go wrong, you had better kill me, as do not wish to destroy my children
 'The time passed on, however, till about the 23d of March. At that time some sickness was attacking the Indi ans and two of them, Napaysis and the little old man, were being treated by Entominahoo in his own shack, which might be called the hospital, as all the sick were taken there to be doctored Entominahoo was chief medicine man. The third day before he was killed Moostoos also went there to join in the medicine making and sorceries, which were being practised with a view to curing the sick man. |
 During the last day and night l saw Moostoos was not looking as usual, His | eyes were rolling and glittering and he | seemed afraid to look any one in the face, muttering to himself all the time. On one occasion he said: I look on | these children as young moose and long to eat them.'
 q was absent from the shack part of | the day, and when I returned toward | evening Moostoos looked wilder and | more dangerous than ever, and it was clear to all present that he was becom- ing a wehtiko Ordinary incantations were tried, but without result, and as ] last resort the medicine lodge was erected in the shack and the whole skill and power of all of our sorceries was enlisted in the attempt to bring Moos- LooS back to reason.
 "It was certain from his appearance words and actions that he had no bodi- y complaint, but that he was possessed with a devil
 "Our usual ceremonies were begun. The singing of medicine songs, drum ming and dancing were carried on from till about midnight, and as Mosstoos was lying covered with two comparatively quiet the med cine seemed to have a good effect.
 ''There were in the house at that time and his wife, Eliza, the yife of Redhead; FelX's wife, Redhead, <unuksoos and his wife, Napaysis and he little old man. These last were ying sick. All but the sick men and who was taking care of hem, were grouped round Woostoos, triving by medicine songs and other means at our command to drive the vii spirit out of him. Entominahoo ur chief doctor, was inside the medi- inc circle with his wand and using all is science and skill
 Suddenly Moostoos called out: This night you will all die,' and com 1enced twitching his limbs and rolling ,, is eyes. Two of us, Chuckachuck and lyself, went and sat on each side of i'm at his shoulders, prepared to hold