The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1899-02-18

sented by stone and wooden images whicn
adorn the temples or else are placed in the
cleft of a tree or on top of sone high rociS
in the forest to seize upon and devour the
evil spirits wandering in space. Ectichism
plays an important part in the Vitsayo
religion. The tuklars." or native priests,
are moro powerful than tho chiefs. Be
fore any project is undertaken these crafty
gentlemea are consulted in order to secure
the favor of the gods.
The person desiring the invocation must
make liberal presents to the priests, who
deposit them before the shrine of the par
ticular deity who is invoked. These are
left over night, and il in the morning they
have disappeared it is taken as o sign CT
the favor of the gods. The priests lay
claim to power in detecting crime, and rs
every disease or misfortune is laid to The
machination of some evil spirit possessing
a human body it is a part of their Office t.
ferret cut the person who so bewitches. A
poisoned cup of "igga" is placed before
him, which he is obliged to drink. Ii by
any strange good fortune he should sur
yiye the ordeal, his life is spared and sea-ch
for q new victim begun until the real cul-
prit is discovered.
A traveller in this country is likely at
any moment to be seized upon as q victim
of popular fury. Anatiye may be stricken
with disease or meet with one OF a 0
sand other perfectly natural ~calaInities.
But every event, however trivial, must
have al occult reason for its being, and
the burden Of guilt invariably is fastened
upon the ono in whom tho charlatan
ssuklars'' see the most chance of enriching
themselves. Human sacrifice is common
among all Vitsayo tribes. Those sacrl-
feed are usually slaves or prisoners OF war,
although if the proper religious season
comes around and there is none OF these
available they have no scruples In killing
those of their own kin, usually women or
children. seldom men, as the preservation
| of the latter is necessary to the welfare OF
the tribe.
On the occasion of a particularly sacred
festival as many as a dozen are strung up
by the hands and feet and roasted to death
over q fire. around which the priests
gather. while with long nets they catch
tho evil spirits as they are driven out OF
the bodies by the heal and thrust them
back into the fire again with various po-
tent PRAYERS, which will cause them to be
consumed. The heads of those sacrificed
are prescribed and apportioned to the prln-
| cipal chiefs, while the bodies are usual
eaten. Thc Vitsayos believe that at the
birth of a child witches and evil spirits
congregate and watch for an opportunity
to seize the soul of the infant and sup
plant it with some m~aleyolent one. Before
the child is born the mother is shut up in
q small hut and provided with a scanty
amount of food. The entrance is sealed,
and every crevice stopped up, that witches
cannot enter, while day and night " or
more "uklars'' circle round with incanta-
tions, waving small images and fetch
boxes to frighten the evil spirits away.
Pieces of raw meat are stuck on the top OF
long poles, planted in a circle round the
dwelling and covered with poisonous
liquids, which tho devils must eat ana
succumb before they can enter the circle.
When the child is born, the mother beats
against the ride of the hut. which Is
broken open, when the priests rush In
with torches and long sticks, with which
they chastise her numerically. h child
In the meantime is placed in a shallow
hole dug in the ground, and three witch
candles are fastened to it's head and al
| lowed to burn until they are lmost con-
sumed. The child usually is badly burned
in the process, but snch a misfortune Is
needed little, SO long as the witch is ex-
PEELED. A more rigorous ordeal has to be
undergone several years later by male
children when they are admitted as mem
bers OF the tribe. For several hours they
are strung up by the fingers, while the
priests beat them numerically with sticks
and slash them with sharp knives to inure
them to hardship and torture. Should the
victim manifest signs of pain during this