Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-09-14

Community Which Admits No Resi-
dent Who is Not Crazy.
From the London Mail.

|
| From the London Mail.
France owns a village in Indo-China
which is believed to be the only village OF
| madmen in the world. 1t Is called Ban
Keune. The population consists of about
800 families, all of whom are prosperous
| and diligent.
| Admission to Ban-Keune Is rather q try
ing affair. To enter it one must be down
| right mad-or, as the natives call It, "pi-
! pop" The conception Of insanity prevail
| ing in this part of the world Is not that OF
| a disease, but Of possession" Therefore
| If an inhabitant of this region, as is fire.
| quently the case. displays Authorizations OF
| conducts himself In a fashion not consist
, ent with Indo-ChineSe etiquette, his neigh
| bors take 1t upon themselves to determine
| whether any malign spirit possesses him
| in other words, whether he is ''pipop." And
| this is the way it is done:
The unfortunate person, whether 1t be
| man, woman or child, that has fallen un-
| der suspicion Of possession" is made the
subject of ceremony on the banks of the
River Namngume participated in by hun
dreds of people gathered together from ali
| the country for miles about.
The victims hands and feet are first
| bound by the native priest who is the mas
| ter of ceremonies.
Absolutely helpless from this time on the
| supposed maniac, in spite Of his cries and
struggles IS cast into the river. 1t is firm
| ly believed by the natives that supernatural
| agencies then reveal the victims true state.
| If he is genuinely 'pipop' he sinks to the
| bottom OF the river and stays there until
| he is rescued, revived, and formally COM
mitted to the famous village of madmen.
On the other hand, If he Is not possessed -
| he rises again like ordinary drowning
person to the top of the river. where he
| Is more easily rescued and then set free
SO generally topsy-turvy are the condi-
tons in the Loas. that portion of Indo-
China through which the Namngume river
flows, that only acknowledged maniacs live
| in any sort of social relation with each
other The majority of the people lead q
solitary life, dwelling at the most in groups
of twos and threes.
This condition Of things in so neglected
and remote a country helps to produce &C.
centricity, if not actual lunacy. Queer per-
sonal habits are contracted, and when two
persons meet each other they are on the
lookout for possible evidences of posses
the discovery and report 1t in the country
around runs less risk of being experiment.
ed upon himself. Thus in the Laos the first
thing to look for in neighbor or stranger is
not his clothes. or signs Of wealth and posi-
ton, but for evidence as to sanity or in
sanity in his eyes and bearing. Very often
the victims die before they are rescued
from the water by the experimenters, but
this does not trouble the philosophic Indo-
Chinese. II the victim dies, they seem to
consider 1t first-class testimony in regard
to his general unf1tness to live
Ban-Keune with its three hundred fami-
lies, is therefore the most densely popu-
lated spot in the country. It's inhabitants
syncrasies which have served to commit
them And they not only live peaceabiy
but fall In love, marry and have children
who, In most cases, are even more eccen-
trio than their parents. Nobody ever re-
covers is discharged remain .'pi-
pop to the end of their days.