The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1900-10-28

the negroes Of the South emit at a religious
revival. And all the while the fakir who II 70
show forth the wonderful powers Of hs tribe
II whillinR 10 the music In n mad. irregular
dance that absolutely fascinate~ ones gaze,
His condition Increases every second; he loans
at the mouth. yclls like n lunatlc and every
now and then nings himself over 10 the censor
to drink In through the ~nostrils and mouth
great draughtA Of the heavy. collinR smoke.
There comes n moment when he seems like
a being Of another world. some world where
madness reiRns supreme Hls eyes are start
ing out of his head, his veins stand out like
strong blue cords on hs forehead and on his
bare arms and chest. lie bites savagely at the
floating ends Of his long rObo and all the time
he whirls and yells, bounding ovcr the platform
like a panther Then he is ripe for his eSperi-
men,. he IA incapable Of feeling pain A gronn
Of horror goes no from tho whole audience
"a he filings himself upon n bnsketful OF venom
Gus snakes. plunges his arm In. clutches a mass
Of the coiling. Shiny s%erpents, filings them all
about him. stufs them into his mouth. biting
them savagely. and rolls himself over among
them In an uncomfortable fury II Is disgusting
and many people In the audience go out horri-
fed and sick. but II Is fascinating all tho same.
They return for the next experience
This time II Ia the two musicians who give
an exhibition, while the snake dancer, after
drinking some potion to calm his nerves, re-
turns to prove TO the audience that he has
not been harmed by the snakes he has handled
40 violently in his drunken frenzy. though,
by way OF parenthesis, II would be a remarkably
courageous snake that would have presence
Of mind enough to defend itself against the
attacks OF a being IL such n state OF furious
dementia.
The musicians repeat the extra vssant con-
tortions with which the first performance
began They bang their Instruments With
an intensity that increases every moment
and constantly thev inhale the heavy per-
flme Suddenly. when the desired fury has
seized them 10 turn. they fling away their tam
bourines and. yelins like demons, bound
all over the platform, snatchlng up different
Weapons which lie Uttered over the floor. One
Of them thrusts a dagger full into his eye and
lea yes II sticking there while he capers abont
singing what ore might take for a chant OF
victory Of sons tribe OF savage warriors. The
other transnXes his tongue with four slim
blsded %sti,ettos and immediately afterward
jabs a long knife, apparently at random, into
his abdomen II seems. "a they do these thinRs
that they feel an intense need Of some violent
physical sensation TO counteract the exalted
mental stste into which they have brought
themselves A long gurgle e satisfaction
followed always on the inthrust Of the weapon
into the flesh.
The last &C, was perhaps still more curious
One Of the men took q long. stout nail with
a sharp point, placed II over the top Of his skull,
then beat It hard In with a heavy wooden block
Ha rose suddenly. az IL In convulsions, and
careered around the stage for several minutes
with the nail sticking out Of his head, while
his comrades pounded their tambourines and
raised the roof with a loud, souorouS song
, Finally the man sank down. exhausted His
dark hron2ed skin had turned 10 a sickly green
and his ayes gllttered strangely. A young
member Of the congress pulled the nail from
his head. II came out with difficulty and the
blood spurted One ~ the troupe then made
passes over the head and breathe1 on rho spot.
When he withdrew there was only a slight
rouGhness on the skin Of the scalp to show
where the nail had been.
The writer asked the secretary Of the con-
gress what, In 4urn. all these feats amount
to; what was the explanation OF these strange
end"-ances. The secretary confessed abso-
lutte ignorance.
These semi-savages." he said, know from
centuries back secrets Of nature which are
sealed mysteries 70 US They hypnotic Them
selves by perfumes and music 10 a point where
neither venomous snakes nor deadly weapons
can touch their llvea, when they are wounded
thev can cure themselves in n few moments
by method which entirely escape our undor-
standing They themselves cannot explain
what they do. with them 1t Is simply the ex-
ercise Of traditional know ledge based on a
secret Oriental religion.