The Marlboro democrat. [volume] (Bennettsville, S.C.) 1882-1908, 1905-03-31
POOR FOOLS.
Many New York Women Each
Morning Worship the Sun.
MANY OF THEM RICH.

Said to be Finally Establish.
ed In the Cities OF New
York and Chicago.
The New York American saws
amazing fact that 1000 OF New York's
women, more or less prominent, are
sun worshtppers and votaries of the
Mazdaznans, the mystic Persian cult
expeunded by DR.. Ottoman Ear. .Adusht.
Hanish. has been revealed through
the arrest last Saturday Of Mrs.
Brownie Rathbone Weaverson, of No.
100 West One Hundred and Fourth
street, disciple of the mysterious re-.
ligion.
Mrs. Weaverson is charged with
having taught the Persian theory to
Mrs. Ellen Raehll, an aged woman liy.
Ing at No. 1853 Amsterdam avenue.
VINO ls now expected 60 lose her life as
the result Of the treatment.
Instances have been cited In which
women have been driven insane nv
their fanatical devotion to the strange
belief; others have been made crIpples
and doomed to life OF misery: DR..
Hanish, the priest apostle himself, has
feen arrested on the charge OF having
tortured his followers; yet despite
these facts, the society is not only in
existence In New York City, but the
number of his followers among the
fashionable set is growing.
Ihls was shown at a meeting follow
Ing Mrs. Weaverson's arrest In Carne.
gle Hall when a vast throug OF women,
Old and young, and all dressed In the
height OF fashion, hung with breath
less attention on the words of the
Dastur OF the Beh- Dinscience, who
stood on the platform clad In the full
reRalia of his sombre cult.
ln the morning THESE women bow to
the rising orb and address it as q xod.
In the evening they prOstrate Them
selves on rugs as did the Persians OF
olo and the ancient roltec, OF Mexico.
One day a womln by the name OF
MISS Reuss mounted the platform OF
Tie M@zdaznan shrine in Chicago, (for
The cult has even a greater following
shere A.r4cri.,.;tn New York) and began
TO scream anu pray hystericaily to uh
sun.
She Is insane," said Z,r Hanish
solemnly to tbs Eorritied throng In the
great hall, but the honor of Mazdaz
nan has been saved"
Alter tho meeting Miss Rauss was
taken, u hopeless, ravlng manlac, To
an asylum.
Sne nad tasted forty. two at the or
der OF Dr. Hanisn. He WAS arrested.
only to oe released and resumed the
preaching OF his doctrines. Mrs. Da.
venporJ Vickeis, one of his faithful
followers, was COMMANDED oy him to
faSt 1orGy-tWO days only short time
after, and she tried TO until weakness
compelled her to destst
There Is nothing but the the Great
| Ami" thundered the apostle TO his
Ravering followers. All else is snaduw
and iliu,ion. 1t Is by Obedience tnat
we live. We must look TO God in our.
selves. Ii we diSobey, the light goes
Out; death ensues."
IL was IN such language as this that
DR.. Hanish preached at Carnegie Hall
while one or mis- followers was being
bried before Magistrate Mayo with
having pracGised, without license,
On week, intirm, OLD woman, VINO
gave her all The money she had, which
vas only SO 70.
The women who came to Carnegie
Hall to hear and applaud him came
IN carriages. Their gowns were Of the
latest cut, and diamonds adorned their
hands and ears. The contributions
were liberal, and every gesture OF the
black -robed, fantastic figure on the
platform was Wildly applauded.
With rapt fascination they listened
to doctrines which would have made
the ordinary woman snudder with a
sColclsm almost uncanny IN its nature
20 We FORTH" cried the self ap.
pointed Messiah, all ye that arc un-
happy, and fast. Pray ye to the sun,
the source OF life. Cursed he they who
bslieve not. There is no God but the
SUM-"
And the women grew hysterlcal In
their fervor
The philosophy expounded by DR..
Hanisn, he says, dates back to l42,.
900 years before Christ. In the old
Zond language m MAdsa" means SUI,
and 1t is in this origin that the philo
sophy ob:aided Its name.
The first attempt by DR.. Hanish
there to start the society few years
ago met with failure. He thon wen,
10 Chicago and met with better sue
cess. He established a sumptuou
home as the headquarters OF the cult
Tnen inflated with his success, he
came oack to New York and obtained
lew members. Now he has 1900
women follOH Hers.
What Has Been Done.
The Spartanburg Journal say
the southern farmer by holding on t,
his cotton for three three months ha: