The Washington herald., 1907-12-26
EVIL EYE" GETS Him
Brown, CoIOred, VS.. Heather
Chinese Spirits.
ENTER THE VIGILANT POLICE
They Are Convinced that Mr.. Brown
IL IA Bold, Bad RObber, but They
Legitimate PoSsesSOr of the Per-
sOnaI Effects of Lee GuI, Deceased.

John Brown, colored. who claims 10 be
a peaceful and law-abiding citizen, is
quite disgusted with all customs Of the
yellow people from the land Of the
dragon, no matter whether they be an
cient and revered or OF the most modern
concoction. Yesterday he was a partici-
pant in the performance Of one such Gus
tom. and, in his words. he certainly
did come awful near gittin' rested for
dOin' nOthin" ="
Yesterday morning. mid the sounds of
horns and laughter from the busy street
below. one Lee Gui. Chinaman. forty-six
years old. suddenly died. According 70
the beliefs of his people his soul then
went direct TO the land of his forefathers.
but his mortal self remained on his hum
BILE cot. in the establishment OF one OF his
Acknowledged cousins" in Pennsylvania
avenue.
Sad End OF Lee Gui.
Lee was formerly wielder of the iron.
and, in his day. had turned out great
quantities of polished collars and cuffs
from his little shop In the northwest sec
ton Of the city. For several weeks. ac-
cording 70 what was said by some OF his
fellow-countrymen last night, he had had
mo workee."
Having three brothers In this city who
were blessed with "muchee Workee,' how
ever, Lee was able 10 obtain ample funds
with which to board at the establishment
of Sc
Several days ago he was suddenly taken
sick, and, although he was given such
medicines as are used by his fellOw-coun-
trymen, he died yesterday without the at
tention of a Mclean" physician.
Dodge She Evil spirits.
The mortal remains OF the Celestial
We're moved 10 a nearby undertaking es-
tablishment. and within a few days viii
probably be temporarily Inferred in the
Chinese cemetery near AnacOstia. but
some day, as is the wish OF all people
from the Land of the Dragon. they are to
be taken back 20 China
Following one of the ancient customs Of
! the race, numerous friends OF Lee gath
cred in his room and collected together all
his effects-sandals silk blouses. multi
coiored handkerchiefs. &c. With the
passing Of their owner such things. they
say. contain evil spirits. and should I'M
mediately be disposed OF. no matter IL
they 90 fall into the hands Of one VINO IS
several shades darker in complexion.
Thus it was that the peaceful John
/ Brown, colored man. became the posses
sOr of an armful Of gaudy silks. straw
/ slippers. and other articles Of attire. He
was told that in the mind OF the China
man they might be the haunt OF some bad
/ spirit, and that If he were willing 10 carry
/ them away he was welcome 20 them.
Nobody Wanted Them.
Brown was somewhat puzzled with his
new possessions at first, and not con-
templating Disgusting as a Celestial in
any gay masquerade. he started in the
direction Of some secondhand stores. in
| the hope OF selling the lot. Several mer-
chants told him that they had but little
call for such articles. and somewhat dis
couraged. he made his way from place
/ 10 place
/ II was then that some public-spirlted
citizen espied the unsuspecting Brown.
and with visions of the robbery OF some
humble laundry shop during the absence
OF its almond-eyed master. he Immediately
communicated with police headquarters
and advised that a detective be hurried
TO the vicinity. There surely had been a
| house breaking somewhere. and II quick
action were taken the culprit could be
apprehended.
In the Hands of the Police.
The detective had little trouble In To-
eating Brown. laden as he was with n
miscellaneous assortment Of silks and
satins. and within a few minutes the
/ badly scared negro found himself az po-
/ lice headquarters.
/ In a pleading voice he told the police
that he. law-abiding citizen, had com
mitted no such act as house breaking
and then explained in confused manner
how evil spirits lurk IN the garments Of
the departed. Such an explanation seem
ed quite weak at the time, but taking the
man at his word the detective visited the
establishment in Pennsylvania avenue,
where he IN turn was acquainted with the
ancient custom.
I The would-be robbery was soon made
clear. and Brown. overjoyed by the fact
| that his character still remained unsul-
| lied. departed from headquarters with hts
silks under his arm. In his mind was a
| confusion of thoughts about Chinese Gus
toms.