The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1907-02-26
SAW MEN AND
WOMEN IN AGONY
STRANGE SIGHT AT lib NUUANU
STREET WHERE CHEERING
YOUTH AND NEGRO SUFFER.

"Yah, yah, yah; yah, yah, yah---er-
r-r-r-. YAH"
! Two Honolulu men who thought they
knew pretty near everything there was
to know concerning places and things
and doings of the city, were last even
| ing at $50 o'clock halted in front of 11l3
| Nuuanu avenue, just off Hotel street on
the Waikiki side by hysterical or in
sane chickering's that sounded more like
yah yah, yah-er-r-r- yah" than any
thing else. They paused at the door
way and beheld a strange spectacle.
At the further end of a long, mar
row room, constructed for a shop, there
stood behind low rail some half dozen
men and women, while in front of these
there knelt or sprawled an equal num-
Der of men and women in various
stages of getting religion" one man
stood with both hands on the head of a
woman who was in anything but a
graceful attitude, half kneelng and
! half lounging. His head was thrown
back, his eyes shut and his lips witch
ed I'm pantomimic contortions, He
stood this way for perhaps ten minutes,
then he suddenly and literally yelled.
His yells were alternated with shouted
words, more or less understandable,
evidently indicative to his mind of the
salvation of a soul.
shes coming; thank God, she's COM
ing 'murmered some enthusiast.
In a corner a large negro lay on his
back on The floor wallowing, writing,
moaning and every now and then vail
ing what purported to be an appeal to
God. A rapt woman with hypnotic
eyes sat on a bench, leaning over him,
slender fOrefnger on her brow, wrest-
ling with his spirit. In another corner
lay a heap of huddled drapery, indis-
tinct. 1t may have been a man or a
woman or a pile of cast-off sins
But the star of the evening knelt in
the aisle with both hands massaging
the shoulder and arm and hip of a
man whose head was bent and who
perhaps was in only the preliminary
throes of agony induced by hypnotism,
ignorance and poor ventilation.
The lad in the aisle was speechless.
He could not articlulate. 1t was his
repeated yah, YAH yah,-er-r-r-r, yah
that had drawn the visitors from with
out. He rose to his feet, his eye on
the electric bulb over his head. He
raised his arms and his legs did a
snaky glide. He appeared to be trying
to pull down something from the cell
ing.
Suddenly he spied the visitors stand
ing near the doorway and come for
! them with his repulsive serpentine
twist. His jaw wagged disgustingly,
the saliva triclling from his fangs and
be gibbered without ceasing, rolling his
popping eyes. Then he began the
| hypnotic motion of the hands and
closer approached the visitors. His
actions would have thrown a nervous
woman or a child into a fit of terror;
as it was there were women in the
audience who We're sobbing Historically
and little children with frightened eyes
cuddling fearfully to their mothers
sides.
Repused by one of the visitors he
went back and stood in the middle of
the aisle to continue his gibberish to
the electric bulb. A woman passed him
gave him a nudge and turned off the
| light. He seemed to feel better after
this. His movement from one seat to
another finally induced many to leave.
The visitors did not stay to see the
finish.