The Calumet news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 1907-1938, 1911-03-15


| entirely aloof from their more civilized
| Chinese neighbors. and today they are
/ as unframed and barbarous as were
their fierce ancestors Many OF them
! are savages OF the worst degree; even
cannlbalsm is said 10 be prevalent
among many of them. They acknowl-
edge no allegiance 10 the emperor. On
tirely ignore the authority of the man
darins and hold no communication
with the outside world. Yet we have
visited their wild domain; we have
penetrated into their stronghold and
have witnessed their strange customs.
ut had been our intention 10 steal
into the city under cover OF night, but
from our position of vantage we could
see that some religious demonstration
was In progress, and we did not dare
70 move. For half an hour our guides
(natives) crawled out on the plain and
returned with the information that
they had discovered a considerable
cave in the hillside TO the left of the
town, which would screen MS from OBJ
servation and at the same time permit
us to watch the movements of those
inside the walls. We had just time TO
reach our place of concealment when
the leaders of the procession entered
the narrow orifice and halted while
torches were being lit 10 guide their
passages through the gathering gloom.
Following them pressed the unkempt
hA f,.f ~ hn
shaped cave was filled 10 the point OF
suffocation.
"For half an hour the ear torturing
strife of discord waXed louder at every
moment until hundred devils In hui
man form fitted beneath the fare OF
pickering torches. A frenzied enthusl-
asst would leap into the air, decorating
himself with knife. grasping the CORY
strip Of flesh and grinding IL under his
heel, or haunting nelghbor into the
spirit of emulation by haunting before
his eyes the CHASTITY piece Of flesh. Sud
denly from out the compact mass rose
howl of mingled anguish and fury, |
and a solitary individual mounted q
sort of platform and stretched forth |
his hand. Evidently he was a high |
priest. Instantly there was silence |
The light OF the torches enabled us TO |
see the man who had mounted the plat |
form. He was tall, gaunt individ- !
ual. All his right side was naked, and |
his face was covered with gaping rents |
of knife wounds, from which blood |
trickled.
"a garment Of coarse cloth covered |
his body below the waist. Soon we |
saw five others follow him upon the |
platform, which was of raised earth. |
In recess in the wall mt the rear of |
torted form of gigantic imagc-a
stony, impressive figure OF such gro
tesque ugliness that one could not help |
wondering how race Of people, how
ever unenlightened, could bring them
selves to worship an object of such re-
pulsiveness.
"At last n fearful moment was at
hand An old man was seized and
upon a sort Of stone altar,
raised above the platform. He realized
his last hour had come, and he strug-
gled in fear and fury TO escape from
the grasp of his captors, giving vent
TO shrek after shrek until. exhausted,
he fell into stupor. -Four of the
priests held the family struggling
body, while from the gloom stalked
forth the sacrihcial priest, his hand
holding a long knife. Once. twice.
thrice he abased himself before the
image, and then, turning round like
beast ready to leap upon its prey, he
rushed toward the PROSTATE form. A
fash Of light and the keen blade sank
to the hllt I'm the flesh Of the victim.
"Three times did the worshipers on
the floor rise and abase themselves,
and then quickly the minor priests
seized the lifeless body and held 1t in
rhe air. For moment 1t silhouetted
against the fitful glare Of the fire; then
the flames leaped forward in eager
ecstasy to receive their prey"