Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1912-01-09
AFTER a wllTcHcAT
FAMILY LIES IN WAIT WITH
SOLID GOLD BULLET.
stisx" Has CAUSED Various klnde o.
Woe In Tumblino Run Valley and
Cant % Killed With ordi-
nary Ammunition.

At 1uMOllu NUN Valley near fOttS.
Vile, Pa. Z family 10 lying in wait
for a witchcat with gun loaded
with . solid gold bullet, and has also
put . "wNchcat-eating cat" on the
trail of&th6Shex, or witchcat- This
witchcat appeared at the homo Of
Howell Thomas, some weeks ago. Il
was always seen at four o'clock IN
the morning prowling around the
barnyard, and it ID said to have
grown until 1t was four fest long.
It is averred that the hens began
Growing like roosters and the pigs
barking like dogs, and this first evil
dence that something was wrong was
followed by horses. cattle, poultry
and even people pining away and
dying
The climax came when Howell
Thomas himself died. Two daughters
were left-one q splinter, the other
married. The former charged the lat
ter with having put tho "hex witch.
cat" on the property, and at the
funeral the two had . grievous clash.
for the unmarried sister tried to ex.
pei from the house the married
"witch-sender."
The Thomases had been shooting
at the "hex" ana though their aim
ordinarily was good, they seemingly
could not hit the strange cat. After
her fathers death, Miss Thomas held
q conference with an unknown witch
doctor and announced that 1t had
been revealed that the reason the
bullets had not been effective was be-
cause they were lead. She followed
directions and nodded . solid gold
bullet out Of a five-dollar gold piece.
But when the magic bullet was In
the gun ready for uss. the cat failed
70 feappear. Miss Thomas and the
neighbors have lain in wait for the
"hex." but all in vain. Some declare
its absence due to the fact that too
many people have been wearing
cruciflxss and talismans to protect
themselves. Tho affair became 90
mysterious that the Pottsville' Repub-
lican editorially asked q complete
Investigation.
The latest turn to the mysterious
case, however. 10 the most interest.
ing Of all. A black cat owned by Z
schuylkill Haven man has been found
by the ''hex" doctors to be q "hexa.
hemeron cat" This cat is said to
have been born on the 9Th day Of
the sixth month in 1906. and to have
been one, Of q litter, Of six kittens.
It was blind only six days after be.
ing born. whereas all ordinary cats
are blind nine days. The word
hexahemeron IL taken from two
Greek words. ''hex" and '.hemera,"
and means completion in six parts
1t 10 usually used In referring to the
SIX days labor Of Creation. a. de
scribed in the nrst chapter Of Genesis
While there are only I'VE books in
Moses In the authorized Bible. the
hex doctors declare they have q
sixth book Of Noses. In this book the
witch Of Endor ascribes full power to
the hexahemeron cat in warding Of
evil spells.
It was declared that the ''hex cat
had beyond doubt an engagement
with the evil one, whereby 1t had i'm.
parted to 1t an imp, or spirit. The
Schuylkill Haven cat has never eaten
anything but toads. frogs, lizards
and serpents. and the hex doctors
agreed that it's presence will restore
the Thomas homestead to normal
condition.