The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1913-08-02
------------- <s. WITHCRAFT The Influenceof Evil Spirits
BY C.Z. COLLNGR -ER S.s

page of the patients nose. These re. strictions are withdrawn after the ninth day, with the exception of those l against hammering and waII-papering
 Even the Government which is not supposed to countenance witchcraft 1T | any way, stopped. all carpenters work l in Seoul for nearly a month in April 1903, when an heir-apparent to the | throne was suffering from smallpox.
 On the. thirteenth day after the ap- :! pearance of the disease arrangements
 are made for the expected departure ] of the spirit. He is regaled with a l feast, and a horse< made of locust wood | with a straw bag on it's back Gin which
 are rice and n1oney), is placed on the | roof for the spirit to ride away upon. Even in cases where death has ensued l this is done. The sorceress is again
 called in to petition the spirit to deal
 kindly with the family, to let the sick
 man recover and not leave him badly pock-marked.
 SPIRIT OF THE RIDGE POLE.
 The chief of all the spirits of the house is the Spirit Of the Ridge Pole. | Its presence is not unaIIoyed joy; there is ever the possibility that this spirit,
 taking offence at some trivial thing, will take its departure. On it's contin-
 ued presence hangs the general well
 fare of the house and it's occupants. Every precautfen must, therefore, be
 taken to retain. the presence of this spirit.
 Though originally enshrined by the aid of a sorceress, when the frame
 work of the house is erected, it is 1i- able to be driven away when death or any other calamity which causes weeping throws forth it's encircling potency. The departure of the spirit portends a succession of troubles; the services of a sorceress have, therefore tO he p7t n ind fn and bring back the minor household spirits who have followed its lead, and So ensure 8 continuance of good luck. THE SPIRIT OF THE VI FAMILY.
 Another spirit, the fear of which brings much cash into the coffers of the sorceresses is the Spirit of the Vi Family. This malicious demon is said to be- the spirit of former Crown Prince, who for an act of rebellion was killed. It is supposed to be going to and fro in the land seeking whom it may inJure.
 Should any one die suddenly, or sev- eraI members of a family be taken i'll, it is proof they have come in contact with this demon. Such an evil spirit as this naturally demands special treatment.
 t The sorceress orders pig to be killed, boiled entire and offered up whole; after which she throws herself I and freely brandishes about two or more knives. Occasionally the exor- cist works herself up into such a fren- zy that she falls down apparently in a fit. She involes the aid of the pow CTS in the following words:
 'tOhI Master and Mistress of our Kingdom, may you ever exist in peace. Once in every three years we invoke you in music and in dance. O, make this house to be peacefu1!''
 PROPITIATING PHB SPIRITS
 Along the banks of the streams which water the valleys and plains of Korea will be seen thousands of villages dotted hither and thither. In these villages each spring and autumn a special ceremony is performed to ensure the continuance of good luck, or to propitiate the dragon after it has displayed it's wrath.
 The sorceress' action in dealing with these spirits differs from that pre- v1ously described; there is no Jumping or working herself into a frantic state; l she simply prays to the dragon, be- seeching its aid and kindness; she does not profess to become possessed by a l spirit.
 Generally speaking, part of the cere- mony takes place in a boat which is l crowded with the villagers. This over, l the sorceress performs the knife dance on a long bladed and broad knife hay ing a handle at each end, Wh1ch IS Ialo r sideways across a basin full of water. Should she spill any of the water or cut her bare feet it is an extremely bad omen-
 All. sailors are firm believers in and worshippers of the dragon. The merchantmen, the ferrymen and the fishermen, all have their own pa tron spirits. The men on coasting vessels, which make but two or three long trips in the year, will call in a sorceress before setting out on each voyage This ceremony will include 3 musical performance Of drums and reed pipes while the sorceress inplores the dragon-spirit and the spirits or drowned men to be compassionate and grant protection to the vessel. it's crew and it's cargo.
 The Koreans religion is not the spontaneous devotion of a soul to it's Creator. It is the act of a cringing soul trying to shield itself from 1t knows not what.