Vampire And Bruxa 24 Oct 1874

## Site and Author Information

* Orig Newspaper: Sacramento Daily Union
* Author No stated author
* Issue and Date: Volume 48, Number 7350, 24 October 1874
* Page: 1
* Online URL: https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SDU18741024.2.14&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1
* Website: The California Digital Newspaper Collection
* https://cdnc.ucr.edu

### Additional Papers and Reprints

* Newspaper: Northern Ohio Journal
* (Painesville, Ohio)
* Page 1
* Author No stated author
* Issue and Date: Sat, Nov 21, 1874
* Online URL: https://www.newspapers.com/image/339496800
* Website: Newspapers.com

## VAMPIRE AND BRUXA

In our former article on this subject, says the Athenaeum and Daily News, Madras, we mentioned that belief in witches

was a superstition almost universally met with. Another almost equally prevalent is the fear of "the Evil Eye." This is an unpleasant faculty, supposed to be possessed by some person, of being able to wither, as it were, any one they choose merely by a glance. It is acquired by a compact with the Prince of Darkness, who, in return for bestowing the wished-for power, demands the souls of those who make the compact with him. There are, however, individuals who are supposed to possess this faculty not only involuntarily. but even against their will, in which case it is not under their control, and they frequently therefore injure the very persons they most love; for should the involuntary possessor of an evil eye be unguarded enough to praise any person, animal, or even thing, and look at it at the same time, its doom is fixed, and in spite of all the efforts of the unwilling cause of the injury, its destruction is certain to ensue. What gave rise to this singular superstition we have been unable to discover, but belief in it is very wide spread. It is met with among most nations of the East, while in many countries in Europe the lower classes believe in it firmly, especially in Greece and Spain. Many of our readers will doubtless remember a striking picture of Philips, of which this superstition is the subject. A Spanish gypsy mother is seated cowering down in a corner of her tent, her attitude and countenance expressive of the most intense fear as she clasps her babe to her breast, as though to save it from some impending danger, while through the open door of the tent we see the innocent cause of her alarm ; a young, bright girl who looks incapable of inflicting injury on any one, but who, nevertheless, is suspected of being an unfortunate possessor of the dreaded Evil Eye. In the north of Europe, and also in many parts of Germany. we find traces of this superstitious belief among the peasantry; while in the Highlands of Scotland, and especially in the Hebrides, the gradual decline of a person's health, or the sudden death of a cow, is commonly attributed to the effects of an evil eye. Numerous are the superstitions that have a world-wide prevalence, it is yet in the East that we meet with the most extraordinary and varied forms of beliefs of this nature, and any of our readers who have traveled much in Eastern countries, and at the same time entered into conversation with their inhabitants, have doubtless heard many a thrilling tale of vampires, ghouls, and kindred races.

It is in Turkey and Asia Minor and the borders of the neighboring countries that the travelers is most Frequently regaled with stories of beings of this nature, in whose actual existence the people of those lands most firmly believe. A vampire is supposed to be a body which, though to all intents and purposes dead and buried, is yet endowed with a certain kind of life, and is animated by a horrid thirst for human blood. During the day the vampire reposes quietly in his grave, but as soon as the shades of night begins to fall he makes preparations for sallying forth in search of his evening repast, and then, when all the world is buried in slumber he steals out of his narrow resting place, and wanders about till he meets with the only food that will appease his hunger, i.e., the blood of some one belonging to the race of mankind. The victim may be his wife or child, or some friend. that while in this his life he cared for more than life itself, but all considerations of love and friendship are now forgotten, and the sole aim of the vampire is to slake his thirst. No feeling of pity moves him as bending over his unconscious prey, be makes a small incision with his long sharp tooth in bis victim's vein, and then sucks his life blood from him. Having thus satisfied his hunger, he steals back to his grave, ere the first streaks of dawn appear in the east, there to rest till it is time for the next night's orgies. And meanwhile, what of his hapless victim? Apparently he is none the worse, except that he is rather pale, and on his throat is a small blue mark, but that mark tells him that his doom is sealed, and that a fearful fate awaits him. Slowly, but surely, he dies, and knows that instantly life is extinct he too must become one of the dreaded race and drag on a horrid existence at the expense of his fellow men. Sometimes when a vampire is known to haunt a neighborhood, the inhabitants join in self-defense, and proceeding to the burial ground, open the grave, with many a prayer and no little fear and trepidation. The body, which has all the appearance of being still in life, is then taken up, and after being pierced through the chest, is carefully burnt, after which ceremony the people believe they are free from the danger of visitations from a vampire, until a new member of the race visits the district. Traces of this superstition were to be found in Poland and in some parts of Germany about a century and a half ago, but it is almost totally extinct now in these countries. The imaginary beings, whose existence is still believed in iv the West, that bear most resemblance to the vampire race are the "Bruxas." tales of whom are occasionally told to travelers, in some parts of Portugal. Fearful beings are these same Bruxas supposed to be, while the utter wretchedness of their fate is even greater than that of vampires, for they have to indulge their horrid taste while still in life. The following description of a Bruxa is given by Kingston in his Lusitanian sketches:

"In the day time she is like any other woman, performing the duties of her household in the most exemplary manner. She may be the daughter of honest and good parents; she may marry and have children ; she may be amiable and is often very beautiful, though there is a certain fierce expression in her eye and an ominous wrinkle on her otherwise fair brow, which the skeptical would suppose proceeded from care or affliction." Thus in outward appearance the Bruxa has nothing to distinguish her from other women, and the race is supposed to preserve their incognito with such jealous care that none can tell who are Bruxas and who are not.

## Citations

* **APA:** Unknown. (1824). Vampire and Bruxa. Sacramento Daily Union, p. 1. Retrieved 1 March 2020, from https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SDU18741024.2.14&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1.
* **MLA:** Unknown. "Vampire And Bruxa". Sacramento Daily Union, 1824, p. 1, https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SDU18741024.2.14&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1. Accessed 1 Mar 2020.
* **Harvard:** Unknown (1824). Vampire and Bruxa. Sacramento Daily Union, [online] p.1. Available at: https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SDU18741024.2.14&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1 [Accessed 1 Mar. 2020].
* **Chicago:** Unknown. 1824. "Vampire And Bruxa". Sacramento Daily Union, , 1824. https://cdnc.ucr.edu/?a=d&d=SDU18741024.2.14&e=-------en--20--1--txt-txIN--------1.