Show HORRORS OF HAITI VOODOO Awful Rites Practiced In Which Which I Mothers Eat Their Children I Chicago Chronicle i ihen When hen twO t negroes were garroted at t Havana a year ar ago for murder Jesul ing from voodoo practices considerable i surprise was expressed that such a survival of savagery as still sti I existed on this continent In parts pars of Cuba Cuba in Haiti Hait and other West Indian islands however the spell sp l of the voodoo Is potent today Just as asIt asit s sIt It dominates the t minds of certain certin ne negro negro gro tribes on the te coast coat of West Africa To a lesser extent and long since di dl divorced divorced from human sacrifices voodoo superstitions prevail among the ne negroes groes goes of Louisiana Luisiana and other sections of ot the gulf gull coast Voodoo or worship has long been deeply rooted in Haiti Hait It is in intimately Intimately associated with wih the politics of ot the republic and those th se presidents president or or other heads heds of f the government who h have have had the courage to defy d fy public opposition and ad direct their influence against this cult have met with wih but little lt success Those who practice voodoo are great greatly geat ly feared by the Haitians I who are not votaries of the snake god The faith falth faithful fill ful are distinguished by their curioUs curlo s method of knotting the hair and by bythe bythe bythe the profusion of ot ornaments which they affect An analogy may be traced easily be between between between tween the rites ries of the African natives who worship and the ceremonies ceremonies nies of ot the Haitians who belong to the th voodoo sects A priest prest In Haiti Hait is known as papa or master or king There Thre Is but one priestess whom the te priest has ha elevated elev t ted ed to that rank She is 15 called caled mamma or mistress or queen The power of the king and queen Is absolute their rule extends during lifetime The Th thunderous rus rumbling of the drum calls cals the people together This sound Is most impressive and can be heard for long distances When the initiated arrive upon the sacred spot each fastens a pair of san sandals sandals dals dais to the thO feet fe t and decks the body with wih a number of red handkerchiefs handkerchiefs rod red doo ro being the favorite color of the tha yea voodoo vo Upon the altar alar are seated the king and queen or and ts as a the Haitians H lt ls call cal them arrayed aryed In resplendent resplendent costume of which red Is the predominant color and beside them themIs Is placed a box with wih slats In Jn front through which may be seen the te object of their worship a ser set serpent pent The worshipper approaches the altar alar does obeisance and makes maJ s his protestations protest tiong tons of eternal faithfulness and sub submission submission submission mission Taking the hands of the king and queen he his oaths When all have acknowledged them themselves themselves selves 8 as true servants of the god the tho te king kun nd ml queen descant to their follow follo followers followers kint ers upon the joys of the religion and what Wh t happiness hap iness Is in store for those thos who faithfully obey the man mandates man mah dates s Then the king expresses hint hirn self sel willing to give advice to those who need neM It I IL Each approaches according to his or her hep In tha th sect and asks aks the desired favor As each question queston Is II asked the th king appears wrapped In profound pr found thought for tor several moments Suddenly the spirit of th god gd seizes him he h places the box containing the serpent upon the te ground and com corn commands mands the queen to get upon it I This she no sooner does than she begins to te tremble violently ht and froth at the th mouth and then utter titter uter the wOrds which h the lh god sees ees fit ft to inspire All AU kinds kids of advice advice IS requested Of ot t course and all al sorts sort Is received Many crimes are very ver likely hatched or en encouraged encouraged curg through the queens Instructions Hone Her Hei commands ands are always im implicitly U 61 b d After fer all al have taken J advice avice the king kig 1 and queen announce that the god will be pleased to t nrc nrc pt t through them th m any wi an offering which may be presented present d Thereupon Ther up n each worshipper r advances and deposits his gift git in such a way that no other fn an see se the nature of the donation donaton This collection Is used to defray the personal l expenses of the t e king kin and queen qu n and nd for r the promotion n of Voodoo Interests Inter throughout Haiti flaith Hait When all questions have been satis sa f disposed d of the box contain ts ing the snake Is again placed upon the tho altar the entire band forms a ti circle and with wih hands and joined pledge de with the thou most lo horrible oaths oah Ima Il to maintain the strictest secrecy se fec regard Ing anything connected with their wor worship worship i ship Ehl This pact is frequently Sealed by each member drinking the blood of ofa ofa ofa a white goat or cock The Initiation of any miny person who de desires d sires to become a member is now in order A large l rge circle is drawn upon I the grounds grounds bits bis of be horn strands i pf f I hair h lr and other trifles are ae at placed in the jf candidates hands and he is led to the center c of the ring Then to the accompaniment accompaniment of a chant lustily roared r ared Out by b the tho th king and the beating of ot the thesa sa sacred sacred cred drums he commences a violent sort of dance Should he ho by chance happen to go g outside the circle it is re regarded regarded regarded as a aveo very bad omen and the king and queen turn their th lt backs to avert vert the evil evi consequences of the act When the dancer haS h imbibed liquor Ir Ie It sufficient quantities tb to steady dy him himself hi himself self sel he continues to dance Until he lie ar or arrives rives at ft t state of convulsion n where whereupon whereupon whereupon upon the king taps him not hot Very Ver gent nt ly upon the head helid with wih a club swears him at the altar alar and formally declares him a member of th sect sectA After A ter this ceremony is iver Over the doo coo dan dancs begins The king ap the box containing the sacred snake make and shakes It i Immediately his body makes every conceivable ble kind of grotesque O motion moton it I would seem that thata a dislocation of f some Sole portion porton of his anatomy would ensue This motion moton Is communicated to the te queen and nd site she in turn communicates es it I to another and so on ott Until all al are writhing td sway sd Ing in a a weird W sort of dan a ii I peculiar p characteristic of nf which is that the feet i et are hardly lifted from fro the ground grund One by one the dancers dancer foaming at atthe atthe atthe the mouth and writhing horribly fall to the ground gound and are ar quickly dragged to a dark shed or shelter sheler of some kind near by Here the most disgusting orgies take place which s only orges from sheer weariness of or the thO th participants Participants pants These meetings are held h ld at Ir Irregular Irregular irregular regular Intervals more mOe or less fre frequent fre frequent quent and are Bre accompanied by very Ver little secrecy The victims of ot the cannibal voodoo fire are re for the th mot most part native children particularly females Indeed a pap lol sometimes fm employs a Haitian to kid kidnap kidnap the tle children for his hl sacrifices nap tup s Such Buch Bucha Sucha Sucha a a brute Is known as aa a loup Iou garon The human sacrifice IS termed t ted the goat got without horns In contrast to the white goat gat slain by b the other sect In Instances Instances Instances stances have been cited where way wa farers have have been e n decoyed deco to lonely Jonely spots and murdered the bodies then being consumed by the th cannibals c much muchas tUch as one would eat at any other kind of f meat theat Numerous hava ha been the cases caes where wh re mothers have sacrificed and eaten eilen their own children n indeed Inde this practice I has doubtless affected nf the increase of t population In Haiti Hai to some degree d gec |