Show SUPERSTITION RAMPANT Beliefs of ed Native Which Fakirs Turn to Profit Metropolitan Magazine Some Sorpe few years ago a man whom I t know keen bought an estate near neal a Ii town at ot some erne mc size and on lila his tak possession slon was surprised ed to find that ho bo bad lind ais alsO 1 token taken on a strange At the side of or the road before ms Itis place was a gigantic tree such sucha as ro a the natives believe become the tha resi rest dence of departed spirits in great num flout bers hers This is ia a n ns as well wull us usa a 41 Brahmin superstition The tree waa in 11 charge of a rascally old fakir who I was systematically a extorting a fine revs reve revenue flue nue from the people of the community I by various devices tuInI C conversations con of departed ones with their t friends He Re had a 0 hut base of o the he tree The rue protruding limbs almost mocked the tho roadway and wepo n a great nuisance and the nightly noises about tile the fakirs Hut li t were a great gr at annoyance nn yance to tho the new owner of ot tho tIm property He stood tood it aa na long lont as aa he could and when one ones day another fakir who was wa also alBo a i ventriloquist and had a highly trained tame came by he promised him a handsome fee te to rid lump him of f the tue fakir or of the th tree As long lanK as the fakir was rodS there thero t th prophesy what wha dreadful things would happen if U one branch of ot tho the tree cut or broken any attempt to cle oie r the roadway would mean a native revolt The second fakir secretly watched the operations of ot the th first for tor a day or two and discovered dl cover d that the worshipers who came brought gifts of food money noncy and aud Jewels to lay before the peer pe r af Jt f the tree the hl spirit in charge of ot their friends spirit The ThiC worshipers were then sent to the tha river to wash in a n certain way by the tim old fakir and he returned to tho the of his nut hut When l the th wor worshipers worshipers returned they th y found him stilt still lu In the le hut but the gifts were worb all aU gone con consumed d by b the peer of the tree the fakir falUr ir said As 41 H U matter of or fact tact he find stolen out arid and got them meanwhile The second fakir ascended into the tho free itee freeth tre th day and posted tile the lit monkey so that the Instant the th old fakirs back was wai turned the monkey could swing by 1 11 IIi la tall tail and nd gather up nil oU II the gifts gi This thiis I was done does many nany times till Uil the old fakir fuku true completely mystifIed and ar nearly fran frantic frantic frantic tic over oer his hie losses los Having secured a large quantity of booty the second llod fakir took t olt the next step StOl in Ills hID plan Ho EC Ee set t monkey mon ey alert on a n branch brunch of ot the tree timer that th t was ini in plain sight and when whon a com corn dr Ut wealthy and influential wor woi gathered Jaher d to converse con re with their dead d na the th fakir by nis ventriloquism made his monkey denounce the theole ole Olf fakir blUr Platting him a t before thi Uw tl Tho old man mal into tub tuba fT n a rage which ibich a certain sign Hm that t at ho 10 h W B not ot holy hob and at thai moment tW r C r of the th fi appears with Ln ar n nm j dc W tI II m cl f O Mf l t T tl 14 if i h 1 t int i Ue tle I I o U broke off a it handful and he hb wa war rot killed ait tt t O d to the I l s of ot ruLf r worth t f t they thoy li 11 I 4 i 1 fh the b I talt r th the people drove tin 1110 th uld man from titO JI trl and amul allowed the i b d 1 09 nJ he pleased with the tree regardless Ss of ot the number of ancestors nf tt which he b gleefully and anti with painstaking dare are chopped up http it bits each Urns time he het t lt c I |