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National Geographic : 1908 Mar
Contents
HAITI: A DEGENERATING ISLAND SKETCH MAP OF HAITI seek the life of a soldier, and as such they quickly transfer their allegiance to the highest bidder or, in fact, to any one offering a change. Owing to the general lack of enterprise among the lower classes of the people and the greed of the few who from time to time control the admin istration of the revenues, the only hope of the country is to have some strong man, such as Diaz of Mexico, revolu tionize the methods of the government. VOODOOISM STILL PRACTICED No accurate history of Haiti can be written without a reference to the horri ble sorcery, called the religion of Voodoo, which was introduced into the country with the slaves from Africa. Its creed is that the God Voodoo has the power usually ascribed to the Christian's Lord, and that he shows himself to his good friends, the negroes, under the form of a non-venomous snake, and transmits his power through a chief priest or priestess. These are called either king and queen, master or mistress, or generally as papa lois and mama-lois. The principal act of worship consists of a wild dance, attended by grotesque gesticulations, which leads up to the most disgraceful orgies. A secret oath binds all the voodoos, on the taking of which, the lips of the neo phyte are usually touched with warm goat's blood, which is intended to inspire terror. He promises to submit to death should he ever reveal the secrets of the fraternity, and to put to death any traitor to the sect. It is affirmed, and no doubt is true, that on special occasions a sacri fice is made of a living child, or the "goat without horns," as it is called, and then cannibalism in its worst form is indulged in. Under the circumstances of taking the oath of allegiance, it should cause no surprise that the Haitiens claim that this is not true and defy any white man to produce evidence of guilt. But, notwithstanding, no one can read the hor rible tales published by Sir Spencer Saint John, one of the British ministers to Haiti, which describes in detail the re volting practices of the voodoos, together with the proofs he brings to substantiate the truth of the allegations, without com ing to the reluctant conclusion that canni balism is resorted to in these meetings. Of course, no white man could long live on the island after having given testimony leading to the conviction of culprits in such cases, and therefore the negroes' 215
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