“The second night was passed much as the former one; but the following day we prevailed on her to take a little bread. On swallowing a piece about the size of a nut she became very sick; and a draught of water produced a similar result. A better night seemed to do her good, for on the following day she managed to eat a little, and by slow degrees recovered her health.
“Since this occurrence I have witnessed many hoaxes easy to discover, but also many which I could never see through, although I tried every method that my small stock of ingenuity could invent.
“I remember once a poor weakly girl on whom I had tried several false charms, but without her moving. She was lying, apparently senseless, in the inner court of a house at Adoua, and numbers of persons were passing to and fro to see her, when, suddenly starting up, she screamed and struggled with so much strength, that, on seizing her by the legs and shoulders, I and three other powerful men could scarcely keep her down. A man near me said, ‘I am sure some one has with him a strong charm; if so, let him produce it.’ All denied the fact; but just then a stranger entered from the outer court, when she cried out, ‘Let me alone, and I will speak.’ This man was an Amhara soldier, perfectly unknown to all of us, but who, hearing one of our people inquire for charms in a house where he was drinking, had volunteered to try one which he wore, and which he declared to be very potent. On placing the amulet near her, she yelled and screamed horribly. The owner (addressing her as a woman) said, ‘Will you declare yourself if I take it away?’ She howled still more at this insult, as she called it, and said, ‘I am no woman.’ The question was then repeated several times in the masculine, but she invariably attempted to evade a direct answer, till, as if worn out, she exclaimed, ‘I will tell all; only take it far from me!’ It was accordingly removed to some distance from her, and she immediately sank down as if exhausted.”
When the cure had made some progress, “the bouda, anxious to delay his exit as long as possible, demanded food (as he always does) before leaving her. A basin was fetched, in which was put a quantity of any filth that could be found (of fowls, dogs, etc.), and mixed up with a little water and some ashes. I took the basin myself, and hid it where I was positive she could not see me place it, and covered it up with some loose stones which were heaped in the corner. The bouda was then told that his supper was prepared, and the woman rose and crawled down the court on all fours, smelling like a dog on either side, till, passing into the yard where the basin was, she went straight up to it, and, grubbing it out from the place where it was hidden, devoured its abominable contents with the utmost greediness. The bouda was then supposed to leave her, and she fell to the ground, as if fainting. From this state she recovered her health in a few days.
“I had forgotten to mention that one of the principal symptoms is a great longing for charcoal, of which the patient will eat any quantity she can obtain. The first proof of the devil’s leaving her is her allowing her thumbs to be taken hold of.”
On another occasion Parkyns, suspecting a hoax, concocted a charm which was composed of two or three bits of dry bamboo roots wrapped in a piece of paper, an old leaf or two, some pipe-ashes, and a tuft of hair cut from the tail of his dog. Then “proceeding to the place where the sufferer lay, I ordered a large-mouthed jar to be filled with dry mules’ dung and lighted. When this had been done, and the smoke began to rise in clouds, I put into it a small quantity of my charm, with every appearance of caution and care, which done, we seized the unfortunate victim, and with some difficulty forced her head close to the jar’s mouth, and then rolled a quarry (shama) round it and the jar, so as at once to keep her fast, and prevent the escape of the smallest quantity of smoke. As may be imagined, in a moment she began to cough violently, and at last, being almost suffocated, cried out, ‘Let me off, for pity’s sake; I am not ill, but only shamming.’ I solemnly asserted this to be only a device of the Evil One to get away from the charm, and held on, till her cries for pity, for the sake of the Virgin, of Oubi, etc., becoming more confused, and her cough more violent, I feared lest she might suffer too much if kept longer.
“That magic vessel was preserved in a conspicuous situation in the hut where the women worked till I left the place; and I must say that the attacks of bouda were less frequent after this occurrence than before; though I still had occasional cases where the sunken eye and vacant stare cheated me into tenderness of heart, and I refrained from the use of my singular but most efficacious remedy.”
Parkyns has also given an account of a similar disorder called tigritiya, which may be the same as the zar mentioned by Stern, though from the description, it appears to be more serious. The tigritiya, says Parkyns, is the near relation of the bouda, “but generally a far more disagreeable and dangerous devil than he. His dependents are supposed to be found in great numbers in Godjam, which province, indeed, is celebrated for sorcerers of all kinds. The first symptoms usually are the gradual wasting away of the attacked person, without any cause being apparent either to herself or her relatives. At last, however, after dieting, and the ordinary medicines have been unsuccessfully tried, it becomes a matter of suspicion to her friends, who determine, on ascertaining, whether or no she be afflicted with this devil. The first thing to be observed is to feed her daintily and dress her neatly. As her complaint and this treatment advance, she becomes peevish and fretful, and is always longing for something or other. Whatever she demands must be procured, else she will become sulky, and, covering up her head, remain sometimes for days without eating or speaking. Ornaments of all kinds require to be borrowed for her, often at much trouble to her unfortunate relations; for she is rarely satisfied unless she gets an assortment of those worn by both sexes, even to the lion’s skin of a warrior; and these are frequently almost impossible to procure. With some persons it is necessary to have recourse to music before the real cause of their complaint can be discovered. Drums and other musical instruments are collected outside the chamber door, and the musicians suddenly strike up all together, when the patient is not expecting it. If her illness be of an ordinary kind, she will, of course, beg of them to desist, but, if possessed, she will leap or fall from her couch to the ground, and commence shrugging her shoulders and swinging her head to and fro in time with the music; beginning with a slight movement, but gradually increasing in pace as she appears to become excited, till at last her motions are so violent that a spectator is led to fear for the safety of her neck. It is truly wonderful to see a sick person whom you have just beheld stretched on a bed, a weak, emaciated bag of bones, apparently without strength to rise, keeping up this very fatiguing motion with a velocity and power of endurance that would be astonishing even in an ordinarily strong person. On the music’s ceasing she rests, and then begins to speak, telling his name (that is, the devil’s) and his family; and it is usually after this that she demands the trinkets, specifying each article that she requires, and making their production the condition of her dancing again. She, as I before said, generally contrives to name objects that are most difficult to obtain, such as the silver-ornamented velvet worn only by great war-chiefs; and much sorrow and trouble does this cause to her relations, for she will not be persuaded to show any sign of animation if a single article she has named be not forthcoming; and on her dancing and singing is supposed chiefly to depend her chance of recovery.
“The mode of ejecting the Old Gentleman from his temporary possession is something similar to what we have already described. After the patient has been induced to dance pretty frequently, it is to be hoped that the devil is put into a tolerably good humour, which desideratum can only be obtained by making frequent and polite inquiries when he will be pleased to have music, and by promptly procuring everything he may demand, by the mouth of the possessed, whether it be food or wearing apparel. The auspicious moment arriving, the friends of the sufferer inquire of her when he will be disposed to quit his present residence and go to his own place. The first time this question is ventured upon, the spirit generally replies that he is not yet satisfied with the entertainment he has received at their hands, and seizes the opportunity of demanding something more. After a time, however, if things go on well, he fixes a day for taking his leave, usually the seventh after the day on which he makes his announcement. The happy time having arrived, a large party is assembled in some wild spot in the country, and there must be feasting, dancing, and music, as before, but, if possible, carried on with more than usual spirit. The patient joins in with the rest; and the devil, when satisfied, announces his intention to depart. This he signifies through the medium of his victim, who takes off her finery; then, bowing her head, she kisses her hands in token of farewell, and starts off, running at a pace which few men could equal. She cannot, however, keep it up for more than from fifty to a hundred yards, when she falls to the ground senseless. At this moment the spirit is supposed to have left her; and lest he should find himself worse off outside than in, and, changing his mind, return to her, five or six active young men are prepared beforehand, and as soon as she starts they follow her, and, coming up with her just as she is falling, place themselves in threatening attitudes round her body, one holding a drawn sword, another firing a charge of powder out of a matchlock, and a third brandishing a lance. This is supposed to intimidate the fiend, and prevent his return, should he be so disposed.
“The woman, who but a moment before was outdoing all the party, both in the dance and in running, now lies stretched on the ground helpless and emaciated, as if after a long illness. She faintly calls for water, which is given her; and when a little restored, she is asked her name, which she answers correctly; and as a conclusive proof of her freedom from the power of the Evil One, she is requested to repeat the formerly so much dreaded words—‘B’ism Ab, ou Weld, ou Menfus Kouddos’ (in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost). A sheep or a fowl is killed, broiled on the embers, and eaten with bread. The patient’s friends partake of this food when the devil goes out of her. The bones and remains of the meat are burned with fire, and the fragments of the bread buried in the ground. These are so left for the devil, that if he should come back to the place he may remain and feed, and not go on and bother the woman. Thus is the cure complete, though it often takes a considerable time to effect it.”