In the next place, because they believe they can effect very strange things by the drum, we will shew what they are, and the manner used to perform them. These are three, belonging either to their hunting, their sacred affairs, or lastly the enquiring into things far distant. I find four chiefly mentioned by another Writer, the first is, the knowing the state of affairs in forreign Countries. The second, what success their designs in hand will meet. With the third, how to cure diseases. The fourth, what Sacrifices their Gods will be pleased to accept, and what beast each God desires or dislikes most. As to the way in making enquiries, it is not the same among all these artists. But the great thing they generally observe, is, to stretch the skin very stiff, which is don by holding it to the fire. The next is, that they beat not altogether in the same place, but round about the Index; then that they beat softly at first, presently quicker, and continue this till they have effected their intent. The drummer first lifts up the drum by degrees, then beats softly about the Index, till it begins to stirr, and when it is removed some distance from its first place to either side, he strikes harder, till the Index points at something, from whence he may collect what he sought for. They take care also that as well he that beats the drum, as those that are present at the ceremony, should be upon their knees. As to the occasions of their beating thus, the later of those is already discoursed of. Now we proceed to the rest, the first of which is concerning their enquiries into things acted in remote parts. Those who desire to know the condition of their friends, or affairs abroad, whether distant five hundred, or a thousand miles, go to some Laplander, or Finlander skilfull in this art, and present him with a linen garment, or piece of silver, as his reward, for satisfying them in their demands. An example of this nature is to be seen upon record, at Bergen, a famous Market Town in Norway, where the effects of the German Merchants are registred; in this place there was one John Delling, Factor then to a German, to whom a certain Finlapper of Norway came with James Samaousuend: of him John Delling enquired about his Master then in Germany; the Finlapper readily consenting to tell him, like a drunken man presently made a great bawling, then reeling and dancing about several times in a circle, fell at last upon the ground, lying there sometime as if he were dead, then starting up on a suddain, related to him all things concerning his Master, which were afterwards found to agree to what he reported. There are many more instances of this kind: the most considerable, is one concerning a Laplander, now living, who gave Tornæus an account of the Journey he first made to Lapland, tho he had never seen him before that time; which, altho it was true, Tornæus dissembled to him, least he might glory too much in his devilish practises, and rely upon them, as the only means whereby he might attain to truth. The autority of this man is so considerable, that it may gain credit enough to the Story. As to the method taken in making discoveries, it is very different. Olaus Magn. describes it thus, the drummer goes into some private room, accompanied by one single person, besides his wife, and by beating the drum moves the Index about, muttering at the same time several charms, then presently he falls into an extasie, and lies for a short time as if dead; in the mean while his companion takes great care, that no gnat, flie, or other living creature touch him; for his Soul is carried by some ill Genius into a forreign Countrey, from whence it is brought back with a knife, ring, or some other token, of his knowledg, of what is done in those parts; after this rising up, he relates all the circumstances belonging to the business that was enquired after; and that they may seem certainly so, he shews what he hath brought from thence. Petr. Claud. makes no mention either of the drum, charms, company, or those things he brings with him; but saies he casts himself upon the ground, grows black in the face, lying as if dead for an hour or two; according as the distance of the place is, of which he makes enquiry; when he awakes he gives a full account of all affairs there. It is clear from what was said before, that they made use of a drum; and ’tis observed that for this sort of conjuring the lower part of the drum, whereby they hold it, was commonly shaped like a cross. One of this make was given me by the Lord Henry Flemming, Colonel of a foot Regiment in Finland, the Figure of it is in the page foregoing. They hang about it several claws, and bones of the creatures they take. That several persons also, as well men as women, are permitted to be present at this ceremony, is asserted by Sam. Rheen in his history, where he saies that the drummer sings a song, called by them Joiike, and the men and women that are present sing likewise, some in higher some in lower notes, this they call Duura. Next as to the casting themselves on the ground, there are various relations, some think them not really, but only in appearance dead; others are apt to believe that the soul departs from the body, and after its travell abroad, returns again. But without doubt this is false, for is it impossible, for either man, or devil, to restore the soul to the body it hath once left. So that I believe the devil only stifles the faculties of the soul for a time, and hinders their operations. Now after the drummer falls down, he laies his drum as near as possibly on his head, in this posture.
Those in the mean time that are present, leave not off singing all the time he lies sweating in this agony; which they do not only to put him in mind, when he awakes, of the business he was to know; but also that he might recover out of this trance, which he would never do, (as they imagine) if they either ceased singing, or any one stirred him with their hand or foot. This perhaps is the reason why they suffer no flie, or any living creature to touch him; and it is upon this account only that they watch him so diligently, and not out of any fear they have least the devil should take away his body; which opinion of Peucers is altogether false. It is uncertain how long they lye in this manner, but it is commonly according as the place where they make their discovery, is nearer or farther off; but the time never exceeds 24 houres, let the place be at never so great a distance. After he awakes he shews them some tokens to confirm their belief in what he tells them. This is the first and chiefest use they make of the drum.
The next is, how to know the event of their own concerns, and what success their hunting will have, or any other business which they undertake, for they seldom venture on any thing, without first consulting that. In order to the knowing this, they place the bunch of rings on the picture of the Sun in the drum; then they beat, singing at the same time; if the rings go round towards the right hand, according to the Suns course they promise to themselves good health, fortune, and great encrease both of men and beasts; if contrary, towards the left, they expect sickness and all the evils attending on ill success. We may easily ground this opinion of theirs upon the other mentioned above, where they believe the Sun the only Author of all productions. Wherefore when the Index moves according to his motion, it portends prosperity by following his course, from whom they expect all the good they receive. This is the way they take in all their more weighty affairs, as in a journey, hunting, removing their habitations, or any such like thing, of which something before, and more hereafter. Before they hunt they make particular observation which way the Index turns, whether East, West, North, or South; and collect from thence where their game lies. Other things for which the drum is serviceable, are, first, the discovering the nature of diseases, whether they arise from any disorder in the body, or are caused by magic; this being known, then to find the remedy for them, which is commonly by sacrifice to one or other of their angry Gods, but chiefly to Storjunkar, who bears greatest autority among them, and if not appeased, leaves them small hopes of recovery. Wherefore the sick person vows a sacrifice, either of a Rain-deer, Bull, Goat, or Ram, or something of this kind to one of the Storiunkars, that stands upon the mountains. The sacrifice is not left to the disposal of the sick man, but must be made according to the directions of the drummer; for he is supposed to be the only man able to advise them in this case, he first discovers which of the Gods is displeased, and what sort of sacrifice is most acceptable to him, for they refuse several, and the same also at several times. But before the drummer appeases their Gods, they give him a copper and a silver ring, putting them on his right arm, then he begins a song, and beats the drum, and all that are present joyn with him in a Chorus; after this according to the place, to which the Index points, he directs them. These are the things commonly done by the drum. The last thing for which they think it necessary, is, the accomplishing their wicked designs, as impairing mens health, or depriving them of their lives; which is frequently enough practised among them, tho not altogether so publicly as heretofore. Some of them account this only unlawful, and exclude themselves out of the number of those, which use it, thinking the other uses of the drum to consist chiefly in doing good. But however this mischievous Art continues still too much among them. Several inhabitants of Kiema in Lapland were apprehended in the year 1671, with drums, for this purpose so large, that they could not be removed from thence, but were burnt in the place. Among those Laplanders there was one four score years of age, that confessed he was bred up in this art from his childhood, who in 1670 upon some quarrell about a pair of mittens, caused a Boar of Kiema to be drowned in a Cataract, for which he was condemned to die, and in order to that was to be carried in chains to the next town in Bothnia, but in the journy he contrived so by his art, that on a suddain, tho he seemed well, and lusty, he died on the sledge, which he had often foretold he would sooner do, then fall into the Executioners hands. As to the ceremonies used in this particular, either in their words, gesture, or any other thing, I can give no account, finding none in those writings, from whence I collected the rest. The reason for this, I suppose, is, because they themselves keep this secret, as the great mystery in their art; or that no one would enquire into them, least they should be thought guilty of this damnable sin.
Having treated largely of the drum, we come to the other parts of this art, to which also belong proper sorts of instruments: the first is a cord tied with knots for the raising of wind. They, as Zeiglers relates it, tye three magical knots in this cord; when they untie the first, there blows a favorable gale of wind; when the second, a brisket; when the third, the Sea and wind grow mighty stormy, and tempestuous. This, that we have reported concerning the Laplanders, is by Olaus Magnus, and justly, related of the Finlanders, who border on the Sea, and sell winds to those Merchants that trafic with them, when they are at any time detained by a contrary one. The manner is thus, they deliver a small rope with three knots upon it, with this caution, that when they loose the first, they shall have a good wind, if the second, a stronger, if the third, such a storm will arise, that they can neither see how to direct the ship, and avoid rocks, or so much as stand upon the decks, or handle the tackling. No other Writers mention this concerning the Laplanders, and I am apt not to think it at all probable, since they live in an inland Country, bordering no where upon the Sea. Wherefore this properly belongs to the Finlappers in Norway. Now those that are skilled in this art, have command chiefly over the winds that blew at their birth; so that this wind obeys principally one man, that another, as if they obtained this power when they first received their breath; now as this belongs chiefly to the Finlappers and Finlanders of Norway, so doth the stopping of the course of ships, which is altogether of the same nature. This is also attributed to the Laplanders, who according to the different affection they have for Merchants, make the Sea either calmer, or more tempestuous.
We come now to their magical Darts, which they make of lead, in length about a finger; by these they execute their revenge upon their enemies, and according to the greatness of the injury received, they wound them with cankrous swellings, either in the arms, or legs, which by the extremity of its pain, kills them in three daies time. They shoot these darts to what distance they please, and that so right too, that they seldom miss their aim. Olaus Magnus reports the same in his writings, which I believe is only a transcript of Zeigler’s, the words being the same, and without doubt he follows him in this particular as he hath in many others. But I suppose they are both mistaken, and misrender’d them leaden darts, since I can find no person in these times that knows of any such; neither is there any mention made of them in any other writers, or by the common People, who seldom omit such circumstances as these in their relations. But they might perhaps be mistaken in supposing them to be made of lead, by misunderstanding the word Skott, which is commonly used for their explanation. For when either man or beast is suddainly taken with a disease, by which their strength fails, and they immediately perish; the common People call this that takes them so Skott, that is a dart. This might make Zeigler think to be really some dart, which the inhabitants are wholly ignorant of, and most among us believe these things to be effected by some other means. Petrus Claudius calls it a Gan, which they send abroad: he likens it to a flie, but saies it is some little devil, of which the Finlanders in Norway that excell most in this art, keep great numbers in a leathern bag, and dispatch daily some of them abroad. Of these he relates a story, that happened in his time: an Inhabitant of Helieland, who is still alive, going towards the mountains in Norway to hunt Bears, came to a cave under the side of a hill, where he found an image rudely shapen, which was the Idoll of some Finlander; near this stood a Ganeska, or magical satchel: he opened this, and found in it several blewish flies crawling about, which they call Gans, or spirits, and are daily sent out by the Finlanders to execute their devilish designs. But he seems to intimate no more by this word Gan, then that very thing which endangers mens health, and lives. For he saies that these Finlanders cannot live peaceably, except they let out of their Ganeska or Gankiid, which is the satchel, every day one of the Gans, that is a fly or devil. But if the Gan can find no man to destroy, after they have sent him out, which they seldom do upon no account at all, then he roves about at a venture, and destroies the first thing he meets with; sometimes they command it out to the mountains, to cleave rocks asunder: however these conjurers will, for very trivial causes, send out their Gan to ruine men. This word Gan signifies no more then what Zeigler meant by his dart, for the term by which they express its going out is de Skiuda deris Gan, that is, he as it were shoots out his Gan like an arrow, for Skiuda is only proper to the shooting out of an arrow.
This is the third thing belonging to their magic, which they use as well against one another as strangers; nay sometimes against those that they know are their equals in the art. Of this kind there happened a notable passage betwixt two Finlanders, one of which was called Asbioern Gankonge, from his great knowledge in the art, the other upon some small difference concerning their skill, or some such trifle, would have destroyed Asbioern, but was still prevented by his too powerfull art, till at last finding an opportunity, as Asbioern lay sleeping under a rock, he immediately dispatcht away a Gan, that cleft the rock asunder, and tumbled it upon him. This happened in the time of Petrus Claud. not long before he wrote his History. Some of the Conjurers are contented only with the power to expell that Gan out of men, or beasts, which others send. This is remarkable among them, that they can hurt no man with their Gan, except they first know his parents name.
Now all that the Finlanders and Finlappers of Norway effect by their Gan, the Laplanders do by a thing they call Tyre. This Tyre is a round ball, about the bigness of a wallnut, or small apple, made of the finest hair of a beast, or else of moss, very smooth, and so light that it seems hollow, its colour is a mixture of yellow, green, and ash, but so that the yellow may appear most. I had one of these given me by Mr John Otto Silverstroem, Warden of the Colledge belonging to the metals, and Master of the Mines at Saltzburg and Frahlune. This is the figure of it.