A Dunedin Sensation.

Marlborough Daily Times, Volume X, Issue 169, 24 January 1888, Page 3

A Dunedin Sensation.

Everybody who has been to Dunedin during the holidays has come back with strange stcuii ' cnncerniri . a worn. *n, described as a French Canadian, who is said to be effecting some cures which look almost like miracles. From a gentleman who watched her proceedings with some curiosity we (Mataora Ensign) have gathered the follow ing information : i How long tho woman has been in Dunedin our informant could not say, but he believed she opened proceedings about the middle of December. She lives at the Grand Hotel, and every day about 4 p.m. a most gorgeous chariot, gilded all over and with plate glass sides, (Dawn by three white horses, is driven round to the hotel for her. On the top of the vehicle are half a dozen bandsmen, and when the chariot moves through the streets it may be guessed that it forms as big an advertisement as the most entei prising trader could dosiro. At four o’clock every afternoon the lady takes her seat, which is the driving seat, and starts off round the town. About a quaicer of an hour lat ;r the chariot puUs up on a vacant section near Neill and Co.’s stores, not far from tho railway station, where a crowd has already assembled. In fact, from as early as tivo o’clock in the afternoon tho people begin to muster, and tho place is always densely crowded when tho healer arrives. When she has come to a halt she announces from the car, through an interpreter, that she is prepared to cure anybody of anything for nothing. All tho stipulation the makes is that her patients shall come up one side of the car and go down on the other, tho penalty for mounting the wrong way being £lO. Still through her interpreter she announces what she can do, and as soon as she invites patients there is a great rush of mon, women and children for the car. Tooth-pr'ling appears to be the first item on tho programme, and as to the geurhieness of this part of the performance there can bo no doubt whatever. Men go up on the car and open their mouths, and in less than ten soconds the tooth is out, and tho patient, who has shown no sign of suffering any pain, wa’ks away doubting whether he has lost the tooth. The operator uses some instrument not unlike the usual dentist’s forceps, but no opportunity is given for examining it closely. If any very ccious case comes before her the nature of it i 3 explained to the audience. Thus our informant saw a girl who had a double row of teeth operated on. They were pidlod rapidly one after the other, and the patient actually did not know that they were out until tho operator gave half-a-cro ivn and scut her away rejoieng. It was remarked to us as a curious tlrng that not a single patient showed any sign of feeling pain, wlr'st many kept their mouths open after the teeth had gone evidently waiting for the dentist to commence operations. After pulling a certain number of teeth the woman goes on to expatiate on other diseases, and offers her medicine for sale. She then retires for a time, and her attendants sell to the crowds of applicants a small bottle and a box of powders for 3s Gd. The bottle is marked 41 Poison 99 and its contents are for outward app 1 motion only. The powders are to bo taken internally. These medicines are supposed to cure all the ills that flesh is heir to, but wc presume that only the very credulous take all that in. Or 1 informant did not hear of the medicines having effected any astonishing resi Ts.