"A SCHEMING HAPPY."

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLII, Issue 10109, 17 October 1917, Page 2

"A SCHEMING HAPPY."

ALLEGED MYSTIC POWERS., IMPOSING ON'MACH IS. XWEi. V K 10 XT lIS’ 1M r; RI SON I ENT. Tin'. sequel to ;i recent inqucKt to a young Maori, v. ho died ol typhoid lever, when riifonMiei! was made to u “mangelic healer calling herself .Madame Currie, and St. Elizabeth Currie, was the appearance in the Auckland Police Court last, week, befoie Mr Ft V. Frazer, S.M., of the woman mentioned, ' on three charges, under the Tohiiuga. Suppression. Act, -of having misled Maoi;is hy pretending to.be possessed,_ ol supernatural powers in. treating and curingdisease. ... ’ i .The accused, a benevolent looking ,elderly woman, with )png ringlets,; has bceipin business ill Victoria, street, Aucklaml, ; lor sotiif lime, says Hie. Herald, the- premises being decorated with large fra mod placards, indicating. that Madame Currie was a “hypnotist” and "magnetic heater.” At an in quest held recently- a. Maori witness staten tJi.it the..woman who had died had been 1 “Irented” hy Madame Currie, who had,] stroked her from head to foot, over her I clothes, at the same, time muttering .weird incantations in Maori. Madame (..urrie had] also placed an instrument; like, a complicated telephone, on the girl’s body, and info her ears, and, speaking into the mouthpiece, hud commanded the sickness to leave her. The witness said that maclamc claimed to be God, and that she, had a. quarrel with the witness because she did not believe tier. The. witness also said that many Maoris had visited madame, who charged 5s lor the first visit and 2s- 6(1 for each, subsequent one. Following this evidence, the permission of the Native Minister was obtained for a prosecution oL the woman, and she was arrested by Constable Moll ugh. Wlmn arrested she had £46 in her possession. “MYSTIC SUCCESS CLUB.”

Among' the woman’s possessions seized by the police wore eov era! large framed placards. One. read: “Just a moment, please; 1 want to have a plain straightforward tall: with 3 - ou. How are you getting- on in life? . , . Madam© Currie, Ihe groat physician, is the only medium in New Zealand possessing the world’s greatest power. How to win love and reunite those who sadly mourn their loss. ... If you receive, freely, give freely. .Here is your birthright. Do not let this pass by.” Anoth'r exhorted all and sundry that “Fees must lie paid in advance. Hours, 9‘a.m. to 9 pan." A third, headed “The Mystic Success Chib." asked all those suffering from disease,..“laziness, nervousness, alcoholism, smoking, and internal and external growths” to join the club ami be cured, while those with. “binkon ' hearts” were told they could be healed. and that “wrecked lives” could be restored. A floral placard wa s . headed “Join the .Mystic Success Club,” while underneath was the first verso of the hymn “Lead, Kindly Light.” The picture of a num_stand. ing outside a gate bore the inscription. “Are yon barred from the hold of opportunity?” and invited readers desiring to hold a lucrative position to join the club. The. notice ended somewhat ambiguously, “Membership in our Mystic Success Club; will be a Joyous surprise, a delightful teveiation.” When asked to plead the woman said: ‘’The natives asked me to cun? thorn.” It. was explained to her that site was eharg d with -pretending to possess super-natural power, whereupon she replied: “I really possess the powers,” and added that sin’ had done the Maoris a lot of good. Sue had “taught them to-be beautiful,” ami •cured them of smoking and drinking ami •■•“ other -.diseases.” , • Mr Frazer pointed out she had not cur'd thH girl who .died,, but'defendant said (be girl did not do as she was told. ■ '■ “SELF-CANONISED SAINT!”' . Chief Detective McMahon' said . the, woman’ had ' started ‘in'btisiness by telling fortunes. and by dint of zealous' advertising her fame lift'd ,reached, the ;Far Non!!, Maoris came long distances to consult hj, r. She said she was God and, Christ, and vi is also a self-canonised saint *On one occasion her . methods,, of .treating people Inis It il . disastrous results, as the protracted .-delay caused, by the treatment .of. A.Maori, g.rl may have 'contributed io lior, deulli, l)eI’endiiii't had ,been .practising for many years, and had'laid herself out to specially deceive ■people. •• I, ' Referring to the' instrument like a telephone, defendant said she. got. it from a pruie.ssor in, London,' who had also iustnu-t ed her “howto develop- her inner self,” hi a lengthy speech, punctuated by drainalic gestures, the. woman said she had develop d her inner self,.and by,merely touching peapie was able- to cure them. , She. had ben hero eight years, and Imp, science- was call, d “iiypuntikism.” She was'not much good at lir-l, but she “developed-a. great- deal laki.” I’copln had prayed to her to help them, and when she. had laid hand-, upon them they said they felt “the. life-giving potions flowing through them.” “1 am full of forces which work - through me,” she- said, “a id directly they como near mo I know il.” She added that she- had made a mistake by working among the Maoris, and she m.v r thought she was misleading anybody. “VIRTUES” OF FARAPIIANALIA.

bribing hoc pncaphanalia she said (he crycliil goes through them ami draws iho pain. The acorn’indicated man’s inner and outer .life; the metal plate was u “radi,i” which helped in the healing, and the, telephone arrangement was a- “hypnotic su rgestiphone” “to keep other sounds out ami make people pay more attention,” The Magistrate said defendant pail d !i----heralely set out to impose noon the credulity of natives. Ho doubted hetr sineerii v, and preferred to regard her as. a. scheming harpy who had worked on the credulity of superstitious natives, and who had been te.spcynsible for persuading a young girl horn seeking medical advice. Accused would Ire. sentenced to six months’ irnpi ivonmont on cadi of two charges, the sentence, to be cumulative,