928 Journ. of the Asiat. Soc. of Bengal. [July & Aug,, 1915. 
—incarnations of Devi or Durga’ —who presides over spells and 
leech-craft. This omission is curious, for such an invocation 
to the said goddess is to be found in another cure-charm for 
scorpion-sting from Northern India, the translation whereof 
is as follows : 
‘* Black scorpion of the limestone! green thy tail and black 
thy mouth. God orders thee to go home. Come out, scorpion! 
Sykes, who sojourned in Persia for a long time, says that, 10 
that country, ‘“ some families possess an infallible remedy for 
the stings and bites of scorpions and tarantulas, in the shape 
certain small stones, which are kept as heirlooms and handed 
down from generation to generation as most cherished possessions 
These are believed to be a secretion from the eyes 0 
nate prince, turned by enchantment into an ibex, which lament: 
ted its cruel fate with floods of tears, that hardened as they fel 
on the barren Persian hills, among which it was condemned! 
wander.’’* Unfortunately, Miss Sykes has not placed on record 
the method of using the aforesaid stones for effecting the cute 
If these stones are applied to that part of the body which bas 
been stung by a scorpion or tarantula for extracting the venoll 
therefrom, we may safely place this Persian method of treat 
ment in the category of ‘‘ sucking-cures’’ and conclude that it 
is the Persian analogue of the North Indian cure-charm No. I 
described supra, wherein the bell-metal platter is used for extra 
ing the venom from the patient’s body. Then again, is 
Sykes has omitted to record whether or not any prayer to Al 
is recited at the time of applying these stones to the afilcted 
part. If the recital of any such prayer is necessary at the tim? 
of using the stones, the similarity between the North India? 
cure-charm No, I and the Persian ‘‘ sucking-cure’’ i complet 
The question, therefore, arises: Whether or not any sath 
prayer is recited at the time of applying these stones to tHe 
patient’s body ? 
ow it would appear from the following testimony ey 
invo 
bought quaint, incised metal boxes and old brass bowls, | 
of these latter being once the stock-in-trade of a native doc? 
! Crooke’s An Introducti sii nd Folklore # 
° ‘ t a 
secsgite India. Psa 1894. - “ig pmeadicgnt ite : 
rough Persia EET nl : Londo 
John Macqueen. 1901. p. I ag Saddle. By Ella C. Sykes 
