splendid an example of the gullibility of the
well-informed when the most ordinary trick
is cleverly presented and surrounded with the
atmosphere of the occult, that I am impelled
to place before my readers a few illuminating
excerpts from Mr. Reid's narrative. This man
would, in all probability, scorn to spend a dime
to witness the performance of a fire-eater in
a circus sideshow; but after traveling half
round the world he pays a dollar and spends
an hour's time watching the fanatical incantations
of the solemn little Japanese priests for
the sake of seeing the ``Hi-Wattarai''--which
is merely the stunt of walking over hot coals
--and he then writes it down as the ``eighth
wonder of the world,'' while if he had taken
the trouble to give the matter even the most
superficial investigation, he could have
discovered that the secret of the trick had been
made public centuries before.

Mr. Reid is authority for the statement that
the Shintoist priests' fire-walking rites have
``long been one of the puzzling mysteries of
the scientific world,'' and adds ``If you ever
are in Tokio, and can find a few minutes to
spare, by all means do not neglect witnessing
at least one performance of `Hi-Wattarai'
(fire walking, and that is really what takes
place), for, if you are of that incredulous