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Witch Smellers During past centuries the people of some societies would often blame witches for sickness, famine, accidents, and other misfortunes that occurred in a community. This belief in the evil powers of witches has appeared in many parts of the world, and each society has developed its own methods for protecting itself. But in order for a community to protect itself from witches, it first needs to identify them. In some parts of Africa, especially among Bantu-speaking tribes, this identification was formerly carried out by individuals known as Witch Smellers.
These Witch Smellers, who were almost always women, would be called upon whenever members of one of these African tribes suspected that witches were living among them. To begin the process of identification, the chief would summon all the tribe's people to a meeting and tell them to gather into a large circle. Then the Witch Smellers would assemble in the middle of the circle with long switches in their hands. They would begin to dance wildly, repeatedly spinning and leaping, until they worked themselves into a frenzy. Eventually they would reach out with their switches and touch one or more people who they had identified as witches. In some tribes anyone who was identified in this way was immediately dragged away and killed.
Many Witch Smellers were powerful and important members of their tribes. When performing their duties, they always wore flamboyant costumes and decorated their faces with brightly-colored paints. Most of them also dyed their hair red and twisted it into elaborate designs. In addition to their switches, many also carried ceremonial spears and shields.
Most people in modern societies doubt that witches even exist, and organized hunts for them rarely take place anymore. But in a few countries there are still sporadic reports of witches being blamed for misfortunes, and occasionally someone is killed either by a mob or by relatives of a supposed victim. We can only hope that these dreadful incidents continue to become less common, and that eventually all superstitious beliefs about witches will completely die out.
