New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-03-26

With the music like the strings VI '"~
as the song grew wild and stormy to~afu "s
.,o.. ,he move uents, had they not accorded
I'll !, wor,d have resembled those OF person
.s;zss it'll some violent nervous spasm sAi'et |,
All. had continued for an incredible length o.
time and expected to see the AInehs ial eA-
h.rstsd 20 the earth, the music ceased ana they
stood before Us calm and cold. with their breath
ing not perceptibly hurried. The dance had q
second part, Of very different character. sun
with their lifted hands striking the little cymoas
tAey.rharked circle of springing bounds, IN
which their figures occasionally reminded me
Of the dancing nymphs of Greek sculpture. Inc
instant before touching the floor, as they nuns
IN the air with the head bent forward, one foot
thrown behind, and both arms extended aooVe
the head, they were drawn on the background
Of the dark han, like forms taken from the freze
of temple 70 Bacchus or Pan
Eastern politeness did not require US TO cry
.brayal, or "encore ~ so we merely handed
our pipes to Ali, to be filed a second time. Our
old Theban guide, however, was so enraptured
that he several times calculated "ty,b ketssr !"
fvery good indeed , and Rails Hassan's dark face
beamed oil over with delight. The circle Of
white turbaned heads in the rear looked on
complacently, and our guard, who stood IN the
moonlight before the open door, almost forgot
his duty in his enjoyment of the spectacle
shall never forget the wild, fantastic picture we
saw that night N the ruins of Luxor
The Apple Blossom, who followed in dance
with one named Bakhita, pleased me far better.
She added thousand graceful embellishments
70 the monotonous soul of the music; and her
dance, if barbaric, was as poetic as her native
palm tree. She was 1.-THE as serpent, and agile
as young panther, and some of her movements
were most extraordinary, in the nerve and dar'
ing required to execute them and to introduce
them without neglecting the rhythm OF the dance.
More than once she sank slowly back, bending
touched the floor, and then, quick as flash,
shot flying into the air, her foot alightng In ex-
act time with the thump OF the drum. She had
the power of moving her body from side to side,
20 that il curved like a snake from the hips to
the shoulders, and once thought that, like Lamia
she was about to resume her ancient shape, and
slip out of sight through some hoe IN the ruined
walls. One of the dances was a sort of panto
mime which she and Bakhita accompanied
with their voices--clear, shrill, ringing tones,
which never faltered for moment, or varied
hairs breadth from the harmony, while every
muscle was agitated with the exertion OF her
movements The song was pervaded with
strange, passionate remolo, unlike anything
ever heard before. The burden was 81 am
alone: my family and my friends are all dead;
the plague has DESTROYED them Come, then, to
me, and be my beloved, for have no other to
love me-" Her gestures exhibited a singular
mixture of the abandonment of grief, and the
longing Of love. While her body swayed to aud
FRO with the wild, sad rhythm Of the words, she
raised both arms before her till the long sleeves
fell back and covered her face then opening
Che chorus, and bringing her hands to her FORE
head, relapsed into grief again. Apparently the
prayer is answered, for the concluding move.
ment expressed delirious Joy.
We listened to the music and looked on the
dances for more than two hours. but at length
the ,wanging of the violin and the never-ending
drum. thumps began to set our teeth on edge.
and we unfolded our cramped legs and got down
from the divan. The lantern was unswung, the
candle ends taken from the empty bottles, the
Almehs received their fees and went off rejoic-
ing, and we left the chambers of Luxor to the
Night-wind and the moon
THE TEMPLE.
The guide OF the Eastern bank, wiry young
Bedouin. was in attendance next morning, and
q crowd of horses and asses awaited us on the
ahore. | chose brown mare, with a small
slender head and keen eye, and soon accustomed
myself to the Turkish saddle and broad shovel
stirrups. The temple of Luxor is imbedded in
the modern village. and only the front of the
pylon, facing toward KarHak and part Of the
grand central colonnade is free from its vile ex-
erescences. For this reason its effect is less
agreeable than that of the Memnonium, although
Of much grander proportions. Its plan is easily
traced, nevertheless, and having been built by
only two monarchs, Remeses the Great and
Anunoph lII.-or, TO use their more familiar
titles, Sesostris and Memnon-it is less be vii
dering, in historical point Of view, to the un.
studied tourist than most Of the other temples
of Egypt The sanctuary, which stands near.
est the Nile, is still protected by the ancient
stone quay, though the river has made rapid ad.
vances, and threatenstinally to undermine Luxor
~ it has already undermined the temples'of An
teopolis ard Antinoe. l rode into what were
once the sacred chambers, but the pillars and
sculptures were covered with filth, and the Arabs
lad built in, around and upon them, like the
clay nests OF the cliff sparrow The peristyle of
majestic Osiride pillars, in front of the portico
~ well as the portico itself, are buried to half
their depth and SO surrounded by novels that to
get an idea of their arrangement, you must make
the tour OF number Of hen houses and asses
stalls. The pillars are now employed as drying
posts for the buffalo dung which the Arabs use
as fuel.