Lewistown gazette. [volume] (Lewistown, Pa.) 1843-1944, 1861-02-28
Mla9344 q e .
Indian Juggling.


The fort of Calcutta, commonly known
as Fort William, is one Of the most splen-
did and convenient military establishments
to be found in any quarter Of the globe.
It is ycrr spacious, and somewhat resem-
bles the Tower of London, in that it con-
sists Of various streets and squares, adapted
fer different military purposes. On all
sides it is guarded by a high and strongly
built rampant which is surrounded in It's
turn by broad and deep fosse, over
which are placed draw bridges, leading to
the principal gateways. Arrived in Cal
Cutta, a raw griffin, of course | went to in
spcct the lions, and among others, the fort
The fort is oi'en the scene of animated
lestiyity, from the presence Of native Jug
glers, renowned for their surprising skill
and dexterity The performances Of these
strange people have been so often describ-
ed, that / shall only make mention of
few, for otherwise | might tire the reader
One OF them struck me as being curious
from its having a strong resemblance to the
facts recorded in sacred history, as having
been performed by the magcians oi
Egypt, in the time Of Moses, and in the
presence Of Pharaoh. As it is we'll known
that the Hindu tricks have been handed
down from the most distant ages, from IA
-act 30 son, there is little wonder that such
4 similarity can exist. The particular trick
alluded to, IS the apparent conversion Of
brass coin into a snake The juggler gave
me the coin to hold, and then seated him
self about FIVE yards from me, on a small
rug, from which he never attempted to
move during the whole performance. l
showed the coin to several persons who
were close beside ne, on form in front Of
the juggler Ata sign from him, I not
only graspcd the coiE | held firmly in my
right hand, but, crossing that hand with
equal tightness with the left, [ enclosed
them both as firmly as | could between my
knees. OF course | was positively certain
that the small coin was within my double
fists. The juggler then began sort Of in
cantation, accompanied by 4 monotonous
and discordant kind of recitative, and re-
peating the words, Ram, Sammu, during
some minutes. He then suddenly stop
ped, and, still keeping his seat, made
quick motion with his right hand, as il
throwing something at me, giving at the
same time puff with his mouth
Al that instant | felt my hands sudden
Iy distend, and become partly open, while
| experienced a sensation as if cold ball
Of dough, or something equally soft, nasty
and disagreeable, was now between my
palms. / started to my feet in astonish-
ment and also to the astonishment Of 9th
ers, and opening my hands, found there no
coin, but to my horror and alarm (for Of all
created things | detest and loath the gen
us) | saw young snake, all ahve-Oh and
Of all the snakes in the world, cobra de
capello, folded, or rather coiled rouudly up
| threw it instantly to the ground, trem-
bling with rage and fear, as If already bit
by the deadly reptile which began lmme-
diately to crawl along the ground, to the
alarm and amazement Of every one pres
ent. The juggler now got up for the first
time since he had sat down, and catching
hold of the snake displayed its length,
which was nearly two ieet-two feet all
but all inch and half He then took it
cautiously BY the tail, and opening his
mouth to its widest extent, let the head of
the snake drop into it, and deliberately
commenced to swallow the animal, till the
end OF the tail only was visible; then max
ing a sudden gulp, the whole of the snake
was apparently swallowed. After this, he
came up to the spectators, and opening his
mouth wide, permitted US to look into his
throat, but no snake or orsnake's tail was visi-
BILE; it was seemingly down his throat alto
gether. During the remainder Of the per
formances, we never saw this snake again,
nor did the man profess his ability to make
it itre-appear; but he performed another snake
trick, which surprised us very much. He
took from bag another cohra-di capello,
and, walking into the centre of the room,
enclosed it in his hands in folded state
He waved or shook it for some time in this
condition, and then opened his fists, when,
hey, presto the snake was gone, and in
its place appeared several small ones, which
he suffered to fall from his hands, when
they glided, with their peculiar undulating
movement, almost ike the waves of the
sea, about the floor. L. SWANWICK.
Shadows.
The shadows of all day long play at ST.