The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1874-04-16
THAUMATURGY.

80 nither, dinns deel'
THAUMATURGY.
A Wonderful Feat OF Eeeromancy-
Juggling a Zine Art.
The following description OF a trick
performed by Siamese iugglers, is in
! teresting in the extreme. We Gull il
! from the special correspondence of the.
New York World:
A perfectly-formed and most lovely
nautch girl sprung out upon the stage
and was hailed with universal exciana-
tions Of delight, everybody calling out
her name, Luan-Prabana, as if it were
a word Of good omen. Her only dress
was a short petticoat Of segregated
leather-work A wreath of rosebuds
crowned her soft, short. black hair. and
she wore pearl necklace, as well as
broad gold armlets and ank1ets. With
q brilliant smile she danced exqaisitelv
for some minutes to TIE accompaniment
of single pipe, then knelt and laid her
head upon old Norodom's knee. The
boy famed her with fan made of sweet
fern leaves. Minhman fetched a lotus
| shaped golden goblet, and Tepada
/ poured into it, from a quaint looking
flask, fluid of greenish hue. The old
yogi-like Norodom took the goblet and
blew his breath upon the contents until
they broke into pale blue flame.
This Tepada extinguished with his
breath, when Norodom held the goblet
to Laun-Prabana's lips, and she drained
the contents with sigh. AS If trans
| figured, she suddenly sprang to her
feet, her face strangely radiant, and be-
| gan to spin giddily around IN one spot.
| First the boy, then Minhman, then Te-
/ pada, tried to arrest her, but they no
sooner touched her than she repelied
/ them with shock that thrilled them
as if she had impaired an electric spark
to them. Spinning constantly. with a
bewildering, rapid motion, the girl now
/ sprang off the stage and down the hall
along by the foot of the columns, Tsin-
d, Minhman, and Tepada In active pur-
suit. In and out among the crowd
they spun, the three chasing. Tepada
seized hold of the chaplet that crowned
her It broke, and as she whirled along
a spray of rosebuds was scattered from
| her brow in every direction. Anything
more graceful never was seen. And now
a greater wonder. At the extremity of
the hall the three surrounded and would
have seized her, when, still revolving.
she rose slowly into the air and hoated
| gently over our heads toward the stage
scattering roses as she went. At the
brink of the stage she paused in mid
| air, then, with slight wing-IilSe motion
| OF her arms, mounted up, up. I'D to-
ward the Hottest arch of the vault over
head. Suddenly old Norodom seized a
bow and arrow and shot toward her.
There was wild shrek, a rushing
sound, and the dancer fell with q crash
to the flags of the floor, and laid there.
an apparent bloody mass. The music
burst forth into wild wall, and the
chorus OF old hays came unanimously
forth end bore her off In their arms.
Now, from behind the red curtain
came dozen strong men, bearing on
their shoulders a great leaden box
which they laid upon the front part OF
the stage. As they retired the old wo.
man came out, bringing a low couch.
decorated with flowers and GOLDEN.
broidered drapery, upon which Law
Luan-Prabana, decked forth in bridal
garments, and sweetly sleeping. The
couch, with ito sleeper v7ao pvt s,4aiotl,
down upon the front of the stage anc
left there, while Norodom and Tepad,
j went to the leaden box, and with no
irons attempted to unseal it. "That /,
Stung-Ilen's coffin" whispered WouI
to me "the old saint has been deac
more than half a millennium
Quickly. eagerly it seemed to me. tn,
, two men broke open the fastening q D
I the collin until the side next the audi
ence falling out at last, a teak box wal
discovered. This was pried open will
, small crowbar, and what scanned ,
great bundle Of nankeen taken out
Tepada and Norodom commenced t,
, unwind this wrapper, which was yer,
/ tight Yard after yard was unwount
and folded away by Minham, and a
! last, after at least one hundred wards n
wrapping had been taken of, the dry
shriveled mummy of a small, old ma
, vas vislble-eyes closed, flesh dry an,
!. haTd-dead and dry as a smoked her
n ring. Norodom tapped the corpse wit
: orowbar, and 1t gave dull, woode'
sound. Tepada tossed it up and cauoh
= tit was stiff as a log. Then he place,
the mummy upon NorOdom's knees. an,
fetched flask of oil, a flask of wine
and censor burning with some punoen
incense. Norodom took from his hair
! little box of ungGent, and prying ope1
/, the mouth OF the mummy with a col,
/ chisel, showed that tho tongue coul,
rattle like chip against the dry fauces
!, he filled the mouth with un0ueut an,
! closed it, and Amounted the eyelids
! nostrils, and ears. Then he and Tena
: da mixed the wine and oil and carefrill,
: rubbed every part of the body with ii
1 Then, laying it down in q reclining DO
sltion, they put the burning censor upol
the chest and withdrew a pace, Will
, the drums and gongs and cyrnbal
! crashed and claLtered, and the shril
!, cracking treble of the chorus of al,
: women rose hideously.
A breathless pause ensued--one. two
three minutes, and the mummy sneeze,
! thrice, sneezed so violently as to extin
guish the flame of the censor. A mo
I ment later the thing sat up and stare,
blinking and vacant around the vault
] an old, old, wrinkled man, with mum
bling chops, shriveled chest and bell,
and little tufts of white hair upon hi
chin and forehead. Tepada aDuroacl4as
, him reverently upon his knees. bripOip,
salver with wine and wafer cake. TIL,
old man did not notice him, but ate
drank, then tottered to his feet. tn.
feeblest, deorepit old dotard that evel
walked. In another moment ne saw the
nautch girl slumbering upon her coucI,
he shuthed mumbling up to her. ano
! stopped over as if to help his dim eve,
! to see her bette. With a glad cry tn,
maiden walked, clasped him in her ARM
. and to her breast, and kissed him. In
/ comprehensive magic He was ns
longer nonogenarian dotard, but
full-veined, fiery youth, who gave he
kiss for kiss.
: How the transformation was vrouoh
have no idea, but there it was befor,
. our very eyes. The music grew sof
: and passionate, the chorus of the oil,
! women came out, and with stranc,
I phallic songs and dances bore the tW,
! away-a bridal pair. I never expee
! again to behold sight so wonderful a
that whole transformation, which. 1 ma
mention, my learned Jesuit fri nd. I,
whom described it, regards as a piec
of pure symbolism. His explanation
/. too long and learned to quote, but b
! connects the ceremony with the world
old myth of Venus and Adonis, an,
, claims that it is all form of sun woH
4 ] obsv,