The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1889-04-18

under canvas, which was to be the seat of the
Mock King. After waiting three hours the
music was heard. 1t sounded like a thousand
dogs with tin cans tied TO their tails rattlng
together over the stoniest of streets We stood
up, and in the distance saw the raggerlest
motley assemblage approaching that was, l be-
lieve, ever borne upon 1000 half-naked human
legs ransackiDg of the garrets of the world
could not bring forth more ridcu ious motley.
Some wore hats of paper, and some had lacquer
basins on their heads, which looked like in
verted dishpans The most of them were bare
legged and all Of them were barefooted. A
few hundred had on moth eaten red Jackets
and boys of 10, so dressed, carried swords longer
than themselves, and that of such make that
they must have been used before the food
There was procession of the trades of Siam.
Men half naked, clad like farmers, bearing the
rudest of rakes and hoes, each ofwhich weighed
many pounds, went by. There were hundreds
of men with red banners, and motley hun
dred in demon-like falsefaces and in the
midst of them all, borne upon a sedan
chair, sat wrinkled old Prince as black
as the ace Of spades, and with an under
jaw no thicker than your finger. He was
dressed in the gaGdiest Of gold and silver cloth
ing. and on the top OF his head he had a crown
which looked for all the world like pyramid
Of ice-cream rising layer by layer to a point
which extended perhaps two feet above his
square forehead. The people yelled as he went
along, and he stopped his chair in front of rs
and shook hands with the Governors party
Then the procession moved on under the blaz-
ing sun and escorted his royal Majesty to his
cahvas-cOvered throne opposite this gigantic
swing. moment later four brawny wiry
hall-naked, brown-skinned men. with paper
caps upon their heads, not unlike those worn
by boys playing soldiers, were seen crawling
up the great poles at the side of the swing.
.
reached the big plank, which, swaying between
its long ropes, just sufficed to accommodate
their four persons. To the lower part of this
board was attached long rope. and this was
pulled this way and that by slaves below.
Then on 9 pole of bamboo, twice as long as the
longest fshing-pole, was tied little white cloth
containing some money. The pole was set into
the ground 80 or 40 feet out from the swing,
and il was so bent over that the bag of money
hung down. quivering from its topmost point
far out TO the side Of the swingers. The men
upon the board crouehed upon their knees as it
began TO sway to an fro. They put their hands
together in the attitude of PRAYER and in uni
son bowed four times TO the King below. Then
the rope was pulled harder. and the plank be-
gan to sway further and further out from the
poles. The naked swingers became excited
Their paper hats were thrown to the wind /;
they rose and swayed their bodies to and fro
endeavoring to make the swing go faster. 1t
moved outward at every swing, and came nearer
and nearer TO the white bag of money. AT last
il was almost even with it, and the man at the
end of the swing bent back his neck and reach
ed out his teeth to bite off the string. He had
TO bite the string and hold the money in his
mouth in order to have the right TO it, and he
essayed the feat again and again. A last he
caught it, and shout went up in the air as he
did SO. His party then went down. the swing
gradually stopped, and another four took their
places. This was repeated third time and
the same ceremony Of putting up money and
catching it in the teeth was gone through with.
What it all meant was not able to learn. The
Governor told me that it was a custom that the
people had gotten from the Brahmins, but just
what it signifed he could not say. The Siam
csc have many holidays and as far as l can see
few men, outside of the slaves have anything
else than holidays the year round. They
squat upon their launches, chew betel and
gamble. The priests are do-nothings. and the
people celebrate the Chinese holidays as well
as their own.