Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-11-29
strictor and holding up Minhman upon his

1eet.
During three hours the exhibition con-
tinued, feats of the sort 1 have described,
each more wonderful than the one that PRE-
ceded it, following one another in rapid sue
cession. l shall content myself with de-
scribing the last and eliminating wonder OF
this startling and seemingly supernatural
entertainment.
A perfectly formed and most lovely Nautch
girl sprang out upon the stage, and was
hailed with universal EXPLANATIONS of de-
light, everybody calling out her name
Laun-P Pra bana-as if it were a word of good
omen. Her only dress was a short petticoat
of variegated feather work. A wreath of
rosebuds crowned her soft, short black hair,
and she wore pearl necklace, as we'll as
broad gold armlets and anklets With
brilliant smile she danced exquisitely for
some minutes to the accompaniment OF a
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 lotos-shaped golden
goblet, and Tepada poured into it from
quaint-iooking flask a fluid OF greenish hue.
The old yogi-like Norodom took the goblet
and blew his breath upon the contents till
they broke into a pale-blue fame. This
Tepada extinguished with his breath, when
Norodom held the goblet to Laun-Praoana's
lipS and she drained the contents with
long and deep-drawn sigh.
As if transtigured, she suddenly sprang
to her feet. her face radiant, and began to
spin glddily around in one spot First the
boy, then Minhman, then Tepada tried to
arrest her, but they no sooner touched her
than she repelled them with a shock that
trilled them as if she had impaired an
electric spark to them. Spinning constantly,
with bewildering rapid motion, the girl
now sprang off the stage and down the hall,
along by the foot of the columns, Tsin-ki,
Minhman and Tepada in active pursuit.
In and out among the crowd they sprang,
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 dlrec-
tion. Anything more graceful never was
seen. And now great wonder AT the
extremity of the hall the three surrounded
and would have seized her, when, still re-
volving, 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 a slight. wing-like motion OF her
arms, mounted up, up, up toward the loitiest
arch of the vault overhead. Suddenly old
Norodom seized a bow and arrow and shot
toward her. There was a wild shrek, a
rushing sound and the dancer fell with
crash to the flags of the floor, and laid there
an apparently bloody mass. The music
burst forth into wild wail,-and the
chorus of old hags came unanimously forth
and bore her off in their arms. Now from
behind the red curtain came dozen
strong men, bearing on their shoulders
great leaden box, which they laid upon the
front part of the stage.
As they retired the old women came out
bringing a low couch, decorated with flowers
and gold-embroidered napery, upon which
lay Laun-Prabana, decked forth in bridal
garments, and sweetly sleeping. The couch,
with its sleeper, was put quietly down upon
the front OF the stage and lett there, while
Norodom and Tepada went to the leaden
box, with hot irons, to unseal it.
That is Stung-Tieng's coffin" whispered
Woun to me; ''the old saint has been dead
more than half a millennium"
Quickly, eagerly it seemed to me, the two
men broke open the fastenings of the coffin,
till the side next the audience falling out at
last, a teak box was discovered. This was
pried open with small crowbar, and what
seemed great bundle OF nankeen, taken
out. Tepada and Norodom commenced to
unwind this wrapping, which was very
tight. Yard after ward was unwound and
folded away by Minhman, and at last, after
at least 100 yards of wrapping had been
taken off, the dry, shriveled mummy of a
small old man was visible-eyes closed,
flesh dry and hard-dead and dry as
smoked herring. NorodoI tapped the
corpse with the crowbar aud it gave dull,
wooden sound. Tepada tossed it up and
caught tit was stiff as a log. Then he
placed the mummy upon Norodom's
knees, and fetched a flask of oil, flask
of wine, and censer burning with
some pungent incense. Norodom took
L. L,,-
prying open the mouth of the mummy with
a cold-chisel, showed that the dry tongue
could rattle like a chip against the dry
/ fauces. He filled the mouth with unguent
and closed it, and anointed the eyelids, nos
! trils and ears. Then he and Tepada mixed
| the wine and oil, and carefully rubbed
every part of the body with it. Then, lay
| ing it down in reclining position, they put
the burning censer upon the chest and with
| drew pace, while the drums and gongs
and cymbals crashed and clattered, and the
shrill. cracking treble of the chorus of old
women rose hideously.
| A breathless pause ensued-one two
| three minutes-and the mummy sneezed,
sneezed thrice, so violently as to extingush
| the flame of the censer. A moment later the
thing sat up, and stared, blinking and vacant,
out around the vault-an old, old, wrinkled
man, with mumbling chops, shriveled
breast and belly, and little tufts of white
| hair upon his chin and forehead. Tepada
approached him reverently upon his knees,
bringing a salver, with wine and wafer
cake. The old man did not notice him, but
ate, drank, then tottered to his feet, the
feeblest, decrepid old dotard that ever
walked. In another moment he saw the
Nautch girl slumbering upon her couch;
he scuf1ed feebly to her, and, mumbling,
stopped as if to help his dim eyes to see her
better. With a glad cry the maiden awoke,
clssped him in her arms and to her breast,
and kissed him. Incomprehensible magic!
He was no longer nonagenarian dotard,
but a full-veined, fiery youth, who gave her
was wrought / have no idea, but there
it was before our very eyes. The music
grew soft aud passionate, the chorus of the
old women came out. and with strange
Phallic songs and dances bore the two
away-a bridal pair. 1 never expect again
to behold sight so wonderful as that whole
transformation, which, 1 may mention, my
learned Jesuit friend, to whom 1 described
it, regards as piece of pure symbolism.
His explanation is too long and too learned
to quote, but he connects this ceremony
with the world-old myth of Venus aud
Adonis and claims that it is all form OF
sun-wnrship.
The show went On for some time longer
with many curious feats. At the end
of an hour the Phallic procession re-
turned, but this time the Bayadere led it, a
strange triumph in her eyes, while the
youth lay upon the couch sleeping. The
Phallic chorus sank into dirge, the youth
faded visibly; he was again the shivering
dotard; he sighed, then breathed no more.