The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-07-20

rounders, once traded. A papa excoIn-
muaication is billet-doux compared Win
the Communication Of Jugana- The English.
man had been proved under the hand and
seal of the Old Man of the Mount
aims to have appropriated virtue ana
pretended to have power Wnlcn. IA
reality, belonged only to the supreme head.
Naturally the round robin did not spare
He handed the letter to Dana Da to
translate into decent English. Inc erect
on Dana Da was curious. AT first he was
furiously angry, and then he laughed ior
five minutes.
would have come to me- In another week
I would have shown that sent the send
ing, and they would have discrowned the
Old Man of the Mountains who mas sent
this sending of mine. Do you do nothing
The time has come for me to act. Write
as dictate, and will put them to shame
But give me ten more rupees. -
man wrote nothing less than for
NAL challenge to the Old Man OF
the Mountains. 1t wound up: And
If this manifestation be from your
hand, then let it go forward; but If 1t be
from my hand, will that the sending shall
cease in two days. time. On that day there
shall be twelve kittens and thenceforward
4
tween u.s." This was signed by Dana Ia,
who added pentacles and pentagrams ana
q cruz 0nsdfd. and half dozen sacdsfikds,
and a triple Tau to his name. just to show
that he was all he laid claim to be.
The challenge was read out to the gentle
men and ladies, and they remembered tnen
that Dana Da had laughed at them some
years ago. 1t was officially announced that
the Old Man of the Mountains would treat
the matter with contempt; Dana Da being
an independent investigator without SIM
gle "round" at the back of him. But this
did not soothe his people. They wanted to
see q fight. They were very human Tor ali
their spirituality. Lone Sahib, VINO was
really being worn out with kittens, SUB
mitted meekly to his fate. He felt that he
was being "kittened to prove the power OF
Dana Da, as the poet says.
When the stated day dawned the shower
of kittens began. Some were white and
some were tahby, and all were about the
same loathsome age. Three were on DIS
other six turned up at intervals among the
visitors who came to see the prophecy
break down. Never was more satlsfac-
tory ending. On the next day there were
no kittens, and the next day and all the
other days were kittenless and quiet: The
people murmured, and looked to the Old
Man of the Mountains for an ex-
IL. "A
palm leaf, dropped from the ceiling, but
every one except Lone Sahib felt that let.
tiers were not what the occasion demanded
There should have been cats, there
should have been cats-full-grown ones.
The letter proved conclusively that there
had been q hitch in the psychic current,
which, colliding with dual identity, had
interfered with the percipient activity all
along the main line. The kittens were
still going on, but, owing to some failure
in the developing fluid, they were not
materialized. The air was thick with let
tiers for q few days afterward. Unseen
hands played Chuck and Beethoven on
finger bowls and clock shades; but all
men felt that psychic life was mockery
without materialized kittens. Even Lone
Sahib shouted with the majority on this
head. Dana Da's letters were very insult
ing. and if he had then offered to lead q
new departure there is no telling what
might not have happened.
But Dana Da was dying OF whisky and
opium in the Englishman's goodwin, and
had small heart for new creeds.
"They have been put to shame" said he.
"Neyer was such q sending. II has killed
me-"
.Nonsense, said the Englishman, "you
are going to die, Dana Da, and that sort of
stuff must be left behind. I'll admit that
you have made some queer things come
about. Tell me honestly. now, how it was
done?"
give me ten more rupees" said Dana
Da. family. land if | die before | spend
them, bury them with me-" The silver was
counted out while Dana Da was fighting
with death. His hand closed upon the
money, and he smiled grim smile.
bend low" he whispered. The English
man bent
.Bunnia-mission school-expelled-bor
paltah (peddler) -Ceylon pearl merchant
all mine English ducation-outcasted, and
made up the name Dana Da-England with
American thought-reading man and-and
you gave me ten rupees several times-l
gave the Sahib's bearer two-eighths q
month for cats-iittle, little cats. l wrote,
and he put them about-very clever man.
Very few kittens now in the bazaar. Ask
Lone Sahib's sweeper's wife,"
So saying. Dana Da gasped and passed
away into land. where if all be true,
there are no materializations, and making
of new creeds is discouraged.
But consider the gorgeous simplicity of
1t all. RuDYARD KIPLING.