Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-03-07
JUGGLERS In INDIA.
Horoscopes Which Accurately Predict
Events Of the Future,
DEATH FORETOLD BEFORE BIRTH.
Animation Suspended for 40 Days With
the Subject Barred.
TRICKS WHICH CANNOT BE EXPLAINED


which, as Lord Dundreary would say, ''nC
fellow can understand;" 1 mean, thing
bordering on the preternatural, not to say
the supernatural. I know that it is he
fashion TO pooh-pooh such things. But
though one may do this at 4 distance oi
thousands Of miles from the place where
the things are seen, or are heard OF from
hundreds of eye-witnesses, yet when
one is on the spot itself, the fact,
stand out so iucontestably, that one Is
forced to admit them, even. while ons
cannot understand, much less explain them.
People at a distance, on hearing them re-
counted, may talk glibly and superciliously
of slelght-of-hand, optical deIusion, decep-
tion Of the senses, tricks of imagination,
condolences, cOllusion, and so forth. But
] repeat that in India such things have Oc-
CURED. under circumstances which render Il
absolutely impossible 10 attribute them,
reasonably. 10 any such causes. Here are 4
few instances:
The first shall be the verifcation of baby
yaiah's horoscope, which Colonel Meadows
TAYLOR has told us was cast in his presence:
and in the events of which he, as Political
Resident, took some part. The horoscope
was cast and calculated by learned ''sbas-
tri''-the Hindu equivalent of a doctor in
divInitv-at the request of the old rsjah, on
the birth OF his son and heir.
Afraid to Tell the Fatal Truth.
The shastri hesitated at first to tell the re-
suit, but at length put his representations
on paper and handed them 10 the raiah.
= fter reading the paper and communicating
its contents to Colonel Taylor, the rajah de-
> q
mained known to only three-the old rajah,
Colonel Taylor and the shastri. The last
had f0reJold from the horoscope that the
child Just born would be cut off by violent
death al a particular age, childless.
The old rajah died, and the lad mounted
the throne, the shastrI and the Colonel being
lett the sole depOsltaries OF the terrible
secret The MutIny broke out, and the
young rajah, now approaching the dan
gorous age, took part in II. He escaped the
dangers OF the battlefield; and when the
Nutinv was suppressed, the active interpu-
Eition OF Colonel Taylor saved him, on the
plea OF youth, from the more serious and
probable danger Of being hanged for treason.
He was now Just about the fatal age; and
when the good Colonel had had his doom
Commuted to temporary detention under sur
veillance II a distant fortress, he thought all
A6LLCI ONEI. IAG SbDhC 10 tut OlO SIGSITl.
uuG joked him about his prediction; but the
old man shook has head, and said: "What
can resist fats-' Then touching his fore
head be said: 1T is written and cannot be
ehaced abiding 10 the Oriental notion
that each ones fate is written by the finger
Of God on the frontal bone. He turned out
true prophet; Tor the young rajah, while
on the way 10 the fortress, was accidentally
killed bv the discharge OF his own gun. 1t
was on the very dav toretold by the shastri.
Colonel Meadows Taylor was with him on
the journey; and his veracity is above all
suspicion. How explain this case? A
singular coincidence, you will say. Very
we'll Here Is another, where coincidence
Is out OF court altogether.
Telling Fortunes With Dice.
Years ago 1 was present at a rare scene,
while visiting q native gentleman of rank
He had Just received the welcome news that
he would at the distance of some months
have another olive branch in his house. He
sent at once for a f0rtune-teller; and the
future was forecast in my presence. The
man came-one of the class called Cram
malls, that Is, iortune-tellers by means
Of dice or 'raml." Their dice
are peculiar. They consisted of
set of three each one consisting. in
us luIus Nl a uumbEI Ol CuDlcal dice
Il forget, at tins distance o. time, if they
were six or seven) strung together on a
slender metal rod. Each cube WAS made of
brass, and had c3balistic figures on each of
Its four exposed surfaces. Through the
other Two surfaces the rod passed, and on it
each cube-twO Of its sides almost touching
the next two-reYoIved freely, and indie
JendeutIv OF the other cubes. The man
having made his salaam, sat down, as de-
sired, on the edge Of the carpet, on which
We were all seated.
DO you know why I sent for you?' asked
ny friend. The Rammall made no repIv:
but producing his three long dice, or rather
sets Of dice, be handed them to my friend to
cast For this purpose he laid them side
bv side in the open palm of his right hand.
the fingers being slightly curved. With a
gentle but quick motion, alternately ad-
vauCing and retiring his hand, he caused
the dice TO roll, now wrlstward, and now
hugerswari, on his hand. Shaking them
thus for d few secOnds-both the absolute
and the relative positions of the cubes
and their surfaces necessarily changing at
cscL r0ll-he al length cast them on the car
grrr on which We were sitting. AS he did
this with some violence and to little dis
tauce, the dice rolled great deal before
they came to a final rest. The fortune-teller
gathered them up together, carefully avoid
Ing auy dlSarrangement of the order and
position Of the cubes or their surfaces He
placed the three sets of dice on the Garnet be-
fore himself, and seemed, after carefully
examining the cast OF the dice, to 90 into
1eeD thought and complicated calculations
No Limit to the Combinations
Let us see. There were, say, six cubes on
each Of the three slender rods, and each cube
had four marked surfaces. There were
therefore Y surfaces, to combine in sets of
SIX exposed surfaces on each rod; and these
again, with the positions of planets and
0ther orture-telliHS matters. The number.
therefore, OF the possible combinations (not |
is practically as Iimitless as
IRE the egentualit1es Of human life.
Alter while, the Rammall said: "You |
wish to consult me regarding your
' House "-meaning Of course, my friends |
wife. Both being Muhammedans. etiquette |
lid not allow 4 more direct allusion to the /
ady. My friend, admitting that he had |
yuessedrightly (and thus lar 1t might easily |
nave been good guess and no more), again |
ook up the profiered dice, and went with
hem into the private apartments of the |
house to get the iadv's cast. Il Mohamme-
ian gentleman's wife is never shown 10 any
# the opposite sex except the nearest rela-
ives. The fortune-teller meanwhile took
lis "tasbeeh" or rosary of his wrist, and be-
,an telling the names Of God in Arabic on
lis beads. The lady having made a cast
IS her husband had done, he care
uly brought back the dice undisturbed to
he fortune teller. The rosary was replaced
ound the wrist, and the Rammall examined
he dice carefully. He produced and con-
ulted a seii-made almanac, the sun, moon,
tar, and planets all coming in for their
hare Of questioning. He took paper, pen,
nd ink, and made calculations. A tier
bout quarter OF an hours work, he read out