Essex County herald. [volume] (Guildhall, Vt.) 1873-1964, 1893-07-21

'~1I-->~ Shawmut was
discha i II <
and taking her new cargo, but illness
in the family of the friend with whom
it was proposed should stop had in
terfered, and | decided at last to re-
main on board.
was the more willing to do this, as
close beside lis lay the vessel COM
manded by friend of mine, whose
wife had also decided to remain on
board while in port. The Fox lay
CLOSELY enough for us to call To each
other from our decks, and nearly every
day We spent together. II | could not
20 to the Fox, Mrs King would take
her little niece and come on board the
Shawmut. had my baby boy with
me, and little Nera, my friends niece,
who was about three years old, would
spend hours swinging with him III his
hammock, which WAS hung from the
spanhrr boom beneath the awning,
thst the baby might get what little mir
was stirring during the heat of the day.
Nera would lie there for hours and play
with baby if he was awake, or with
her doll ii he slept
Captain King came aft to where his
wife and | were sitting, and sald 4:
"Would you ladies like to see one OF
the best OF the native jugglers? | have
been talking with the comprador about
il and he saws he thinks he can get one
to come off tomorrow if you would
like TO see him. According to what he
SAYS the fellow is far beyond anything
in the way OF magical performance TINT
you have ever seen.
As neither of US had ever seen any
thing of the sort, of course We were
eager to have the juggler come aboard,
and the Captain return to the hatch
way aud made arrangements with the
comprador to fetch him the next day.
Mrs. King and | talked of nothing else
during the rest of the afternoon. We
rubbed up our little knowledge OF
jugglers' tricks, recalled the stale
stories of seeds planted and grown into
tree within few moments, of the
/ boy packed into basket and the
basket cut into ribbons, with an ac-
compartment of smothered shricks
and groans from the mutilated child
within, who afterward appeared III tn,
background safe and sound, and nj
/ the other accounts of the stock tricks
of the Indian lugglers of which We had
often read.
4 lnl hat aNt, Ia,
magician would be at rather disad
vantage, for he would be working on Il
solid deck instead of in the sand, anc
in an entirely unknown place, where
hs could by no possibility have mad,
previous preparations to deceive hi
audience.
Next morning the Captain told IN,
that the juggler would come on boarC
late in the AFTERNOON. Mrs. King, a.
usual, came to spend the day with me
and we sat on deck all day. We fel
sure that as we had been there on tn,
day when the performance was frs
proposed, and all of the following day
there had been no chance for any tricl
TO be played beforehand, and that
therefore, we were to have a genuine
performance, whatever it should be
There could be no chance Of deception
by hollow floors or easily moved sand
Late i'll the afternoon, or rattle
early in the evening, we saw small
boat glide toward us, in which sat
tall, slender form clothed in the whit
native robe, with arms folded an,
head bowed upon his breast Beside
him sat slight form, whether male o
female we could not at that distance
distinguish, but we supposed it was tn
boy who in all the stories we had rea(
was one Of the most important proper
ties for the magical performance
There were no baskets in sight, aut
but little else in the way of furniture
for setting the stage for the coming
show. The boat came alongside, ant
her passengers were standing in GU
midst almost before the boat Ia,
touched the foot of the ladder, think
The juggler WAS the finest looking maj
] ever saw. He WAS considerably owe
six feet tall, and was formed like
Greek god. His snowy robe wrappe,
around him left his arms and on
shoulder bare, and his long, sin
hands were as perfect as bronze cast
ings from an artists master work. H
had the brightest eyes | ever beheld
but in their depths shone light whicl
made me shudder with-nOt fear-but
WELL | could not tell what the feeln,
was, but knew it was decidedly un
pleasant to meet his eye for more thai
Il moment. On comparing notes will
my companions afterward I foun,
that they had all felt this same strang
sensation. 1t was not fear, but non
of IFS could give it name, though al
experienced the discomfort in create
or less degree
AS the strangers reached the decl
We saw that the figure which we ha,
seen sitting beside the man in the boa
was that of II young girl. She wa
almost as fine looking a specimen 0
her sex as the man was of his.
They lost no time, but proceede,
with their preparations for our amuse
ment The man disdained to speak t.
us Mt all, but gave his directions to tn
girl, who repeated whatever it wa
necessary for us to hear in low melo
dious voice. They asked for severa
things, among others II tall cane basket
at which Mrs. King and | smiled a
each other; slender line, pan o
ashes, and some other little article
which | have forgotten now.
The line, which was handed the man
WAS our spare signal ballard, and afte
swinging it around his head momen
he seemed satisfied and laid down be
side the mat which he had spread upol
the deck. This mat was of wove
grass, like thousands of others we ga,