Santa Fe daily New Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1885-1897, 1893-12-09

| Deen no one the moment before kelIar
started forward with an involuntary ex-
clamation on his lips. l, too, was great
ly startled. The fakir had thrown aside
his silk mantle and stood before us
clothed only in his breechcloth The
boy, handsome lad of apparently 10
or ~, was similarly clothed At my re-
quest he took my hand and gave it
friendly pressure.
II must have a rope-must have a
roper exclaimed Abalani nervously, and
he gesticulated in the air quickly with
his right arm, his actions seeming to
fascinate me.
"Ahw
He ceased the action, and lowering
his arm displayed large coil of native
rope in his hand that it would have been
impossible for him to have concealed
about his person. Then, with quick
motion, he pitched one end of the coil
straight up into the air, keeping the 9TH
err end in his grasp.
The line seemed to catch up there in
the atmosphere. 1t staid there dangling
down between US.
Abalani ordered Akli to climb up, hur-
rying him with word of impotence
and stamp of his foot.
Akli shook the rope with one hand, as
if to see if it were quite secure, and then
did as he was requested.
Up, up, up, he clambered, higher and
higher, gradually growing smaller and
loI he ,,,,fi ho liz,
disappeared from view. Yet we could
tell that he was still climbing away up
there, for the rope before us trembled
with the motion that he made. Abalani
did his best to study it.
Then suddenly the fakir clapped his
hands and sprang to one side. We heard
the rushing sound of a body falling
through the air, and then the form Of
| Akli landed upon his feet before us I'M
hurt and smiling. Another clapping Of
Abalani's hands, and rope and boy both
disappeared.
The fakir stood alone before us. Kellar
and l were 1nystifed. He asked that
Abalani perform the trick again. When
it had been done second time, Abalan
left us as perplexed as before.
For my part gave the whole riddle
up. l had seen many strange feat of
jugglery, but this one completely non.
| plused me. Kellar was determined not
to leave Boolak until he had satisfied
himself as to how the trick, or feat, had
been performed.
| A week passed. Our host enjoyed
Kellars quandary keenly as boy, and
| joked him about it. However, Kellar
| joined US on the porch one afternoon
with certain amused expression upon
his face that made me feel reasonably
sure that something interesting was up.
81 should like to see little Akli climb
| just once more this afternoon" he said,
dropping into a low steamer chair with
more satisfaction than had noticed him
evince for the past week, "Con and |
should be leaving tomorrow OF the next
day at the latest"
To make known wish there was to
have it gratified. After coffee that aft
ernoon Abalani came walking gravely
up the shaded path, his slight figure
clothed as before-in the flowing mantle
and scanty Observation-Disclosures dark cop.
per ring, shade lighter in color than
the breast it hung against, his only dec.
grafton. AS before, he was alone.
| There were the same low salaalns, his
dry, hard palms that were of almost the
whiteness of mine being stretched over
us. Few words were spoken. The man
could not have been more deferential.
But at the same timeI thought that I
detected CLEAN of egotistical challenge
in his dark eyes that made me hope KEEL
lar would succeed in detecting his trick
and increased my desire to know how it
was performed.
We moved down to the place in the
| garden where we had witnessed the act
| before, hellar slipping into the house a
moment first. Little Akli appeared as
bright and smiling as when we had first
seen him. The rope appeared, Akli had
climbed it, when heard slight, sharp
"clickr' on the side where Kellar was
standing. When little Akli had clam
bered out of sight, Abalani clapped his
hands twice. We shuddered as we heard
the sound of Akli's falling body. The
rope had disappeared, and the little fell
low stood there bowling before lis. The
next moment he was gone.
Kellar hurried me into the house and
to our rooll. The room had a dark
closet, and soon Kellar was hold up
dripping 4 by plate from his camera
for Inc to view by the dim light of our
ruby lantern.
I could see our host, arms akimbo,
looking up wonderingly. Icould see Aba
lani-showing up white in the negative
his thin arms raised above his head, his
feet braced widely apart, as they had
been when steadying the rope for little
Akli to eli, ID when I had heard the
shutter of the camera snap. But there
was no little Akl to be seen anywhere,
nor any rope, for that matter.
Abalani had mesmerized our host,
Kellar and myself, but it was beyond
his fakir skill to mesmerize our detect
i've camera.-Conyers c. Converse in
Nav, Vo~Ir Ho,,11