The Holly chieftain., 1898-04-01
THE RIAL SNAKE cHARmeR.
He Differs from tse Ordinary Mnnip-
ulnIOE Of HnrInIexx RcplIIes.


The famous snake charmers of India
sre divided into two classes, viz, the
genuine and the imitation, or the real
rharmer and the tricky but clever
manipulation of snakes. The former ac-
tually charms the yenomous reptiles
into temporary docility and harmless
ness, while the latter merely handles
those which have been rendered harm
less by the extraction of their fangs.
The real charmer seldom performs in
: large town, because snakes are not
as numerous there as in the smaller
villages and the iungles. and car
eies his worldly possessions in
swo bags hung on a bamboo pole
which rests ON one of his shoul-
iers. His most important and highly
?rized belongings. his pipe. rude mu-
steal instrument, made of gourd, and
section of bamboo. he carries in his
aand.
If you are living in the mofussil, or
rural district, and desire to ascertain
whether there are snakes harbortd
within the precincts of your garden,
pay the charmer rupee or two and he
is at your service. Carefully deposit
ing his bags on the ground. he sits down
beside them. cross-legged, closes his
eyes and begins TO play mournful
melody upon his pipe.
To the occidental ear there is moth
ing impressive or thrilling in the per
formance, and you fail TO detect even
a faint resemblance to harmonious
arrangement of tones such as you have
heard in your native land. 1t appears
more like an irregular series of melan-
choly means. soulful wailings and dis
mai shrieks, not unlike the productions
Of a beginner on the clarinet. You
listen with some degree of interest at
first. for the music, IL it may be so
called. is decidedly novel; then you feel
rather bored and are gradually drifting
toward the conviction either that you
are being buncoed out of your rupee or
that there are no snakes on the prem
ises, when suddenly you notice move
ment in the grass some distance from
the player and the head of n snake APP
pears above the blades, swaying to and
fro at least foot or two from the
ground.
II it is n cobra. the hood is expanded
and the eyes fash and sparkle like elec-
trio lights. Presently, perhaps. another
snake will appear in different part
of the garden, followed by another.
and, ii your place is well supplied with
the reptiles, there may be dozen of
them moving toward the player in
spasmodic leaps, while swaying their
heads, and at least one-fourth of their
bodies clear of the ground and keeping
perfect time with the music. They
seem to give themselves up entirely to
the fascination of the weird sounds and
to lose all consciousness of everything
else.
As long as the man plays, they re-
main within two or three feet of him,
while he sits with closed eyes, appar-
emily unconscious of their presence.
And still, he seems to WELD mysteri-
Gus power over them, holding them
at a safe distance from him, while they
never cease to oscillate as If in supreme
ecstasy. Suddenly he removes the pipe
from his lips and opens his eyes. Slow
ly the snakes sink fiat upon the ground.
and then glide swiftly away through
the grass. disappearing before you have
sufficiently recovered from your aston
ishment to begin 10 think of killing
them. The charmer never kills them:
his religion forbids it. - Cincinnati;
Commercial Tribune.