The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-06-05
A SACRED ELEPHANT PROCESSION
The weird Spectacle Got Up in cey-

The Weird Spectacle Got Up in Cey-
lon for the English ROynI Party.
ceylon Correspondent of the London
Standard.
OF all the spectacles presented to the
eyes of the Duke and Duchess of Corn
wall and York the strangest and the
weirdest was the Perahara, or process
sion of elephants These exhibitions are
part of the Buddhist ritual, and Ceylon
is noted for it's elephants. A sacred stud
of forty is kept for festivals, the chiefs
in the neighborhood acting as guardians
1t was dark when the performers began
to assemble at the entrance to the pavill-
ion grounds-a long line of men and anil
mails in fantastic dress. The air famed
with torches and reeked with cocoanut
oil, and thousands of natives filled the
lanes with a medley of color Their royal
highnesses, having dined, came out upon
the balcony of the White House with the
massive white pillars. The gardens were
shrouded in blackness and silence Sud
denly, from the distance, came the
sound of the tom tom and the shrl note
of the Chettey pipe. There is a subtle
sameness in all Eastern music. The tom
tom and the pipe of the devil dancer
were in my ears as the echo of Dervish
drum and omobeiha sounding the charge
at Omdurman. The head of the procession
appeared. 1t was a white elephant on a
cart drawn by a patient bullock and at
tended by a headman in fiat round cap.
One was maturity curious to learn why
this very obvious property animal should
have the place of honor. seeing that so
many magnificent beasts were behind
Because 1t is beautiful said the head
man, hiding under an air of grave cour-
tesy his surprise that any should doubt
its claim to be leader.
Nosily and slowly the procession un-
folded itself. in waves of yellow light
from hundreds Of long torches held by
brown-skinned Cingalese. The order of
their coming was after this fashion. First
walked a company of men in loose robes
of white and red, or clad only in camboy
or waist cloth, the light cleaning on
their shining bodies. Behind them march
ed three elephants, in rich trappngs, the
middle and largest having a crimson gold
embroidered cloth drawn over his head,
leaving only eyes and ears uncovered On
their heels whired the devil dancers
1.-THE figures, stripped to the waist, the
sweat streaming from their dark bodies
rs they leapt and turned and chanted a
strange, monotonous chant to the beating
OF drum and the shrielxing Of pipe. Some
We're children, others white-headed, OF a
solemn countenance that was grotesquely
out OF harmony with their strange antics
No chief of any pride and dignity would
deign to appear in these professions with
out his devil dancers. do not know
whether rank is measured by the number
or by the energy of the dancers. II was
none the less manifest that distinctions
exist even in devil worshippers, for the
number, the dress and the noise seemed
in proportion to the gravity and magnlh-
cence of the chifetains who followed these
cyclones of color and sound.
The Kandyan chief may be a handsome
and even an Imposing man. He has the
dignified solemnity OF the Turk and the
beard OF the Prophet. His dress, too, is
splendid. In the days of the kings II
was simple white. but. since they can
no longer be courtiers at home, the chiefs
have put on the dress Of their kings
Around the waist are wound nearly sixty
yards OF white silk, embroidered with
crimson and gold The many folds are
gathered at the waist into a great bulk
and end in gold frlnges that fan over
white linen trousers with broad frllled
edges The feet are bare, but on the
head is hat in shape not unlike a
shrine, and In wealth OF gold and gems
not unworthy the altar OF some saint
The upper part Of the body is clothed in
zouave Jacket. richly embroidered in
red and gold. and worn over a white
frilled shirt. Each chief has on the sec
ond finger Of the right hand a ring OF
enormous size. resembling in shape the
apostolic ring OF the Pope. The chiefs
walked In lines OF six or seven. having
between the lines elephants and devil
dancers and torchbearers. When they
drew near TO the balcony there was a
short halt and the procession. turning
10 the left. reformed IN front Of the pa
vihon. The elephants Isnged themselves
IN line on the green avn. that shone a
strangely vivid green in the hight Of the
torches. The devil dancers gathered to-
Eether IN the center Not the dancing
Iervishes of Damascus, not the bowling
Dervishes Of Berber. could excel them
~ antics and noise rs they swoated and
turned and threw themselves into the air
WIN on energy and q abandon that had
4 81 least the semblanee q religious frenzy.