Evening star., 1901-09-07
SACRED ELEPHANT PROCESSION.
Weird Spectacle Got Up for the En-
glish Royal Party.


Weird Spectacle Got Up for the En-.
glish Royal Party.
Ceylon Correspondence London Standard.
or all the spectacles presented to tho
eyes Of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall
and York the strangest and the weirdest
was the perahara, or procession of ele-
plants. These exhibitions are part of the
Buddhist ritual, and Ceylon is noted for Its
elephants. A sacred stud OF forty is kept
for festivals, the chiefs In the neghborhood
acting as guardians. 1t was dark when the
performers began to assemble at the en-
trance. to the pavilion grounds-a long line
of men and animals In fantastic dress. The
air famed with torches and reeked with
cocoanut oil, and thousands OF natives filed
the lanes with medley Of color Their
royal highnesses, having dined, came out
upon the balcony of the white house WIN
the massive white pillars The gardens
were shrouded In blackness and silence.
Suddenly, from the distance, came the
sound of the tom tom and the shrill note OF
the Chettey pipe. There is a subtle same
ness I'm all eastern music. The tom tom
and the pipe of the devil dancer were in
my ears as the echo Of the Dervish drum
and omobeiha sounding the charge at Om-
durham The head of the procession ap-
peared 1t was a white elephant on a cart
drawn by a patient bullock and attended by
a headman in fiat round cap. One was nat
urally curious to learn why this very obvi-
of honor. seeing that many magnificent
beasts were behind. Because Il is beauti-
full said the headman. hiding under an
air of grave courtesy his surprise that any
should doubt its claim to be leader
Noisily and slowly the procession unfold
ed itself. in waves of yellow light from
hundreds OF long torches held by brown
skinned Cingalese. The order Of their COM
ing 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 marched three ele-
phants. In rich trappings, the middle and
largest having crimson gold-embroidered
cloth drawn over his head. leaving only
whirled the devil dancers-lithe figures
stripped to the waist, the sweat streaming
from their dark bodies as they leaped and
turned and chanted strange monotonous
chant to the beating of drum and the
shrfeking of pipe. Some were children,
others white-headed. of a solemn counte-
nance that was grotesquely out of harmony
with their strange antics. No chief of any
pride and dignity would deign to appear in
these professions without his devil dancers
| do not know whether rank is measured
5y tne number or by the energy of the
dancers. 1t was none the less manifest
that distinctions exist even In devil wor-
shippers, for the number. the dress and
the noise seemed In proportion to the grav-
lty and magnificence Of the chieftains who
followed these cyclones of color and sound
The Kandyan chief may be handsome
and even an imposing man. He has the
d1snff1ed solemnity OF the Turk and tho
beard of the prophet. His dress too is
splendid. In the days of the kings it 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
fringes that fall over white linen trousers
with broad frilled 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 a
and gold, and worn over a white frilled
shirt. Each chief has on the second finger
OF the right hand 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 ele-
plants and devil dancers and torchbearers
"hen they drew near to the balcony there
was short halt and the procession turn
Ing to the left, reformed In front of the
pavilion. The elephants ranged themselves
In line on the green lawn. that shone a
strangely vivid green in the light Of the
torches. The devil dancers gathered to-
gether In the center, and gave themselves
up to frenzied dance. Not the dancing
Dervishes Of Damascus. not the bowling
Dervishes OF Berber, could excel them in
antics and noise as they sweated and turn
ed and threw themselves into the air with
an energy and an abandon that had at
Their exertions were rewarded by a few
words Of thanks from the duke who de-
clared himself greatly pleased and inter-
ested @'". ''f''