The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1902-11-16

Their excellencies were seated on the mar
bic dais in the private stateroom, separated
from the coronation hall by collonades OF
red stone. This apartment is built of trans
lucent, milky marble. warmed by the re-
Election of gold inlaid on the columns and
merged with the stone that is turned to
amber. as Prince Karageorgevitch happily
describes it.
Unde the white dome a wooden ceiling.
gilt in the hollows of the carving, has TAX
en- the place of an earlier ceiling of mas
sive silver, worth seventy laos of rupees.
which was carried off by the conquerors
after some long-ago seizure of the city.
Inside, by way of walls, are carvings in
marble of twisted lilies, inconceivably
graceful and light. And then, at one of the
entrances. those marble %latices. once gilt
and now bereft of their gold, look just
like topaz in the midday sun. Towards 4
o'clock in the afternoon, when the burn
ing sun was beginning to hide his fiery
face, the native musicians drove up at
the gate in low, red carts drawn by zebu
oxen. They came in small groups. noise
less of tread and silent-beautiful silhou-
cites, each of the type of a true artist.
Their feet were naked and velvety as cats
paws. Each made a stately bow before the
viceroy, her ladyship and the other Euro
peans in the order of their rank, and then
sat down on the carpet.
Her ladyship smiled and the musicians
smiled back and the concert was on. Some
OF the players seemed to caress their
manodlins with their fingers, others used the
bow, but, oh, so leisurely. Three or four
touched the strings with a piece of mother
of-pearl. again others let an egg of ebony
roll over them. Our own great masters
of composition invented new musical in
struments, and after hearing the Vicer-
zines concert, 1 thought they might do bet
ter by inventing new methods for playing
old instruments
Before they began, that is, when all the
monstrous animal freaks topping of the
guitars had raised their heads / antici-
pated a dreadful racket. / was prepared
for the worst, for 1 saw twenty-five
musicians, each armed with an instrument
as big as a bass-viol. The hall was STEPPED
open. disclosing the vestibule full of the
glorious light OF the setting Jul
This light gilded the red turbans of a
company of native soldiers and reflected
in the gorgeous headdresses of troops Of
singers and comedians in attendance there.
There was a band Of tam-tam players. too,
but as Lady Curzon kindly whispered to
me they would not be overload, besides
each instrument was tuned in a particular
key.
Only one-half of each Of their body was
clothed but this in a half-dozen yards of
silk. embroidered with gold and pearl orna-
ments. The mode of drapery was that OBJ
served in placid classic statues, one
shoulder swathed in marvellous folds. the
other side of the torso. including the arm,
bare, but for numerous gold rings. On their
heads they wore turbans of shining metal
and in their ears diamonds of which a
fashionable Paris demimondaine might be
proud, while their scant clothing and their
bodies exhaled the perfume of rose water
and romati herbs.
Their instruments were a sort of giant
mandolin or guitar, the crooked neck of
which was decorated with the head of
some curious monster. Each of these
guitars was intended to produce a single
tune only, a tune widely different from,
but in harmony with the rest. These in
~ nave OACoc OahNAh6 vs.,
while balloon-shaped wind-bags, not unlike
fruits dangling on long stems, tend to en-
phasize the tune.
BY her ladyship's order, several of these
guitars were turned over to me for ex-
animation. They are the very rarest of
Oriental bric-a-brac, hundreds. or perhaps,
a thousand years old. Their value is in
estimable. The bodies are gilded, incrusted
with ivory, precious metal and stones and
nave medallions painted by great artists.
Moreover they are capable of producing
tunes of ndescribable euphony, mysterious
in c~aliber-melodies no white mans ear
ever heard outside of enchante India.
1t was 5 now and the concert was on &C
cording to the programme, which gave the
names of all the chief INSTRUMENTATION
names of a dozen syllables or so. The con-
cert was on, but 1 listened In vain. AT last
there was a sound. a high note long-drawn-
out. remindful of the prelude to "Lohen-
grin" 1t gradually increased in volume,
developing into a rhythmic murmur, as
soft, as gentle as the singing Of a dragon
fly, or the buzzing of an insect, imprisoned
in the hollow of ones hand.
One of the musicians had an infnitesimal