CanÌƒon City record. [volume] (CanÌƒon City, Colo.) 1883-192?, 1903-02-12

give II DefOre the DRAMA
Michael Strogon had been ordered 10
ioo,. He hiA lacs \ swaTtI OF female
d; .scrr~ ,iiii3e ut,en the spac,. reserved
for them Various Tartar Instruments.
united with the cultural voices ef the
singers formed a strange harmony.
There were mandolin with a lcnG neck
made OF the wood Of the mulberry tree.
with two strings of twisted silk. Kind
of violoncello. open at the back. fur
nished with horsehair and made to
vibrnte with n bow. a long flute made
of reed trumpets, tambourines ari
tomtoms. AT once the dances began
These dancers performed very grnce-
fully various dances. sometimes sinEly
and sometimes in groups. They had
their faces uncovered. but from time TO
time they drew a light veil over their
= ------ - 60 '--~,;i;, have said that
c,s..'ts -. ..-. ..--, ..lssing over their
sparkling eyes like a vapor over the
starry heaven.
When this first entertainment was
over. a grave voice was heard. which
said: Look with all your eyes. Loek:
The man who repeated these words
of the emir. a Tartar of high stature.
was the chief eXecutioner of Feofar-
Khan He had taken his position be
hind Michael Strogof. and he held In
his hand a sword with broad and
curved blade. one of those Damascus
blades which had been tempered by
the famous armorers of karschi or OF
Hissar
Near him some guards had brought
tripod ON which was placed an iron
dish. where some redhot Goals were
burning without emitting any smoke.
The light crust which crowned them
was due only to the incineration OF a
resinous and aromatic substance. a
mixture OF frankincense and benzoin.
which had been thrown on their sur
face.
Meanwhile another group of dancers
had succeeded the first. but Of a race
very different. which Michael Strogo6
at once recognized.
And We must believe that the two
Journalists also recognized them, for
Harry Blount said to his coufrere:
These are the Zingari OF Mini Nsv-
eorod"
THE very ones cried Alcide Jolivet-
Il Imagine their eyes bring more mon
ey TO these spies than theks legs
And in making hem out to be agents
In the service of the emir Alcide JolI-
vet. il 1. well known did not deceive
! himself
In the first rank Of the gypsies fig
ured Sangarre- in her superb costume.
strange and picturesque as IL WAS.
which set OF still more her beauty.
Sangarre did not dance. but stood in
the middle of her dancing girls. whose
! fantastic steps parrcok OF all the coun-
tries which their race had trayersed in
\ Europe. of Bohemia. OF Egypt Of Italy
and of Spain. They became animated
at the noise OF the cymbals which
l changed on their arms and at the swell
7 ing Of the -daires," kind of drum
! sounded by the fingers
Sangarre. holding one OF these daires.
/ which trrmbled between her hands. ex-
cited this troop OF veritable corybanteS-
Then came forward a youthful gyp-
~. some fifteen years old at most He
held in his hand doutare. the two
cords OF which he made to vibra5e by n
sin; te gliding of the nails. lie sang
/ During the couplet OF his song OF fan
tastic rhythm a danseuse came and
placed herself near him and remained
immovable. listening to him. but each
time the burden came TO the lips OF the
young singer she again took up her in
terrupted dance. shaking her daire near
him and deafenins him with the sound
of her drum
Then. after the last verse. the dancers
enlaced the gypsy in a thousand turn
ings OF their dances.
AT this moment 8 shower of gold fell
| from the hands OF the emir and his al
hes. from the hands OF the officers of
all grades. and 10 the noise of the
1 pieces which struck the cymbals OF the
dancers were blended the last murmurs
of the doutares and tambourines.
"Prodigal as freebootersv' said AL
eide Jolivet In the ear OF his compan-
Ion.
And, indeed, 1t was stolen money
which fell in showers. for with the
Tartar tomans and seauins rained also
Nuscovite ducats and rubles-
Then silence was made for an In
slant, and the voice of the executioner.
placing his hand on the shoulder OF Mi
chael Strogor. again spoke those words
whose repetition rendered them still
more sinister:
LOOK Win ali your eyes. LOOK.
But this time Alcide Jolivet observed
that the executioner did not hold rs
naked sword in his hand
Then suddenly, as II at a given sig
nal. all the fires of the fantasia were
extinguished. the dances ceased. the
dancers disappeared. The ceremony
was terminated, and the torches alone
lit up the plateau which some lnstau,s
before was SO full OF lights.
At sign from the emir Michael Stro-