The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1912-09-08

u a..
| mated In the north Of Borueo among the
savsse lfnruts. who live IN thst rs-
| gion, my readers wilT probably smile.
The, dahce not only orisinsked there. but
| II has been practiced by the Muriits for
The past 800 years. II y to-day used q
I means OF supplicating the God Of Rain
ana Is among the most sacred dances OF
those people. have no doubt that these
very religious people would srovel on
the earth with horror II they knew their
sacred dance was used in America as
q means Of FUN and recreation.
] had q unique means OF making this
very Interesting discovery A short time
ago I blew into the little port OF Egan-
on the east side OF Borneo and ran into
q good friend Of mine. who 10 now .
captain In the Boreo constabulary. main
tanned by the British government to
keep down lawiessness among the ma
tives Of the north. II happened that
my friend was going into the north Of
the island to attend to a few chiefs who
had been on the warpath. He invited
me to go along with him. I readily ac-
cepted. and early next morning was sail
ing up the east coast Of Borneo on q
numbering little tub Of steamer.
After three days Of tedious travelling
We arrived at point on Mount KIM
Batu. Needless 10 say. the brfgand
ohieftains were brought TO terms by the
very sight OF my friends. well equipped
constables.. ] had an opportunity to stay
in the country several days before re-
turning to Egsn. At the time OF my
visit 1t happened that the island had had
no rain for more than q month, and the
inhabitants were suffering greatly from
the drought. 800
The. Rain Dance.
+
The second night after my arrival the
Muruts, In whose village we were stay
ing. made a duplication to the God OF
Rain. We watched them dance around
the idol. The dance was none other than
the turkey trot. There before me werr
more than 200 natives dancing our gay.
giddy. everybody s-doing-it turkey trot
with the deepest religious fervor. was
astonished. The step was perfect. and
with the exception of q few breaks kept
time admirably with "Everybody's Do
ing It."
To see these savases in that dance
would be an Inspiration to any dancing
master. The grace and beauty Of their
movements charmed both my military
friend and myself. At the foot Of the
huge idol burned dull blue fame. and
from 1t came the sweet smell OF the in
cense II consumed. The almost perfect
figures Of the men and women were
beautifullysoutlined against the dark for
est by the dim fame. The natives danced
untiringiy for three hours round and
round the wooden idol, the God Of Rain.
My friend told me that the dance was
one OF the most sacred OF the Murutl
ritual II Is also one Of their oldest.
They believe in its merits Implicitly
The Muruts are supposed to be follow
ers Of Mahomet. but their religious prac-I
tees are a conglomeration Of paganism.
Christianity, and Islamism.
One Of the Oldest native chieftains told
me next morning a Venetian monk and
several OF his brothers had endeavored
to stop the dance on the ground that It |
would result In immoral practices. The |
good monks were missionaries and came
to the Island nearly hundred years ago, |
according TO the aged man. Two of the |
priests were killed for their imprudence |
and the others barely escaped with their |
lives
Introduced in England.
When went northward to Singapore q |
few days afterward met DR.. John p. |
English, Of London. a student Of Oriental |
folklore and fol<dances. He told me |
that the turkey trot was known to the |
Western world as far back as 100. It |
was shortly before this time that the /
Portuguese occupied Borneo. The young /
cavaliers of that country became fasci-
mated with the graceful movements Of
the dance as performed by the Muruts
and introduced II into their country. DR..
English said that the dance spread over
Europe like wild fire.
At first It was In great favor with the
mobiles. Great schools were opened for
II In Rome, and all the young
handles Of the Holy City prided them
selves on being able to dance 1t with
grace. The wealthy Cardinal Pignatelli,
Of one OF the most noble houses in Italy,
was among the first to openly pronounce
against It. He declared that II was SUBJ
versive to good morals.
DR.. English declared that in spite of
he Cardinals opposition the dance was
aught increasingly for several years.
rhe Pope eventually declared against II
Ind it gradually lost its favor among
he aristocrats. The peasants, however,
continued to practice It. In fact, to-day
me can see plain traces OF IL In the
ok dances Of southern Europe.
For many years the turkey trot was
lead to the western world. There is
popular tradition that the dance
originated on the Barbary Coast In San
Francisco. According to DR.. English,
his is not 30. He says that the dance
vas brought to that place from Borneo