Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1913-10-15
NIGHT IN TIE INDIAN JUNGLE.
The Amazing Music of Wind Among
the Giant Reeds.

wild Jungle, arriving soon after at q
large lake, we left the carriages. The
island was a tiny one, and so over
grown with tall reeds that from a dis
lance it Looked like pyramidal bas-
ket Of Verdure. In this virgin
foi est of thick grass there was no
trace ef human life. Seeing the word
grass the reader must not forget that
It is not the grass e Europe that l
mean; the grass under which we stood,
like insects under a rhubaTb leaf, waV=
ed it's feathery manY-cplored plumes
much above the head of GuLab-Sing
(Who stood six feet and Il half in his
stockings. and Of Narayan, who meas
ured hardly an inch less From a dis
tance ii looked like a waving sea of
block, yellow, blue and especially OF
reese and green. On landing ne DIS
covered that it consisted of separate
thic.lets of bamboos, mixed TT With
the gigantic sirka reeds, which rose
as high as the tops of the manages
The sun had set As the LAST golden
ray disappeared on the horizon, Il
gauZe-like veil of pale lilac fell over
the world. But as every moment de-
creased the transparency OF thus tfop-
cal twilight, the tint gradually lost It's
softness and became darker ana dark
er. 1t looked a. # an invisible painter
increasingly moving his gigantic brush.
swiftly laid one coat IF paint ever the
other, ever changing the exquisite
background of our islet. The phos-
phoric candles Of the firefiies began to
twinkle here and there shining eflghe-
~ against the black trunks of the
trees. and lost again on the sllVery
background of opalescent evening SKY.
But in few minutes more thousands
of these living sparks. precursors Oh
Queen Night. played round us,rourins
like q golden cascade over the trees
and dancing In the air above the grass
and the dark lake.
And behold here is the queen in per-
son Nofselcssly descending upon
earth, she feassumes her rights. With
hor= approach. rest and peace spread
over ms. her cool breath Gains the ae-
Invites OF the day. Like FOND mother'
she sings q lullaby to Nature, ieVlnslS
wrapping her in her soft black mantie'
and when everything is asleep, she
watches over Natures doing powers
until the first streaks Of dawn Nature
sleeps; but man IS awake, to ne Wit
ness t. the beauties of TINS solemn
evening hour. Sitting around the iffe
we talked, lowering our voices as II
afraid of awaking night. snusly
sheltered by The high grass, we had
not thc heart to spend this magnlhceh1
NIGHT in prosaic sleeping. Besides we
were waiting for. the concert when
the Takur had promised US, ne pa
tient." said he the musicians VIII ap-
pear before the moon rises
Tho tickle goddess was late; she KEPT
,ts waiting till after 10 o'clock. Just pc
fore her arrival, when the horizon ps,
e3n l., grow perceptibly brighter, ana
.ha annasfte shore to assume 4 milky,
si1very tint. sudden Wind rose me
waves. that had gone quietly To steep
al tho feet If gigantic reeds, awoke
a5a tossed uneasily till the reeds sway
ga heir feataery heads ana Hiofihu GU
ia eaeh other as If taking counsel TO-
nether about something that vas 80
ing To happen. ,,..-...,,a
Suddeniy. in the general stiffness ana
silence, we heard again the same lnusi-
caI notes, which we nad hassoa
,nbaodcd. when we first reached the
leland. as if a whole orchestra We're
trtsina tbcir musical instruments ne
fore pIayipg some great eoinpositloii'
An arnund MS. and over our heads VI
hrated strin5s OF violins, and thriiiee
.,y,..,,,.,ta mites Of a flute. In few
,,.s.,,o,,ts CAM another gust # Wihd
teorinc- through the reeds, anu tue
,,hoIa island resounded with uie
strains Of hundreds of Aeollah haip9'
AID suddenly there began Wlid uh-
oaasing symphony. II sWelled Ill Tue
,,,rro,,ndine woods, filling the ar WIN
an Understandable melody. Sad ana SOL
49,, wore its prolonged strains; t1eS
rosonnaed like the arpegglos OF soilie
e,,.,5,,,,1 march. then, changing INTO
-, hing thrill, they shook the cir H"t
a. s.,pe of a nightingale ana eiea
a1vav in n long sigh. They ol't Ii't ~
cease, but grew louder again. rms So i.i@
like hundreds OF silver bells, ''tla.il9
from the hear.rending hoWl Oh " VIZ
denrived OF her young u lhc
t,ta rhvthn Of a gay tarahteiid' ~.
rotfoI Of every earthly sorrow oi-'
- circulate song Of human Eo'ee
+t,a vapue majestic accords Oh Vi
eIinoe,lo from merry ehllds laubileei
to angry sobbing. And all TINS Vac
nestsd in every direction by moehiis s
echo as if hundreds Of fabulous lotess
naidens. disturbed in their green ecu
abodes. answered the appeal el ~
wild musical Saturhala. oster
a ~, was a short interval, 'il'ei
witch the invisible orchestra stai va
aeain with renewed energy the sou il,
nonred and rolled in unrest'aih'.o,s.
nyerwheiming waves. We had nes ~
henri anything like this lheoi[e1' 80 az
wonder. Listen! y storm IN 'ne o l,ss
con the wind tearing through ,he
e;ne the swish of the maddenen wv" ,,',
nnsh;,p over each other, or the "hill.
in,. eno,g-wreatls on the silent steppes :.
snadenlv the vision is changed, now ~
&c q stately cathedral anu the 'lionu -.
inc strains OF an Crsah rlsihs eil>.I.
IFS vaults. The powerful hot.s IN
rush together, now spread out 'htouei'
snare. break off, intermingle, ana pe-
come entangled like the fantastic l''ol,
o5v Of a delrious fever. some 1lusio ',
! nhantasy born of the hoWhhg anu
wltist!irg Of the wind.
Gr1ab-Sing. appealed IS for an CA