West Jersey Pioneer

MISCELLANEOUS
Eastern Correspondent of the Boston Post.
THE JUGGLERS OF INDIA.

In Madras are found in perfection the celebrated eastern jugglers. Groups of them are daily at the hotels upon the arrival of a steamer, to exhibit their wonderful feats and receive rupees. Snake dancing, sword swallowing, fire eating, tumbling, &c., are shown to the crowds who search for amusement. With some others, I hired a party to exhibit on the veranda of the hotel, and I am quite assured of their superiority over all other magicians professed or amateur, in the world. At the time assigned, they were on the spot arranging their implements preparatory to great wonders and marvels of deception. While thus preparing, I took a cheroot from its case the more readily to find out everything about what was going on, and searched among the circle of passengers for a light. Perceiving the desire, one of the jugglers, came to me, went through a pantomimic request to regard his face more attentively, commenced blowing like a pair of bellows. Much to my surprise a slight stream of smoke issued from his lips and finally a pointed jet of flame shaped as gracefully as a gas-light, and extending two inches in my direction, which he kindly placed at my convenience. I availed myself of it by lighting the segar, expressed my obligation and also a desire to examine intrinsically, so polite a salamander. I opened his mouth looked in, looked around and felt outside, but devil a cause could I discover for the sudden and appropos conflagration? What an agreeable fellow you are for a windy day, was an inward exclamation, and what a life you may lead without danger to future warmth! But the magic was about to commence and I forgot my friend with the portable furnace in other wonders, less individual perhaps, but certainly quite as mysterious. They danced cobra capellos, opening their flat heads to show them sound in fangs and venom bags, and made them perform a variety of poses. The snakes danced in a circle, kept admirable time with the music, and exhibited the most amiable willingness imaginable to accommodate Europeans. A handful of sand taken from the road was made to mark every color and finally to produce a shovel full of every variety by a simple manual operation. Plants grew perceptibly, balls danced in the air, swords, hooks, jagged pieces of iron and steel were used like sounding leads to penetrate abdomens; eggs made birds and birds made rabbits and rabbits in their turn underwent various transformations; common cotton balls moved at command, going away an immense distance but returning on the ground very obediently until we were completely tied up and turned inside out ourselves with amazement and credulity. Then came the great feat of the greatest juggler in India: the most notorious and wonderful of all deceptions and "for this night only." The performer, the leader of the party, had rested quietly with his wife and child outside of the circle, watching the entire proceedings of his men and noting the general effect upon the assemblage. At the conclusion of an announcement proportionate with his dignity and elevation, he stepped into the enclosed space to give a grand finale to the whole performance. Taking a child, a little boy five or six years of age from its mother, despite her tears and entreaties he signed the attendants to procure the required implements for his feat, directing their arrangement and position according to his mind. A large basket, six or seven feet deep made of straw, was shown to the spectators that they might assure themselves of its being a basket without any addition or improvement—simply a basket of straw, very common in all parts of the world. Inverting it, after the diligent investigations of the entire party, he stood his little boy in the centre of the circle and covered him with the basket like an extinguisher on a candle. The room allowed the little fellow an upright and apparently a comfortable position. We were permitted to see him under the basket and to satisfy ourselves of his being there without any doubt. A naked sword having received an equally close examination, was placed in the man's hand, and the feat commenced. Assured of the child's concealment under the basket, of the keenness and validity of the sword, we waited in silent horror for his next proceeding. There was no table with its apartment, no trap in the basket, nothing but the hard stony floor, and no confederate near him. Taking the weapon in his hand, he waved it in the air, muttered a jargon & commenced a series of rapid thrusts through the basket, making the point penetrate every time the opposite side, down into the basket, and all over it until it could hardly support its weight from mutilation. It was perforated like a sieve. A cry came from the interior, and a stream of blood began to trickle from under it along the stone floor on to the feet of the spectators. Cries of horror pierced the air, the mother ran shrieking to the basket to seize her horribly gashed and bleeding boy. She overturned it—no child was there, nothing but a pool of blood. Everybody looked frightened and relieved, while the juggler coolly wiped the blood from the sword blade. Suddenly bursting from the middle of the group of observers, the little fellow came running to his mother, unhurt, unharmed, and a pretty smile on his brown, childish face. Taking hold of her hand he seemed to ask the cause of her tears, and began fondling her in affectionate sympathy. It was a trick—a deception—a humbug. But how to explain it. I saw the child under the basket a moment before the thrusts; I saw the sword, iron handle, no shelter for the keen sharp blade: I stood on the same stone floor upon which rested the basket: I watched the whole carefully while the sword passed around there was no refuge in the basket, there was no confederate, no mantle, no trap-door. The noise of the straw was distinctly heard at each thrust; the blood was there, and yet at the end the child came from the crowd and quite alive! I was within six feet and could not understand it: perhaps you who were further away will be more successful. But isn't it a point or two in advance of Alexander, Blitz and those men?