"At length a bevy of laughing girls, in punishment for some impertinence
with which they charged him, fell to pelting him with jasmine buds and
pandanus cones, the latter of which, in mischievous hands, are capable
of becoming rather formidable missiles. Foremost among the assailants
were our fair acquaintances of the morning, and even Olla, forgetting
her matronly station and dignity, joined zealously in the flowery
warfare; which was maintained with such spirit, that Barton was at
length obliged to beg for quarter, promising at the same time to `make
some music' for them, as a condition of the suspension of hostilities.
This proposition, as soon as it was understood, seemed to afford the
most extravagant delight; the shower of missiles ceased at once, and
Barton was immediately surrounded by as attentive and breathlessly
expectant an audience as artist could desire. Taking his stand upon a
moss-covered fragment of rock, he drew an enormous Jew's-harp from his
pocket, and handed it to me, gravely requesting me to `accompany' him
upon it, while he sang. Then, after clearing his throat, with quite a
professional air, he commenced `Hail Columbia,' and as he had a full,
clear voice, and sang with great spirit, the performance was listened to
with every mark of enjoyment, and was succeeded by rapturous applause.
"He next gave a solo on the Jew's-harp to the air of `Yankee Doodle,'
with brilliant and original variations, which likewise met with a
flattering reception. But by far the greatest sensation was produced by
`Auld Lang syne,' which we sang together as a grand finale. The natives
really seemed to feel the sentiment of the music, although Barton turned
it into a burlesque by such an exaggerated pathos of tone and
expression, and gesture, that I had much difficulty in getting through
my part of the performance without laughing; but my vexation at being
surprised into taking a part in such a piece of buffoonery, greatly
helped me in resisting my sense of the ludicrous. At the end of every
verse, Barton grasped my hand in the most demonstrative manner, and
commenced shaking it vigorously, looking me all the while solemnly in
the face, and shaking away through the entire chorus, thereby producing
a number of quavers, which, though not set down in the music, greatly
added to its pathetic character. After the last chorus, he spread open
his arms, rushed forward, and gave me a stage embrace. This
performance, including the pantomime, must have been of a very moving
character, for when we had finished, I actually saw tears in the eyes of
several of our audience. This evidence of the gentle and
unsophisticated character of these simple people, affected me almost as
much as our music had moved them, and I could not help thinking to how
much better account such amiable impressibility was capable of being
turned.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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