Anomalies and Curiosities of Medicine [273]
sometimes he wheeled persons over in a wheelbarrow. He was a man of about thirty, short, but wonderfully muscled and extremely supple.
It is said that a negro equilibrist named Malcom several times traversed the Meuse at Sedan on a wire at about a height of 100 feet. Once while attempting this feat, with his hands and feet shackled with iron chains, allowing little movement, the support on one side fell, after the cable had parted, and landed on the spectators, killing a young girl and wounding many others. Malcom was precipitated into the river, but with wonderful presence of mind and remarkable strength he broke his bands and swam to the shore, none the worse for his high fall; he immediately helped in attention to his wounded spectators. A close inspection of all the exhibitionists of this class will show that they are of superior physique and calm courage. They only acquire their ability after long gymnastic exercise, as well as actual practice on the rope. Most of these persons used means of balancing themselves, generally a long and heavy pole; but some used nothing but their outstretched arms. In 1895, at the Royal Aquarium in London, there was an individual who slowly mounted a long wire reaching to the top of this huge structure, and, after having made the ascent, without the aid of any means of balancing but his arms, slid the whole length of the wire, landing with enormous velocity into an outstretched net.
The equilibrists mentioned thus far have invariably used a tightly stretched rope or wire; but there are a number of persons who perform feats, of course not of such magnitude, on a slack wire, in which they have to defy not only the force of gravity, but the to-and-fro motion of the cable as well. It is particularly with the Oriental performers that we see this exhibition. Some use open parasols, which, with their Chinese or Japanese costumes, render the performance more picturesque; while others seem to do equally well without such adjuncts. There have been performers of this class who play with sharp daggers while maintaining themselves on thin and swinging wires.
Another class of equilibrists are those who maintain the upright position resting on their heads with their feet in the air. At the Hippodrome in Paris some years since there was a man who remained in this position seven minutes and ate a meal during the interval. There were two clowns at the Cirque Franconi who duplicated this feat, and the program called their dinner "Un dejouner en tete-a-tete." Some other persons perform wonderful feats of a similar nature on an oscillating trapeze, and many similar performances have been witnessed by the spectators of our large circuses.
The "human pyramids" are interesting, combining, as they do, wonderful power of maintaining equilibrium with agility and strength. The rapidity with which they are formed and are tumbled to pieces is marvelous they sometimes include as many as 16 persons men, women, and children.
The exhibitions given by the class of persons commonly designated as "jugglers" exemplify the perfect control that by continual practice one may obtain over his various senses and muscles. The most wonderful feats of dexterity are thus reduced into mere automatic movements. Either standing, sitting, mounted on a horse, or even on a wire, they are able to keep three four, five, and even six balls in continual motion in the air. They use articles of the greatest difference in specific gravity in the same manner. A juggler called "Kara," appearing in London and Paris in the summer of 1895, juggled with an open umbrella, an eye-glass, and a traveling satchel, and received each after its course in the air with unerring precision. Another man called "Paul Cinquevalli," well known in this country, does not hesitate to juggle with lighted lamps or pointed knives. The tricks of the clowns with their traditional pointed felt hats are well known. Recently there appeared in Philadelphia a man who received six such hats on his head, one on top of the other, thrown by his partner from the rear of
It is said that a negro equilibrist named Malcom several times traversed the Meuse at Sedan on a wire at about a height of 100 feet. Once while attempting this feat, with his hands and feet shackled with iron chains, allowing little movement, the support on one side fell, after the cable had parted, and landed on the spectators, killing a young girl and wounding many others. Malcom was precipitated into the river, but with wonderful presence of mind and remarkable strength he broke his bands and swam to the shore, none the worse for his high fall; he immediately helped in attention to his wounded spectators. A close inspection of all the exhibitionists of this class will show that they are of superior physique and calm courage. They only acquire their ability after long gymnastic exercise, as well as actual practice on the rope. Most of these persons used means of balancing themselves, generally a long and heavy pole; but some used nothing but their outstretched arms. In 1895, at the Royal Aquarium in London, there was an individual who slowly mounted a long wire reaching to the top of this huge structure, and, after having made the ascent, without the aid of any means of balancing but his arms, slid the whole length of the wire, landing with enormous velocity into an outstretched net.
The equilibrists mentioned thus far have invariably used a tightly stretched rope or wire; but there are a number of persons who perform feats, of course not of such magnitude, on a slack wire, in which they have to defy not only the force of gravity, but the to-and-fro motion of the cable as well. It is particularly with the Oriental performers that we see this exhibition. Some use open parasols, which, with their Chinese or Japanese costumes, render the performance more picturesque; while others seem to do equally well without such adjuncts. There have been performers of this class who play with sharp daggers while maintaining themselves on thin and swinging wires.
Another class of equilibrists are those who maintain the upright position resting on their heads with their feet in the air. At the Hippodrome in Paris some years since there was a man who remained in this position seven minutes and ate a meal during the interval. There were two clowns at the Cirque Franconi who duplicated this feat, and the program called their dinner "Un dejouner en tete-a-tete." Some other persons perform wonderful feats of a similar nature on an oscillating trapeze, and many similar performances have been witnessed by the spectators of our large circuses.
The "human pyramids" are interesting, combining, as they do, wonderful power of maintaining equilibrium with agility and strength. The rapidity with which they are formed and are tumbled to pieces is marvelous they sometimes include as many as 16 persons men, women, and children.
The exhibitions given by the class of persons commonly designated as "jugglers" exemplify the perfect control that by continual practice one may obtain over his various senses and muscles. The most wonderful feats of dexterity are thus reduced into mere automatic movements. Either standing, sitting, mounted on a horse, or even on a wire, they are able to keep three four, five, and even six balls in continual motion in the air. They use articles of the greatest difference in specific gravity in the same manner. A juggler called "Kara," appearing in London and Paris in the summer of 1895, juggled with an open umbrella, an eye-glass, and a traveling satchel, and received each after its course in the air with unerring precision. Another man called "Paul Cinquevalli," well known in this country, does not hesitate to juggle with lighted lamps or pointed knives. The tricks of the clowns with their traditional pointed felt hats are well known. Recently there appeared in Philadelphia a man who received six such hats on his head, one on top of the other, thrown by his partner from the rear of