The enquirer. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1804-1815, 1809-11-14
vENTRiLoouIsM. OF TnE
Celebrated Nh. FI7Z JAMES.
From the tast Port Fslio.


of Mr.. Fitz James, one of the most astonishing
performers that has ever COMPOUNDED the ignorant,
or edited the philosopher. For the following &C,
count Of his wonderful talents, we are indebted
to Mr.. w. Nicholson, the scientific Editor of the
Journal of Natural Philosophy, CHEMISTRY, and
the Arts. What giYesto this article the greatest
weight and interest is, that MFR. Nicholson, phi.
Iosophieai remarker, was an eye witness Of the
prodigies, which he describes.
1hare now the satisfaction to give some account
of the performance of Mr.. Fitz James, one of the
first masters ofthe art of ventriloquism who, in
addition to his very striking powers as spcaker&
an actor, has the candour and lberalty to explain
the nature of his performance to his auditors
was present afew evenings ago at public exh-
bition, which continues to be repeated at Outlaws
ia Soho Square and though my account of what
l saw and heard cannot but be very imperfect, &
tar from exciting the surprize, which the actual
performance produces, it may, nevertheless, be of
utility to establish few principles, and remove
some errors respecting this art.
Alter comic piece had been read by Mons.
Voiange, MIR. Fitz James, who was sitting among
the audience, went forward, and expressed his
suspicion that the yentrioqusrn was to be perfor-
med by the voices OF persons concealed under a
platform, which was covered with green CLOTH
Replies were given to his observations, apparent
iy from beneath that stage and he followed the
voices with the action and manner of a person,
"hosS SutioSiNS Was lhuCu eAClteu, making re-
marks in his own voice, and answering rapidly s.
Immediately, in voice which no one would have
ascribed to him. He then addressed bust which
appeared to answer his questions IN character,
and after conversng with another bust in The
same manner, he turned around, and in neat s.
perspicuous speech, explained the nature 0; the
subject of our attention and from what ne sta
ted and exhibited before us, it appeared that by
long practice he had acquired the faculty of spea-
KING during the inspiration Of the breath, with
nearly the same articulation, though not so loud
nor so varlousy modulated, as the ordinary voice
formed by expiration of the air. The unusual
voice, being formed in the cavity of the lungs,
is very different, IN effect, from the other. Per-
haps 1T may issue, IN great measure, throug. IA
the trunk of the Individual. We should scarce
ly be disposed to ascribe any definite direction to
1t and consequently are readily led to suppose it
to come from the place best adapted to what was
said. So that when he went To the door and ask
ed, :" Are you there 20 to 4 person, supposed to
DC III the passage, the answer in the unusual voice
was Immediately ascribed, by the audience, to
person actually in the passage ; and upon shut
ting the door, ard Withdrawing from it, when he
turned round, directing his voice to the door, &
said, Stay there till call you - the answer,
which was lower and well adapted to the suppo-
sed distance and obstacle interposed, appeared
still more strikingly, to be out of the room He
then looked up to the ceiling, and called out in
his own voice, (" What are you doing above ," to
which an immediate answer was given, which
seemed to be III the room above, 1 am coming
down directly" The same deception was prac-
used on the supposition Of person being under
the floor, who answered in the unusual, but a We
ry different voice from the other, that he was
down IN the cellar putting away some wine. An
excellent deception of the watchman CRYING the
hour IN the street, and approaching nearer the
house, till he came opposite the window, was
Practised Our attention was directed to the
street, by the marked attention which Ftz lanes
himself appeared to pay to the sound. He threw
up the sash and asked the hour, which was i'm
mediately answered in the same tone but clear
er and louder but upon his shutting the window
down again, the Waterman proceeded less audi
biy, and all at once the voice became very faint
and Fitz James, in his natural voice said, he
has turned the corner" In all these instances
as well as others, which were exhibited 10 the We
ry great entertainment and surprise of the spec
tators, the acute observer will perceive that
the direction of the sound was imaginary, and a.
rose entirely from the well-studied and .kilfuI
combinations OF the performer. Other scenes,
which were to follow, required the imagination
to be too completely misled, to admit of the ac
tor being seem He went behind a fltling screen
IN one corner OF the room, when he counterfeit
cd the knocking At a door. OAe person called,
from within' and was answered bya person from
without, who was admitted, and we found, from
the conversation of the parties, that the latter
was IN pam, and DESTROYS of having tooth ex-
tracted The dialogue and AL the particulars Of
the operation that followed, would REQUIRE long
discourse, if were to attempt to describe them
to the reader The limitations the natural and
moduiated voice of the operator, encouraging.
soothing, and talking with his patient, the CON
fusion, terror, and apprehension Of the sufferer
the ina?ticulate noises produced by the chairs &
apparatus, upon the whole, constituted mass Of
SOUND, W''ich produced a strange, but comic eff
iect Loose observers would not have hesitated
to assert that they heard more than ons voice at
the time and though this certainly could not be
the case, and IT did not appear so to me, yet the
transitions were so instantaneous, without the
least pause between them, that the notion might
very easily be generated. The removal of the
screen satisfied the spectators that one performer
had effected the whole.
Inc actor then proceeded TO show us speci
mems OF his art as q mimic, and here the power
he had acquired over the muscles of his face was
fuil as strange as the modulations of his voice In
several instances, he caused the opposite muscles
to act differently from eech other; so that while
ons side of his face expressed mirth and laugh
ter, the Other side appeared to be weeping A
Dout eight or ten faces were shown to us in Sue
cessIoD as he came from behind the screen, which
together with the general habits and gait of the
individual, Totally altered him In one instance
he was tail, thin and melancholy and the instant
afterwards, with no greater interval Of time than
to pass round behind the screen, he appeared
Dioated with obesity and staggering with f,lness
ne same man another time exhibited his face
simple, unaffected, and void of character, and the
next moment, it was covered with wrinkles ex-
pressing siyness, mirth and within of different
descriptions How far this discipline may be ca
sy or difficult, know not, but ne certainly ap.
peared to me, to be far superior to the most prac.