The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1877-03-10
DWarfs.

shall offer sacrifices at the altar.
The Romans, especially the ladies of
ton, kept house full of them. Julia,
the daughter of the Emperor Augustus,
had one named CanOpas, who was only
two feet high, and another named An
dromeda. Her father liked them if they
were good looking, so different from the
Spanish court, where they only harbored
them as they were hideously deformed,
hump backed and ugly. For there are
pictures by both Raphael and Velasquez
of court scenes in which their hideous
features form some part of the fore
ground. Peter the Great once made a
great performance of dwarf marriage,
undoubtedly with view of encouraging
others to make the venture. 1t was in
1910, and Peter proclaimed the banns
many months before all over the Kingdom,
and peremptorily ordered all dwarfs
within two hundred miles of the capital
to be present. He even sent carriages
after them and brought many by main
force. An elegant banquet was spread
for them, the tiniest little dishes, tables
and chairs, resembling more a modern
dolls tea party than anything else.
Those that came late were made to wait
on the rest, and many were the bicker-
ings they had among themselves as to
who should sit first, and where, but the
grand time was when the ball came. The
bride and groom led off, each being
three feet two inches high.
Charles the First gave away the bride
to the court dwarf, William Gibson, and
the Queen presented her with diamond
ring, on which occasion Waller, court
poet, wrote some verses. In fact Charles
seemed fond of dwarfs and had many at
his court, with whom he played all sorts
Of pranks. On one occasion at court
banquet he had one served up in cold
pie, out of which he jumped at the
proper time, all armed and accoutered
with rapier and tiny helmet. The
King, in a merry mood, conferred the
order of knighthood on him.
Literature has not much to do with
dwarfs. Byron often mentions them in
his Eastern descriptions, but his opinion
of them was low, for he says:
Her stature tall hate a dumpy woman.
Scott makes one who was hideous and
an outeast in Scotland heroine in one
of his Waverley Novels, and Isaac New
tons mother used to say that when he
was baby she put him in quart cup.
Philetus, a Greek philosopher, is spoken
of as being SO small that he carried
stones in his pocket to keep from blow
ing away. The pigmies of fabulous
days who fought with cranes and built
houses with their egg-shells are perhaps
akin to the very diminutive creatures Du
Challlu and Stanley describe. In the
Guardian mention is made of little
mems club, to which Tim Tuck and Tom
Tiptoe, a dapper little fellow, as gallant
lover as ever wooed or won fair lady,
belonged. Among some curious old ad-
vertisemeats of dwarfs we select the
following:
"This is to give notice to all gentle
men, ladies and others, admirers of Gu
riosities, that there is lately arrived from
France man six-and-forty years old, one
foot nine inches high, yet fathoms six
foot five inches with his arms. He
walks natural upon his hands, raising
his body one foot four inches off the
ground, jumps upon table near three
feet high with one hand, and leaps off
without making use of anything but his
hands, or letting his body touch the
ground. He shows some part of mill
tary exercise upon his hands as well as
if he stood upon his legs. He will 90 to
any gentleman's house if required. He
has had the honor to be shown before the
court of France, His Royal Highness the
Prince of Wales, the Princess and the
most of the nobility and gentry"
Probably the most remarkably dwarf
ever known was Count Boruwlaski, who
was born in Poland in 1879, who was
raised by the Countess de Tarnow, and
finally presented to Maria Theresa, the
Queen of Austria, and mother of Marie
Antoinette. The Queen, on his presenta-
ton, took him up in her lap and asked
him what he saw in Vienna that most
excited his admiration and wonder. With
he replied; What now beholdw and
what is that?" said the Queen. "To see
so little man sitting in the lap of so
great a woman" replied Boruwlaski
The Empress wore ring on which was
her cipher in diamonds. His hand being
in hers, she asked him whether the
cipher was pretty. He replied: 81 beg
your Majesty's pardon, am not looking
at the ring, but on your Majesty's beau
tiful hand, which beseech your permits
sion TO kiss" at the same time raising it
to his lips. This was too much for the
Queen, whose flattered vanity must
needs make some return; SO she called
up Marie Antoinette, then little girl,
and took handsome diamond off her
finger and gave the Count. The Count
spoke German and French fluently, I'M
derstood arithmetic and could read and
write we'll. While at Munich rival
dwarf in size, Bebe by name, became
furiously jealous of the attentions be-
slowed on him, and tried one day to
push him into the fire, but timely inter-
ference being at hand his life was saved
He afterward visited England, where he
amassed quite fortune by giving con-
certs and exhibitions. He lived to the
advanced age of ninety-eight years. He
had wife and one child. He was thir-
ty-five inches high, and died Sept. 5,
1887, in Durham, England.
Were we to select nation where
dwarfs are most common it would be
Russia. There they are made much of,
and travellers relate that in Sweden, Lap
land, Norway, Russia and Finland there