New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1880-05-02
sAorL MOST F1Nors OF RopEDANCERs.
From The raj Nall GaselLe.

A'"''
Tho most famous TUpe-daEcCr Of recent times
was undoubtedly Nine. Saqui. and her long ca.
rrcr world seem to show that Vt the practice OF
r0pp-dancing brings s0mn of its professors to sud-
den end, II must In itself be FAR from unhealthy we
may fairly infer that In her case 1t was conducive to
longevity; for she had already male ller reputation
at the end of tho eighteenth century, and was still
dancing less than twenty years ago. whch sue had
attained the age of scyentysiA. AccOIdlng 10 some
authorities Mmo. Saqul was born OF French pa
rents. Her father. Jean Baptisto lalanne, was NM
self distinguished acrobat, end ho introduced MS
daughter to the public at very early age ~ eto
the part OF Geneyi0Yos child he,ng cOnlldeu 10 the
dGbntAnte. L. WINS rs q dancer on tho ordinary
boards chat the youthful Saqnl ihnue ner Hr ~
appearance in public but sho soon asDired 10
higher things, and aflor the troupe OF The RTandeS
dallsrIScs du Toi had been broken up ut the time
Of the Revolution, she took regular co4Iss Oh ies
sons IN ropc-dancng from friend Of tho family,
who OWNED the bent Of her genius. Inc counsellor
and instructor who discovered and tostered her
talent Tor balancing herself on tle uRht-Iope was
or had been, u medical student who, 10 escape lne
tedionsness of lectures, had Turned acrobat aGs IT
was through hls earnest representations that tilo
parents of tho future experimenting celebrity were
prevailed upon TO allow their daughter To qult the
REGULAR stage for less dignfrd arena.
The Ohlld praCtsed with nrdOT, AMI was soon nOle
to maintain herself firm and erect upon tho rope
without the assistance of the balancing pole. Tier
d6aut was attendedwit the most Drlilant success
aud for upward of bali u century TINS puma uonpn
OF the dancing art travelled from capital TO capital
appIaudcd and fetcd wherever she performed
There was no town in France. nocountry IN Eurqpc3
a theatre Of her own Mt Paris. The Emperor NapO-
leon, who appreciated her talent and was person
ally much pleased with her. named her : lIrst aero
bal Of France"--a title which so pleased her thht
She had il inscribed on tho wagon containing her
costumes and apparatus by which her travelling
coach was followed. Napoleon used to engage her
for all public 70 es and frequently Invited her 10
perfnIln ut his own private entertainmenfs. she
was tho spoiled child, moreover, OF all the princes
and dukes all the marshals and generals OF the Enl-
nirei and she was as great ayOrlto with tho pe0-
pie as with the members OF the Imperial Court. NO
Italian singer, even In our own day, enloyeu sucn
nnnnlnrily as fell To the lot OF Mime. SaQul.
For IL time her star seoms to have faded or por-
hans sho retired Oh the immense sums Of money
Which her D .rformances had brought her in. How
ever that may have been, circumstance iOrceu ner
in 1851 to reappear. when she made t9nrln SPAN,
In Algeria and IN the principal towns OF France. IN
1852 she went TO Paris and gave series OF per
formances at the HippodrOme. The next year she
made sensational ascent of the tght-r0pe III inc
CLAMP do Mars; and the llippodrome was the
scene of final performance glvOn for her beneht IN
1861, when, at the ago of sevcnty-six, sho vent
through series of funambulistiC exercises and ran"
tasias which few, If any, of her rivals could have
cquallod. Some four years aiterward, when she had
already completed her cghtieth year, this llghtest
aud most aerial of bGNeriHe died.