The silver state. [volume] (Unionville, Nev.) 1870-1903, 1886-10-21
A STRANGE FAMILY.
SOuethfng TO which Barnum should
Turn EEfs Attention.
Trims 8 OF India

Trims OF India
On Sunday night, April -llth, the
Mandalay hairy family, which has long
been famous in Burmese history, arrived at
Bombay from Calcutta. They left Man
daay on January 10th, and had passed
the whole OF their time in the interval 10
Calcutta, where they had been seen by
Lord and Lady Dutferin, Sir Frederick
Roberts, as well as by large numbers OF
residents there. The present members
Of the family, who have never before
been out OF Burmab, consist OF three
Maphoon, aged sixty-three, and her son,
No. po-sin, aged twenty nine. form the
curiosities of the show. > The third ls an
ordinary Burmese woman, who was at
one time maid of honor to the Queen OF
Burmah. The old lady, who is seated on
an improvised platform, rarely makes any
movement beyond flaming herself, is
quite blind, and, with the exception OF
her hands and feet, is more or less
covered with long hair as soft as silk.
She is not at all repulsive in appearance,
while her voice is particularly soft and
sweet. Her son, who IS OF medium
height, is by no means averse to close
inspection. His skin is pale brown, and
the whole Of his face is, similarly to his
mothers, even to the drums Of his ears,
covered with soft hair, while on his body,
arms and legs, there is an abundance OF
a silky coating. in places it is as much as
five inches long, but it is not, however,
anything like as thick in growth as the
hair on his face. This is the fourth
generation Of the family known to history,
and the exhibitor relates that each gener-
alton has been seven in number, three Of
each being hairy, and the other four dis
playing no extraordinary phenomena.
Colonel Yule, when on mission to the
Court OF Ava in September, 1855, was
shown the old lady who is now to be
seen, and his account of her is given
below. The description Of the lady
applies exactly TO her present condition,
| as well as to that of her son;
September lSth-To-day we had a
singular visitor at the kesidency. This
was Maphoon. the daughter OF Shwe-
msong, the 'Homo-hlfsutus. described
| and depicted in Crswford's narrative.
where a portrait Of her, as young child,
also appears. Not expecting such a
visitor, one started and exclaimed in
| voluntary as there entered what at first
| sight seemed an absolute realization in
| fissh OF the dog g-hepded Anubis. The
whole of Maphoon's face was more or less
covered with hair On part Of the
cheek and between the nose and the
mouth this was confined to thick silky
hair OF brown color. paling about the
nose and chin, four or five inches long.
! At the alae Of the nose. under the eye,
and on the cheekbone, this was very
fully developed, but it was in and on the
| ear that it was most extraordinary. Ex-
cept the extreme upper tip, no part of
| the ear was visible; all the rest was filed
and veiled by large mass OF silky hair,
growing apparently out of every part of
the external organ, and hanging in a
dependant lock of eight or ten inches.
The nose, density covered with hair as no
animals is that know of, and with long
fine locks curving out and pendent like
the wisps of fine Skye terriers coat,
bad = most strange appearance. The
beard was pale in color, and about four
inches in length, seemingly very soft and
| o.tL