The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-08-02
MANUFACTURING FREAKS.
An Old Shown IN Gives the Snap
Away and Tells About the Fakes.
From the Ne,o York Graphic.

unoue, with q strong fancy, with a coSmo-
Tohfan instinct and with sense OF the
charm of successful humbuggery. He be-
hayes with the idol of the show world-the
venerable sage OF Bridgeport-th tue pub
lie likes to be humbugged. A good, square,
snap side show attracts him as Il drop OF Su-
gar attracts flies. He is never so happy as
When, with his shiny tall hat on the back of
nj, head, and with his keen eyes dancing in
the excitement of the hour, he is aloft on the
hox of the side show in front of the circle of
lectures of the Circassan woman, and the
IN woman and the line of freaks, Grating
rrowd of believers on the wonders of his
show inside the canvas.
II he has leisure he visits the resorts of
the shady side OF life, not from sense of
ranrayitv but for study of the curious He
has walked miles Of railroad ties in the cur
rant of hard luck, when, with his varied tai
snts. he might have been enjoying the de-
Lqhts of a beautiful home. He has done
rverything from Richard Ill" in troupe
nj the transforming "profesh,n to turning
the hand organ at the feet of a mermaid
suited with sawdust When the reporter
Jaw him Saturday he was off duty,
eyeing with critical keenness the people on
the circus grounds.
"The Snowman" quoth he, ''rises early
md retlres late. know him. know all
uuout him lie puts all his nerve, strength,
vigor and brains into the business. The
snowman is usually Snowman because he
c,uldn't be anything else if he had every
opportunity in the word. He'd rather be
n Snowman and have to 90 to ted while his
on!v shirt was being washed than be bank
cashier rolling in SOM body else's millions.
I've been to the city," continued our
friend, as ne sat on a property-box and
looked at the sky. "pVe taken IN most of
the things in which I'm interested. and you
know what they are. Lots of them are the
old chestnuts, but lots of them were not. |
visited an old friend of mine ON the Bowery
and some old acquaintance in Philadelphia
There Is a certain Free Masonry in the pro
tession that helps a fellow out i'll foreign
la9ds, such as the Bowery. While was in
the latter place | called on friend, one
morning, and he says let's so up to the mer-
maid shop. You remember thai mermaid OF
mine, don't you2 Ha! Ha! Well! that
was good one-the cheapest and lest mer-
maid ever shown in the state, but it
wouldn't do to have carried it outside of
Maine A line of stovepipe and a canvas
skin won't work everywhere outside Of the
crossroads. Well, we went up to the mer-
maid shop l called it the fake-factory
It's q good one."
"Go on" was the reporters suggestion.
''Well sir, since I'm talking on the fake,
world in the manufacture of freaks and Gu
riosities is an Alaokans It's fact. | was
surprised myself, for / always supposed
that he would be a Yankee. He was away
when we called, but his assistant was there.
They were making Egyptian mummies
that day, full line of them for a mu-
scum in Paris They are made of plaster of
paris and boiled in tobacco juice, and they
are summers when they are done.
1t is a curious yarn how the re-
porters got on to his place He occupies
place under the roof and dries his curiosi-
ties on the fat rlof in the sun. The elevated
railroad pushes along over the city here, and
some travellers by tue morning train saw a
curious sight out on one OF the roofs. 1t
looked like a collection of dead bodies, dry
ing IN the sun, and congiomeratlon OF
hideous monstroSities and blOOd-curding
freaks OF nature. OF course somebody in
vestigated it, and as result The birthplace
of the freak was found.
III wish | could give you that Alaskan's
name, but can't. It's sumner in length,
and he is an artist of as distinguished talents
US his name is long. He made the man-ox
that struck the professors Of anatOnl
everywhere. He drew the skin over 10
ribs so adroitly that there seemed to be alb
sJlutely no fault in it, and it puzzled the
scientists as well as the common people.
There are two or three other freak makers
in the Bowery that we called on, but there
are no others that approach this fellow. He
is a iim-dandy. and no mistake. mer
maid is nothing at all for him. He can
draw a chickens skin over the SHELTON as
handily as you draw on your glove, and no
man can swear that it is artificial"
Are none of these freaks genlineP
Mighty few that ! know anything about
are very genuine. Most Of this man-ox,
man-horse, mermaid, sea serpent, Egyptian
mummy, royal anatomical marine museum
stuff is manufactured. OF course, there are
SINE freaks of nature in the way of mon
strosities that are genuine. The india rub
Der man is freak of nature, and was in to
see the centaur OF a man-horse at the dime
museum That's genuine, if you like it. It's
a coon with his legs twisted out of shape.
The cusS was marked in birth and can't
walk up.right-a dead give-sway of fake
that don't excite any particular interest.
Australian children are idiots, Circassian
women can be made with ease and celebrity.
Bearded women can be found anywhere.
The country is full of albinos, and If it
were not they can be manufactured to order
at any time.
do you remember that sea serpent that
we exhibited at the state fair year or two
agol 1t was 20 or 80 feet long, and was the
queereSt looking thing that | ever saw. IL
mad big chunks or bone on Jne Sue Oh IL,
and had a mouth big enough to take in
long boat. Well, this Alaskan made that.
How did he make it9 Blamed If know, He's
ahead Of me Oh that. 1t was good Job.
He made sea serpent lately for DIR. Dee,
and | ran across it at Exeter. One OF the
professors at Phillips academy went in aud
looked it over. He said he had doubts
about its being genuine.
"Hal Hal Well, don't blame him. had
my doubts, too, but they were based on
different foundation, the difference between
theory and fact, you zee. TIE doctor had
mighty good lecture to go with his museum.
lie had one or two mermaids, and one OF
item he considered articularly valuable
Specimen. He never failed i'll the course OF
his address to relate that this was positively
Tue only mermaid ever captured alive. he
said that she seemed to mourn for her home
at the bottom of the sea, and to continually
utter plaintive cries and sung in mourn
tul, heart-breaking key. Tney fed her
everything In the line of fresh fish. but she
plned away and die /, and tuus ended the
existence of the only mermaid ever cap
tured alive.
The doctor had a bang-up show on the
outside. His pictures were very gorgeous
ana true 10 fact. In front Of his mermaid
Ne had large patch of green grass and the
green waves curling up.
One day an old chap, with his town
meeting hat on the crown Of his head clear
U his eals, came up and looked at the mer-
maid rs she fluttered in canvas true to the
picture OF her home beneath the wave.
As he gnzed at her rapt in suspense and
Mt ella. tl.