The Daily times. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1886-1889, 1888-08-17

man-In the Mermaid shop--The Max
ing of Moassrositie,.
Il was our old friend the sbowmsn--tbe
only survivor Of A. Ward. ESQ. truthful
e. the needle to the pole. He il a oueer
duck. is this friend of ours. the old show
man, with rare eye for seeing the curi.
Gus and unique. with . strong fancy with
cosmopolitan instinct and with sense
Of the charm Of successful humbnccery
He believes with the idol of the Show
world-the venerable sage of Bridgeport
that the public likes to be humbugged.
A good, square, snap side show attracts
him - drop Of sugar attracts flies. He
IL never 80 happy O. when. with his shiny
tall hat on the back of his head and with
his keen eyes dancing in the excitement
OF the hour ne Is aloft on the box
OF the side show In front of the circle
Of pictures Of the Circassian woman. and
the fat woman and the line of freaks orat.
ing crowd of believers on the wonders
Of his show inside the canvas.
THE sHowMAN's EXPERIENCE.
II he has leisure he visits the resorts of
the shady side Of life, not from a sense of
depravity but for study of the curious
He has walked miles of railroad ties in the
current Of hard luck, when. with his va
RED talents, he might have been ENJOYING
the delights Of q beautiful home. He has
done everything from Richard iii" in a
troupe Of the barn storming "profesl" to
turning the hand organ at the feet of a
mermaid stuffed with sawdust. When
the reporter saw him he was off duty. eve.
ing with critical keeuness the people OH
the circus grounds.
THE Snowman" quoth he. "rises carly
and retires late. know him. know
all about him. He puts all his nerve.
strength. vigor and brains into the bust
ness. The Snowman is usually a show
man because he couldn't be anything else
II he had every opportunity in the world
He'd rather be Snowman and have to 90
to bed while his only shirt was being
washed than be bank cashier rolling in
somebody else's millions.
i've been to the city," continued our
friend, a. he sat ON q property box and
looked at the sky I've taken in most
Of the things in which I'm interested. and
you know what they are. Lots of them
IRE the old chestnuts, but lots of them
were not. l visited an old friend of mine |
On the Bowery, and some old acouaint |
lnces In Philadelphia. There is certain
Free Masonry IN the profession that helps
Fellow ont In foreign lands, such as the
Bowery. When was in the latter place
called on friend, one morning, and he
!ays let's 60 up to the mermaid shop.
You remember that mermaid of mine,
iont you? Ha! Hal WE'LL that was a
rood one--the cheapest and best mermaid
lver shown In this state, but it wouldn't
10 to have carried it outside. A line of
tovepipe and canvas skin won't work
outside of the cross roads.
Nell, we went up to the mermaid shop.
called 1t the fake factory. It's good
me-"
TO on, was the reporters suggestion
MANUFACTURE OF FREAKS
We'll, sir, since I'm talking on the
AXE, did You know that the finest artist
D the world In the manufacture of freaks
nd curiosities is an Alaskan? It's fact
was surprised myself, for always sup
osed that he wonld be Yankee, He
'as away when we called, but his assistant
Ias there They were making Egyptian
lummies that day, a full line of them for
museum In Paris. They are made of
laster of paris and boiled in tobacco
lice. and they arc summers when they
70 done. It Is curious yarn how the
,porters got on to his place. He occu-
les place under the roof and dries his
on the fat roof in the SUM- The {
evated railroad pushes along over the
ty here, and some travellers by the morn
e train saw curious sight out on one
the roofs. II looked like collection S
dead bodies, drying In the sun. and a a
Of hideous monstrosities c
I'd blood curdling freaks of nature. OF c
'urse somebody investigated it, and as a u
sult the birthplace Of the freak was v
und O
II wish could give you that Alaskans b
lme, but can't. It's sumner in length, +
ID he Is an artist of as distinguished
Tents as his name is long. He made the
nn OK that struck the professors of anat-
ny everywhere He drew the skin over il
% ribs so adroitly that there seemed to p
absolutely no fault in it, and it puz- ST
ed the scientists as we'll as the common Il
ople. There are two or three other t,
esk makers In the Bowery that we N
He'd on, but there are no others that APP al
zach this fellow. A mermaid is moth
z at all for him. He can draw chickens
In over the skeleton as handily as you d.
aw on your glove, and no man can swear b,
ut Il IL artificial" 70
Are none Of these freaks genuineY'
Mighty few that know nything about
} very genuine. Most of this man OK,
man 'horse, mermaid, sea serpent, o.,
'yptian mummy, royal anatomical ~
Irine museum stuff is manufactured :"
course there are some freaks of nature =,
the way Of monstrosities that are gen 81
10. The India rubber man Is freak of ~
ture, and / was In to see the centaur of ." u"
nan horse st the diue museum. That's W.
luine II you like It, It's Q coon with IN IN
J legs twisted out Of shape. The poor o'
70 was marked In birth and can't walk
right-%a dead give away of fake that
It excite any particular interest. Aus
lian children are idiots. Circassian an
men can be made with ease and celebrity.
lrded women can be found anywhere. Cso
y e06ntfy Is full of Albinos, and if it
~ not they can be manufactured to it
AZ