The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-04-23
EEW
MANY QUEER PEOPLE
interesting Characters That
F1ourished in England
Over a Century Ago.
THIS is NOT THE ONLY AGE OF FREAKS
Curious Books Found in the
Library of Lawyer Samuel
Kalisch of Newark.
is NOT THE ONLY AGE OF FREAKS

ACllcCu VI NCNdl rs
A well informed mar must, as the
term implies, possess a wide knowledge
embracing all sorts of topics. But If he
really deserves to be called well inform
ed, he must first have learned that there
is nothing new under the sun, and that
restless humanity turns its mani
fold energies to today was done ages
ago by other people. The more well
informed a man becomes the more thor
oughly does he realize the force of this
truisln, and. in fact, all his life he will
be seeing it in new lights and in ever
varying degrees of significance. Mr..
Samuel Kalisch of this city, says the
Newark Sunday Call" who has a
large and valuable library, possesses,
together with numerous other literary
treasures, a genuine curiosity in the
shape of a book entitled Portraits,
Memoirs and Characters of Remarkable
Persons. From the Revolution of 1855
to the End of the Reign of George II.
Collected from the Most Authentic Ac-
counts Extant, BY James Caulfeld."
1t is in four volumes, c%uriously bound
in calf, with a f1aring gilt border along
the edges of the covers and with fooled
pictures ON each cover. These pictures
were made with a hot iron and the de-
sign was burned into the leather. The
scenes depicted are quite wonderful,
showing castles, trees, sheets of water,
rustic bridges, shady walks, etc. They
are both grotesque and amusing. These
volumes accent the ola adage concern
ing the non-existence of anything new
under the sun, for within their pages
one can find people of every sort, size
and condition to be met with today.
One appreciates the fact that-the day
Of freaks has been a long one, and that
they made a livelihood out of their
physical peculiarities centuries; before the
dime museum was dreamed of.
ANCIENT EUMBUG.
The coarsest commonplace attracted
the people then, as now, and when we
shake our heads sadly and bewail the de-
generacy of the times because, of the
avidity with which the community takes
up with one humbug or another, we
might well save ourselves the trouble.
The queer old books alluded to above
make this point particularly plain. and
as one scans their pages he finds him
self reading as it were the history Of
many of the persons lived who are COM
memorated in this Undertaking is, per-
haps, the most .eventful in the annals of
Observation-Disclosures witnessed the
ascent to the throne of two different
families in the short space of twenty
five years. Men whose daring enterprise
and deep cunning might, properly Gull
tivated and differently directed, lave
rendered them the brightest ornaments
Whitney, Jack Shepard or Turpin (com-
mon thieves), instead of the .igDominous
fate which attended them; might have
borough or a Wellington; and, like them,
have enioyed similar honors.''
Thus does the author make his excuses
collection of people. His explanation is
sound, Is every one who has made
even the most superficial study of hui
or character is recorded says the edi-
tor, but is accompanied by a portrait
of unquestioned authenticity" and this
the people ~delineated Were not of the
sort who had their pictures painted, and
there was no tintype man to fix them
cuts, however, are surprisingly well exc
cuted, and not a few Of them bear
every evidence of being careful copies
to produce a book containing SO many
pictures, early in the present century,
and the inference is that the popular
demand for such literature must have
much money.
DoDGED DEATH FOR IA YEARS.
volume of the queer book is that of a
man whose only claim to fame is thar
he be dodged tie tie fbingge n. Ct 6 palaia death asf fog
when he was 12 years of age. Hts name
was William Aldridge. William Atkins
was a gout doctor. It seems. something
reckoned among one Of the remarkable
characters of his day because he was
wonaf fhe EYES su ef psopIe n r Rul Wosld the s,5 woel
seem as if the editor must have been a
sufferer from the gout, for this IS what
to the human frame the govt No those
who are afflicted with i1 is the most
vexatious, painful and tormenting in the
complaint has more quacks to tamper
with and poison the constitution with
sovereign remedies than this. Among the
William Atkins. whose renovating elixir
restored pristine health to youth and
vigor, to the patent however, old or de-
libby cured imbecil.ty in men and bar
renness in women" This wonderful man
claimed to have raised a woman, who
to her feet in as good health as she had
eve enjoyed, SO that she walked imme-
diatelg. Re was a short, TAT man, with
always appeared to public gaze In a
three-ta.led white wig. nicely frizzed on
each cheek. He was Tepresentsd on his
bottle between his fingers, surrounded
with rotten teeth, nippers, packets and
ie ealls wee se 3 ct thirty d iasas
emit ingredients. 4saEs CAulfleld tsNzhatd
hope remained for the indsvtdaa1 assa.led
by SO many enemies unitedI1 is his ex-
Thomas Baskerville was what today
would be termed a plain. ordinary. every
in his bonnet. He got immense Sat,Sfac-