The Hawaiian star. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu]) 1893-1912, 1896-03-09
PROGENY OF FREAKS.
SOME RESULTS OF RoMANces IN THE
SHOW BUSINESS.


and Their Three skin and Rome Sons.
An Old Museum and Side Show Man
ager Taps His Mcmory Tank.
According to Manager I. L. Sackott
Of the Bijou theater, Isaac W. Sprague
was the first unnaturally or abnormally
thin skin and bones man to be exhibit
cd to the public under the title OF a
Giving skeleton. It was during the
palmy days of Barnum's Greatest Show
ON Earth, and while that celebrated
Snowman was raking the continents in
search Of curiosities in 1864. Incident
ally Mr.. Sackett was in those days with
Tony Pastor. Mr.. Sackett was acting as
doortender, manager and all around
man for Pastor. He had previously been
out with Mile Christine, the two
headed girl, and had an eye out for
freaks When the Tony Pastor show
reached Florida, Stone e. Murray's cir
Gus came there. The old inhabitants
will remember Stone & Murray's show.
1t was contemporaneous with Dan
Rice's, Thayer 81 Noyes' and afterward
with the John Robinson circus. With
Stone & Murray was Isaac W. Sprague,
the living skeleton. Mr.. Sprague had
been discovered by Barnum in Massa-
chusetts. He was the first living skele-
ton on record since the discovery of the
world by Adam. And Sprague was q
real living skeleton too. He was moth
ing but skin and bones, yet he was
healthy aud jolly.
In 1865 Barnum collected several Gu.
riosities, including Sprague, and sent
them for tour of the world. Sprague
was the big card. Next to him was u
skeleton woman, nearly as attenuated
as Sprague, whose name has escaped
the wonderful memory of Snowman
Sackett. Among the other freaks with
which Barnum expected to and did as
tonish the world was Joyce Heth, the
colored woman he picked up in the
south, supposed to be 1875 years old; the
"woolly horse" and Annie Swan, the
first giantess ever ON exhibition.
Sprague, on the steamer going over
to London, fell desperately in love with
the skeleton woman. She returned his
affection, and, according to Manager
|
sight for the sentimental to observe
the billing and cooling of these attenuat
ed specimens of Pharaoh's "lean kline '
The outre love affair gave Barnum {
business hint, which he was not slow tC
take advantage Of. On their arrival il
dear old "Lunnon" the Snowman adver
tised and heralded the astounding fac
far and wide that on a certain day ther'
could be seen at st. James hall (wher'
, they were showing) something that thu
world had never before witnessed, name
ly, the marriage of two living, breath
ing skeletons. He also announced tn
fact that never before in the annals o
e show business had such thing as tn
wedding Of freaks been performed II
public. This was fact too
Of the enthusiastic crowds which sucl
a unique announcement drew, or th
interesting conduct of the living skele
tons, welded in the presence of las
sembled thousands" Manager Sacket
is silent But he tells Of fact, how
ever, which is of such interest that
was recorded in medical works, bu
i never before has seen the light Of news
4 paper publication. That was that
r year after the marriage of the skeleton
i the wife bore child which also was
i "living skeleton.
q Stranger still to relate-but Sacket
4 stakes his fortune on the truth of it
]! two other children were also born t
\ Mr.. and Mrs. Sprague, and they wer
d also Of the skeleton mold. For man
X years afterward the parents travele
d with their unnaturally thin offspring
n and added to the stock Of the world
d establishment, including both crowne
f. heads and those that were bald. Th
d original Sprague and his wife are dead
= !, but the three skeleton children, no.
d young men, are showing about the cour
r. try, healthy, happy and rich.
ri This is the only case or succession {
u cases in medical annals where fatht
u and mother transmitted the disease {
r. wasting atropby to their offspring.
n Mr.. Sackett also tells of another weir
Y case that came under his observation
II his peregrinating show days. Maj
r. Burnell, celebrated Snowman of Il
N sixties, found a pair Of freak twins
Y the south, the offspring Of colored pc
II pie. One of the twins, boy, was blac
r. as Kongo stock. The other, a girl, WI
II a pure albino. The major engaged IL
twins for his show and exhibited the
for years The albino girl grew up III
married an albino in the west. II
offspring Of the marriage was baby
black as the ace Of spades. OF cour
this enhanced the showing price
Charley and his albino wife, and Maj
Burnell increased their salaries accor
ingly.
d. X. Prescott was the discoverer
the far famed Sleeping Beauty, who
he found in Tennessee in the sixties. I
brought her to st. Louis. She was
young girl Of surprising beauty, wi
but one fault discoverable. She sic
nine tenths Of the time She was t
greatest puzzle the medical men hi
ever seen. 1t was one Of these latt
who deprived her mother Of fortul
and Prescott of one of his most popul
curiosities. The young doctor was IL
alone in the showroom one day viii
the beauty was sleeping as usual. 3
curiosity prompted him to take out
lancet and puncture her arm. The bio
started out and the beauty awoke wi
a scream. Her mother rushed In frc
an adjoining room. Seeing the bio
flowing from her daughters arm, 8
tainted away. This ended the showi
Of the Sleeping Beauty. Her moth
took her home, and she never slept
public any more. Buffalo Courier.
A.. IT..