The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1897-05-15
THE city FARES POORLY
GETS 50 AS ITS SHARE OF THE FAKE
HYPNOTIC EXHIBITION,
Yet It Costs Much More than that to
Open TOm1inson HaII-A Hin
doc" Exposed.

nav 0~ P1OIANs q
part of whom were admitted on compli-
mentary tickets, went to Tomlinson Hall
last night to see the first show given there
with the city as a partner in the enterprise.
1t was a 10-20-and-30-cent affair. and the
average admission rot over 20 cents. A
hundred paid admissions probably netted
the magnificent sum of $40. to be divided
between the travelling alleged spiritualist
and hypnotist and the city. The city's part
is 45 per cent, according to the contract
made with Manager McAIullen by Board-ot-
Works Parker. Forty-fye per cent. of 800
is SO, the share of the proceeds which the
city will probably get out of it's investment
in the show business. As it costs about $50
to open the hall and furnish light for a sin
gle evening, it will be seen that Mr.. Par
ker's Tomlinson Hall deal this time is no
more successful than that of about a year
ago, dating from the May music festival,
when he obtained admission by a private
key to a back door, and afterwards settled
with the management.
The exhibition which the people saw was
the worst of the kind ever presented in the
city. Ala Joboe advertised himself as a
Hindoo, expecting to draw an audience on.
the strength of the progress the Hindoos
are said to have made in magic and spirit
ualism. After the performance a party of
gentlemen asked Mr.. McMullen if Joboe
was really a Hindoo, and was assured that
such was the case. The d~ark-skinned fell
low himself declared that he was a native
of Calcutta, in which place he resided until
he was a full-grown man.
Why" he said, Il could prove in a min
ute that 1 am a Hindoo if any of you all
could understand Hindoostanee. That is
the best test, but l could prove it by per-
sons who knew me in Calcutta if they were
here"
After the two had gone so far thai they
could not retreat from the statement that
Joboe was a Hindoo, Hector Fuller, a re-
porter, asked the dark-skinned fellow a
simple question in the Hindoostanee Ian
guage. The fellow stared at him HELPLESS
ly and said he did not think Mr.. Fuller was
speaking Hindoostanee. Mr.. Fuller had
demonstrated before a hundred or more
people his ability to speak the language a
year or two ago., when a circus rough a
congress of nations here. Mr.. Fuller
held a long conversation with a Hindoo
family, and a number of persons saw it and
heard it. Joboe was asked many simple
questions, such as What is your name?'
Where are you from?, etc, but to all he
gave only the blankest look.
Speak slower" the black fellow said, Il
may be able to catch it."
cd BHt it not was 1nd no use, The native H Hi (.
nounced.
The show consisted Of three parts. A
woman first gave a cabinet exhibition, do
ing all those thread-worn tricks which
fake spiritualists perform. Joboe then did
prestidigitator does to, amuse children. His
best trick was the turning of water to
i tWine' by dropping a tablet containing
then got into the cabinet himself and had
his hands tied to a post. Then there were
several demonstrations from within. The
woman who worked fha curtain nul1ad IL
back too soon on one occasion and the trick
was exposed. The fellow had the string
the post. The audience saw him putting
his hands back, in place after the spirits
had put a bushel basket over Berne Cohen's
head. He had pulled out the nail from the
split in the post made to receive it. 1t was
the %thinnest frost ever seen, and the peo-
pie crowded around the stage and threat
ened to break up the show.
The hasco closed with a failure at hyp-
notism. Several boys and young men went
upon the stage, but the dark-skinned fellow
was able to apparently hypnotic but one,
a young man by the name Of Doolittle.
on an agreement that he be paid $40. He
was hypnotized and placed in the window
of Navin's drug store, across the street,
During the pitiful and disgusting effort of
Joboe to hypnotic the boys on the stage
the most of the 12S people left the hall.
Those who remained Kissed and jeered.
When he was getting Doolittle ready for
his long sleep they all rushed upon the
old6C cNll CIONNeA dIOulu DIS IlGY WOul0
crowd about a street fakir.
Several of the young men who went on
the stage say they were met on the street
by a man who told them to come to the
meeting and be hypnotized and they would
be paid 81 apiece. Doolittle told Cohen that
he Doolittle) was to receive $3.50 to pre-
tend that he was hypnotized and $40 if he
stayed in the drug store all night and to-
day and pretended to be asleep.
The managers of the Girls Industrial
School are highly indignant at Clerk Par
ker'S brilliant hnanciering scheme with the
Hindoo, for it compels them to abandon
their Saturday afternoon school at the hall
to-day. There are S4 pupils and $50 teach
ers, and they will be scattered about the
courthouse this afternoon, while the city
will try to make another dollar or two
with the "hypnotist."
AT 1890 o'clock this morning Charles Doc
little, the young man who was hypnotized
and placed in Navin's drug store, awoke,
The watchers telephoned for the 'Hindoo''
and he arrived just as Doolittle was
stretching himself. The young man refused
to be placed under the influence again and
started to walk to his home on Alvord
street. He told a crowd of persons who
gathered about him that he had been fired
with the promise of So to go to Tomlinson
Hall and pretend to be hypnotized. IF he
failed to hypnotize me l was to pretend
that 1 was hypnotized, he said. II did not
contract to be laid out for a sleep in the
window IF n dr1ir storot