The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1901-12-03
CAUGHT TURNIP ON FORK.
Johan Bedini Makes Catch That
Startles Ball Players.
lChiCagO Inter OCe:


JOhan Bedini of London, England.
holding an ordinary carving fork in
his mouth, caught a turnip hurled
from the summit of the nineteen-stOry
Masonic temple yesterday. impaling
the vegetable squarely upon the tines
Of the fork, and thereby upsetting all
the old ideas of graYitatiOn and the
force of falling bodies.
An immense crowd watched the feat,
which took place st 12:45 o'clock on
the State street side of the building.
cars were blocked, and a squad Of
police worked hard to keep back the
people. Bediui, a tall, well-knit Lon
doner, p years Old, stood watching the
building without the least sign of
nervousness. while his official turnip-
hurled, Arthur Shaw, was going up
an elevator shaft Shaw poked his
head out of the tiny window under the
highest angle of the roof. at the south
west corner Of the. building. The crowd
cheered and brisk betting was begun
as to BedinTs chance Of further ex-
istence after the turnip should encoun-
ter his face. Bedini donned head
dress like that Of a cannibal king. with
a spike on top. and then put the fork,
a wooden handled affair about a foot
long, between his teeth. Then he
sauntered calmly up under the lee Of
the building.
The first tuTnip. wrapped in white
yarn to keep it from going to pieces
as it fell, came rushing down. and the
wind veered ii from its course. Bedini
rushed into the crowd. but could not
get near the turnip before it buried
itself in a startled citizen. The Briton
got ready again, and down came an
other turnip. Bedini hustled through
the press, but was only in time to
take the shock on the spike which
crowned his head. It was an awful
blow and the Englishman staggered
for several seconds. As soon as he
was able to navigate he called for an
other turnip, and ii came, whizzing
fairly, straight and going like a
sledgehammer dropped off a mountain.
Bedinl danced under, judged the fall
10 dot. thrust out the fork and took
the terrible shock uniiinchingly. His
lips bled and he went tumbling back
ward, but he chung to the fork with
set teeth, and there on the tines of
the fork was the turnip snugly nailed
The Londoner was given a tremend-
Gus ovation by the crowd and sundry
scientific gentlemen went forth. aver
ring that the laws of nature had been
edge Of the throng crept away. crossed
himself and groaning that the devil
had indeed arrived
q (. g
Aside from a natural sense of ia
ugue after getting the whack on the
head and on the teeth. Bedini was none
the worse. His fork-handle was split.
bitten almost in two.
Il have only repeated a feat I learned
in England" said Bedini. modestly.
after il was all over. Five years ago.
when l was practicing the ordinary
juggling trick Of catching vegetables
thrown from the gallery, [ formed the
impression that I could puzzle a few
people by such tricks as the one
have just done. / began with small
buildings and increased the distance
day by day. Long fall today. you
say? I give you my word that I have
caught a turnip thrown from the
Brighton tower in England, 500 feet
high. 1t is my intention to catch one
from the Paris Eiffel tower, and I'll
do it or go home in sections"
Half dozen professional ballplay-
ers said last night that the feat was
the greatest they had ever heard of.