The Columbia herald. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 18??-1935, 1903-03-27
"RASHI, The
WILD MAN. "
Two Columbia Boys Start Out to
WIN Fortune With the
"Strangest Creature Alive. .

The strangest creature ever known
half babOou, half man Eats nothing
but meat ana DRINKS nothing but
blood. Hear him growl Hear him
gTowll Don't fail to see RASH, the
wild man." etc Such Is only part
of the blood cur ling spiel" that il
flowing today down in Birmingham
from the fluent tongue of George
Hodge, of Columbia. rs he stards with
lofty mien and air sedate. upon a stand
in front of tent where the wild
man. is incarcerated. at the same
time furnishing walking cane, his
high derby hat set lust little on
one side of his head aud his keen
CUTLER like eye following the drift of
the crowds as they surge mp and down
the Midway at the Carnival now hold
ing forth In the "MagIc City. As
the crowd bears more closely in his
direction the full baritone voice of
Hodge rings out again: Don't fail to
see hlm-the greatest wonder of the
age-Rashl. the wild man. " Then as
he sees ne has caught the crowds Tar,
the spiel continues 'Rashi was
captured on the island of Martinique,
near the ill fated city of st. Pierre.
He made his nome on high mountain
for years he had been seen by the
people in the villages below, to whom
he was known as Rash1, the wild man
of the crags. For years his very name
had struck terror to the hearts of the
sun burnt youths of the villages, and
mothers used him to threaten OBJ
streperous children into obedience, to
Whom .he was far more terrifying than
Satan himself. Even the bravest were
struck with an awe akin to fear at the
mere mention OF his name, and not
even the stoutest hearts had ever dared
to venture forth in an effort to cap
ture him.
Finally came the great eruption of
the Mont Peles volcano, which wiped
the city of st. Pierre from the face of
the earth. and destroyed 81, 600 souls in
the twinkling of an eye. The subter-
ranean thunders and quaking OF tbs
mountains around, which shook like
tae branches of the trees before mighty
gale. drove Rashi from his mountain
home down into the village below,
where he was captured by party of
American naval officers from the
American ship which was dispatched
by President Roosevelt to the scene OF
the volcanic disaster. to carry supplies
10 the starving people of the island.
He was placed in irons ana chained on
board the ship and taken to New York
City aud there placed in Bellevue Hospi-
tai where he was examined by num-
Der of the most eminent physicians and
anthropologists of the city, who were
baffied in their attempt to
explain the existence of this most
man beast, ETC.. ad in
initum. This Is only a part of the
spell which Hodge will perpetrate.
Ssh! Tread softly and speak low
'Rashi, the wild man, is none other
han "Cagey' Young, the half wit
negro who has lived here in Columbia
Ill his life. Lately. George Hodge and
Paul Wilkins. two Columbia boys,
the idea of putting "Cagey'
IN exhibit ion as wild man in car
rival company. They accordingly
,losed contract with 'Cagey's'
guardians left and Tuesday morning
or Birmingham to JOIN carnival
how with their attraction "Cagey
s really freak on his own merits. !
lie looks more like beast than a
nau, ana one or two local physi clans |
# prominence who have examined
lin say he has the exact jaw bone OF |
baboon. He is remarkable speller |
nd can spell most any word that
s put to him. THIS will be used
y Hodge to good effect if "Cagey'
insists on becoming too loquaclous
While ON exhibition. In which case.
lodges 'speil'' will take this sort OF
urn: Another thing that completely
puzzled the physicians of New York on
heir examination of this remarkable
reature, ladies and gentlemen, was
he strange and unheard of facility
With which he acquired the art OF
peaking. He learned to talk in the
hort space of one week, using all the
words ne employed in his sentences
n their proper places and with their
roper meaning. With an equal and
n unaccountable facility he learned to
pell and is now MS good speller as
nyone, perhaps, in this audience. AS
n instance. any person In the audience
nay now select the most difficult word
q his vocabulary and ask RASH to
pell it and he will do So. ETC.,
gain.
"Cagey' Will be exhibited in
mall tent in which he will be heavily
named to large post driven far into
he ground.
This is only In part running &C.
cunt of this exhibition. Success to
he boys Old Barnum said the
merlcan people liked to be humbug-
ed, and he mace fortune out OF
ding it, so why not Columbia's en-
erprising young showmen alsor
The show is financed by Ashby Will
ins.