think “Hold ’Em” Joe Powers, of Chicago, who stayed on top of the
Morrison Hotel flag pole, 637 feet above Randolph Street, for 16 days,
2 hours and 35 minutes, is deserving of the crown of razzberries--or
whatever they give the winners of sitting contests.
Let me add a comment from a Chicago paper just to give you an idea of
fun at top-mast.
(Chicago Tribune Press Service)
Chicago, July 16.--“Hold ’Em” Joe Powers, a dusty, dirty, frazzly,
frowzy creature, came down from his flagpole.
Six teeth were gone; his legs were swollen; little needles of nerves
burned into the soles of his feet when he tried to walk; his hair was
snarled and matted; his beard was long; his face was black; his neck
was sunburned.
But life had its compensations.
Joe had the memory of a record sixteen days, two hours and thirty-odd
minutes on top of the flagpole which is on top of the roof which is
on top of the tower which is on top of the Morrison Hotel.
But no matter what you do, whether it is sitting on top of a flag pole
or on a tack there seems to be someone who has done you one better
at some time or other. Now Sitting Joe and “Shipwreck” Kelly to all
intents and purposes did some tall sitting; but I have seen better!
I saw a man who had been sitting on a bed of sharp spikes for 18 years.
(I have already told you about him on page 9.)
[Illustration: SIMON OF THE PILLAR]
And there was that man Savan. Savan’s sitting amounted to something.
He is the only sitter that I have ever heard of that had a practical
idea behind him--or I should say under him. Savan was a soldier in
Napoleon’s army in Egypt. He went AWOL or something. You know the women
out there all wear veils and maybe Savan got curious. The veil is the
great beauty secret of the Orient. The heavier the veil the greater the
beauty. I haven’t the same faith in Oriental beauty since I have been
out there. And particularly since I discovered that Cleopatra was fat
and black and 46 years old and married to her brother when she met Mark
Antony, who was 60 himself and wore a full set of whiskers. But as I
was saying, Savan was ordered to do K.P. work but demurred. Nap called
him in and asked him “Qu’est-ce que ça?”
“I am not able to work,” said Savan. “I am too weak to do anything more
than just sitting around.” So they took him at his word and gave him
just such a job. They fixed up a nest of hen’s eggs and placed Savan on
it--and kept him sitting there, mad as a wet hen, until he hatched 3
broods of chickens!
But a word about Simon. Here was a man who really could sit. They
called him Simon of the Pillar. Maybe he was a forefather of the
illustrious Simple Simon of nautical fame. But Simon could sit. He was
a Syrian ascetic who sat on top of a marble column in Alexandria for 69
years--without descending one time. Simon clambered up the column when
a young boy and remained seated on this narrow space of less than 3
feet in diameter until his death years later.
This man belonged to a school of “Pillar-Saints”--a class of ascetics
who sat atop various columns or rocks in the Near East, in the
expectation of catching the first glint of the second coming of Christ,
in the 5th and 6th centuries.
St. Simon the Elder, who is the subject of Tennyson’s “St. Simon
Stylites” (he spent 37 years sitting on top of a column) and St. Simon
the Younger who remained aloft for 69 years, are the two best known.
During my several trips to Egypt and Syria I saw many standing columns,
especially around Antioch, and they all bore some kind of a legend
about some such “Saint” or other, who sat atop them for various lengths
of time.
Food and drink were passed up to them, and the climate, as you know, is
very mild in the Near East.
_I refer you to the following books: “Die Säulen Heiligen im
Arabischen,” by Dr. Ignatz Weinzieher; “St. Simon Stylites,” by René
Aldoni; “Stylites or Pillar Saints,” by Herbert Thurston._
* * *
[Illustration]
TWO SCANDINAVIANS ROWED ACROSS THE ATLANTIC OCEAN
Just thirty years ago two Norwegians rowed--actually _rowed_--across
the Atlantic from New York. They made no great fuss about it. They were
in New York. The weather was fine. They reckoned that they would row
home and see how the old folks were getting on. Of course one ought to
have a good, reliable rowing-boat, not a second-hand craft, so, like
most wise cockleshell cruisers, they built her themselves, of well and
truly seasoned cedar-wood. Eighteen ft. long was she, clinker built,
with a 5-ft. beam and a depth inside of 35 in. _Fox_ was her name. She
dropped down the river from New York, on the outgoing tide, at five
o’clock on the afternoon of June 6, 1896.
For more than a month the life of the rowers was relatively uneventful.
The sun shone. The hills of swell went rolling majestically by. The
oars were steadily plied, shift after shift. One ate. One sang. One
slept.
Then things began to happen and their trip the rest of the way was a
nightmare. God was good to them, however, and eventually they made the
port of Havre where they landed sixty-two days after leaving New York.
By examining their log-book and talking with them, Dr. Chancellor, the
at first openly sceptical American consul at that port, ascertained
that this astounding feat had indeed been accomplished.
* * *
[Illustration]
WEDDED FOR 147 YEARS
All records for a long and happy wedded life belong to Janos Roven
and his good wife Sara. They lived together as man and wife for 147
years--and almost saw their third golden jubilee.
Janos and Sara were born in the little village of Stradova, Comitat
(County) Casanseber, Banat (Province) of Temesvar, Hungary; and they
both died there--Janos being 172 years old and Sara, 164.
The aged couple attracted considerable attention during the later
years of the wedlock, and the Dutch envoy in Vienna visited them and
had their pictures painted. This painting is now in the possession of
William Bosville, the trustee of the Earl of Northumberland, who also
has the original documents of their marriage.
Janos and Sara died almost on the same day in 1825. Their son, aged 116
years, and his two great-great-grandsons, were at the bedside.
* * *
THE LAND OF THE HUMMING BIRDS
Early one morning--Oh! earlier than one wants to get up in indolent
weather--we approached La Boca del Dragon--the Mouth of the Dragon, and
squeezed in among the teeth-like islands onto the peaceful bosom of
placid Paria and slid silently and quietly down along the ever-green
shore of Trinidad.
“_Rocklets of ocean, so bright in your green,
Bosomed on Paria’s stormless breast,
How many mem’ries of times that have been
Linger around ye, sweet Isles of the West._”
Trinidad!--“The Trinity.” So named by Columbus when he first sighted
it--not only on account of its formation, but in fulfillment of a vow
he had made when in dire distress on the unknown sea with his wine,
water, and food all gone.
Since we have all the wine and food we want (and we can get water) I
prefer the appellation “Iere” as the Caribs called it--the “Land of the
Humming Birds”--a well-merited name from the myriads of winged gems
that fly like glowing sparks in the deep green forests that pile up so
picturesquely on the starboard. Glittering Paradise!
Nature is nowhere more charming than on this warm, sweet isle. My
arborist friend tells me that among the effulgent efflorescence of Iere
there grows the _Tecoma Serratifolia_--the _Borassus Flabelliformis_,
the _Corypha Umbracilifera_--the _Pithecolobium Saman_, and the
_Couroupita Guianesis_. But they are rare and beautiful just the same.
Columbus and Raleigh wrote home to their girl friend, Isabella, about
“the oysters that grew on trees; crabs that climb their branches;
trumpet fish that tooted their own fish horns; and about the Cascadura
fish that wore a coat of mail.”
Isa only laughed and said “Creelo ó no.”
And I suppose you will say so too when I tell you about the Burning
Birds of Huevos. Huevos is that little egg-shaped island off toward
Venezuela where there is a cave full of whirring birds that suck goats
and grow so fat that the natives of Paria stick wicks through them and
use them for candles.
We were only 10 degrees from the equator--that magic line where nature
is the strongest and man is the weakest. Here the earth grows vigorous
and man grows lazy. The land turns green and the people turn black.
Kipling said something about East is East and West is West and never
the twain shall meet, but Rud forgot about the Port of Spain. East
Indians and West Indians meet and mix. The island is one-third Hindoo
and the mixture is well seasoned with Chinese, Japs, Syrians wearing
their turbans and saroongs, shirts and pants. The singular Singhalees
and the Trinadadians act like brothers under their black skins.
I returned at night from the Pitch Lake--the “wonder” of the island--a
lake of pitch of more than 100 acres furrowed by deep fissures of cool
water. These fissures are crossed by planks. In many spots the pitch is
absolutely firm, but in some places one’s feet sink quickly, and here
and there the pitch is seen boiling. The lake is said to have sunk ten
inches in fifty years. The lake is at present leased to the Trinidad
Lake Asphalt Company, whose average exportation is about 200,000 tons
of pitch annually. A chain of buckets carries the pitch along the
jetty, at which lie the steamers awaiting their cargo.
The streets are lined with sleeping Hindoos who only fold up, bow their
heads and close their eyes when the day is done. I accidentally stepped
on a black toe peeping out from under a huddled figure in a darkened
doorway and a low rumble issued forth. You see, every man’s home is his
castle.
Now I am sitting on the veranda of the Ice House with the two sisters
from Ottawa. On the wall inside is a framed tag line from the old
English song.
~=“Ours is a nice house, ours is.”=~
So they call it the “Ice House”--“where the cool green swizzles grow.”
A “swizzle” is the best tropical drink in this hemisphere. It is made
of rum, white of an egg, a lemon, sugar, nutmeg--and swizzled. Inasmuch
as Ontario voted dry recently it is only fitting and proper that Ottawa
girls and I should be having a swig of a swizzle on the veranda of an
Ice House as the sun goes down.
How the sun goes down! Night falls in the tropics. There is no
twilight. The blood-red disk down the end of Marine Square has just
tumbled precipitously into the sea.
Now it is dark.
* * *
[Illustration]
JIM CORBETT FOUGHT IN THE PRIZE RING FOR 18 YEARS ... and never had a
black eye or a bloody nose.
This fact is flattering testimony to the remarkable skill of Corbett.
“Gentleman” Jim was the first great exponent of cleverness inside the
ropes. When he defeated the great slugger John L. he revolutionized the
game at the same time.
* * *
[Illustration]
THE FISH THAT CLIMBS TREES
This finny acrobat that is wont to leave its aquaeous habitat to
climb trees is a native of Malaysia. It is more formally known as the
Periophthalmus Schlosseri. When the tide is out these frisky fish
squirm playfully about in the mud and frequently wriggle up the nearby
trees in quest of toothsome insects. They propel themselves with
unusual agility by means of two strong leg-like fins, and are able to
ascend good-sized trees where they sometimes look down on travelers
with their big soulful eyes.
* * *
“Dear Rip:
Your “Believe It or Not” cartoons astound me daily, but I think that
recently I witnessed a happening worthy of your mention.
I was fishing about a mile or so above Kalma on the Columbia River
when suddenly I saw a Black Bass--weighing about 4 pounds--leap from
the river and swallow a bird.
Believe me,
A. B. Stafford.”
* * *
RED RAIN
Every now and then some section of the world goes into a panic over
the queer behavior of the skies. Not long ago in Clermont, France,
the provincials thought the end of the world had come. It was raining
blood! At least they thought so; and there could be no doubt but that
the rain was red.
Surely it was the end of the world. But in a short time the showers
stopped and the old world went rolling on just the same.
There are no proven explanations for such showers. The rain was red, no
doubt, and the best reason advanced for the phenomenon disclosed the
fact that the air was full of red dust which was believed to have been
blown over from the Desert of Sahara.
Wild stories of bloody rain have been related for ages, and it is only
of recent date that the non-miraculous nature of them was determined.
Homer, Virgil, and Plutarch mention blood showers. Plutarch speaks
of showers of blood following great battles, and asserts that bloody
vapors, distilled from the bodies of the slain, impregnated the clouds,
from which they were subsequently shed upon the earth.
The most recent account of red rain was sent to me from a friend of
mine in China, who clipped it from the _Central China Post_. There is
no doubt of its authenticity.
* * *
RAIN OF BLOOD
MONGOLIA FOLK IN TERROR OVER
PHENOMENON
Harbin, June 29, 1928.
A “rain of blood” in Mongolia has spread terror among the people and
temporarily deranged trading conditions there, according to reports
received here.
The “blood rain” coincided with an epidemic of dysentery and the
Mongols took this as a sign of heavenly displeasure, fleeing
terror-stricken in every direction and abandoning their yiurts and
cattle herds.
The Phenomenon started with a rapid approach of heavy dull-brown
clouds and a red rain then continued to fall for three hours, leaving
the whole landscape, yiurts and cattle painted a deep red hue.
European traders who were present easily discovered that the coloring
was due to red clay, which must have been raised skyward by a
cyclone, but they were unable to persuade the Mongols of this.
For three days the terror lasted, the men wearing amulets of
horsehair around their necks and the women each night placing infants
outside the yiurts as an offering to God with the hope of diverting
heavenly wrath from the rest of the occupants. As the nights were
cold the wails of the infants ceased only with daylight.
[Illustration:
RED
SNOW
FALLS IN
JAPAN
EMMETT FRENCH
PLAYED PINEHURST
WITH A PUTTER
IN 80
Jan. 12, 1921
George Head & Co
Real Estate
London
[...]
THIS
LETTER
WAS
DELIVERED
64 YRS.
LATE
GLAEDELIGT NYTAAR
BOLDOG ÚJÉVET
FELIZ AÑO NUEVO
טובה שנהל
GOTT NYTT ’ÅR
UNE HEUREUSE NOUVELLE ANNÉE
STASTNY NOVÝ ROK
GLÜCKLICHES NEUJAHR
BUON ANNO
WESOŁEGO NOWEGO ROKU
GELÜKKIG NIEW JAAR
GODT NYTAAR
HAPPY NEW YEAR
ETC]
* * *
THE BARKING BIRD
The bird that barks is a red-breasted little fellow indigenous to
central Chile, and is called by the natives “_Guid-guid_.” It sounds
altogether like a small dog yelping in the forest. A person will
sometimes hear the bark close by, but in vain may endeavor by watching,
and with still less chance by beating the bushes, to see the bird; yet
at other times the guid-guid fearlessly comes near.
_Ref.: Charles Darwin._
* * *
THE SHARK DESTROYER
Who would ever imagine that a little soft fish--less than a foot in
length--could kill the great and savage shark?
The little Urchin-fish, or Sea Hedgehog (Diodon Maculatus), of South
America frequently destroys savage monsters 25 feet long, in a most
peculiar manner. This fish, with its flabby skin, arrayed with spiny
points, possesses the singular power of distending itself into a
globular form, and thus causing the spines to project in every
direction like the quills of an irritated porcupine.
When swallowed by a shark it calmly eats and bores its way out, not
only through the coats of the stomach, but completely through the sides
of the monster--thus killing it.
* * *
MAN-EATING CLAMS
I mean that this species of clams eats men--not that men eat the clams.
The mammoth clams of Malaysia--measuring 4 feet across and weighing 500
pounds are sure death to anybody careless enough to step within their
open jaws. I heard many stories, when I was out there, of natives who
had lost their lives in this manner.
There is a giant clam whose shells are now used as holy-water basins in
the Cathedral of St. Sulpice, Paris, which must have weighed nearly 700
pounds. The shells alone weigh 550 pounds and are nearly 5 feet across.
* * *
PRANKS OF NATURE
When we consider how fearfully and wondrously made we all are, it is
not surprising that Mother Nature sometimes makes a mistake. Human
errors are not always pleasant to look at or think about, so I will not
go into any length of detail discussing the mistakes or monstrosities
of life.
[Illustration]
THE CHILD CYCLOPS
The famous Clement child of Tourcoing, France, was born (1793) with
only one eye located in the center of her forehead. She was perfectly
normal in every other way, and lived to the age of fifteen.
_Reported by Buffon in his Natural History, Vol. II._
* * *
THE TRANSPARENT MAN
Hsieh Hsuan, a native of Yu-t’ien in Chihli, China (1389-1464) was born
with transparent flesh. The bones and organs of his body were plainly
visible.
Hsieh was a profound scholar and attained his Chu Jen Degree. He
entered upon an official career, but became implicated in a bribery
case, and was sentenced to death. He continued his studies in prison
and calmly studied a book even when led out to execution. He was
reprieved and later canonised, and in 1572 his tablet was placed in the
Confucian Temple.
_Ref.: Chinese Biographical Dictionary, by Herbert A. Giles._
* * *
THE CRAB-TOED TRIBE
In the western part of New York State dwells a community of crab-toed
people whose peculiar affliction has puzzled scientists. The hands and
feet of this group of people resemble claws of a crab or lobster.
Here is the report of the Superintendent of the Rome State School, of
New York, Dr. Charles Bernstein:
“The Rome State School sent a field worker into the community where
this strange progeny existed and the descriptive matter showed that
there have been 184 cases of crab-toes--most of whom were social
outcasts in the community, presenting many alcoholics, prostitutes,
etc.
“It was discovered that an English woman came over in the year 1800
and settled in Western New York. Later she married and the male
offsprings of this union were crab-toed. Later it was found that this
was a sex-linked affair through which the females never presented the
symptoms but transmitted it to their male offspring, no females ever
having it but all females transmitted it to their male children.
“While the intelligence status of these people is very low it is
sufficient to enable them to become successful workers and often
skilled mechanics. They do not seem especially sensitive about their
situation as they readily submit to having their pictures taken, etc.”
* * *
Bidault, a French peasant, was born with two noses.
* * *
Leone, the Athenian courtesan, bit off her own tongue to prevent
herself from revealing the conspiracy between Harmodius and Aristogiton.
A statue in the form of a lioness without a tongue was erected in her
honor by the Athenians.
[Illustration]
YOGI HARIDAS
This famous Ascetic could touch his forehead with his tongue. It is a
form of high Hindoo heroics. In other words Haridas could touch his
caste mark with his tongue. This required years of practice and many
painful surgical operations on the roots of his tongue.
* * *
General Townsend, of London, could control the palpitation of his heart
and suspend its action entirely at will.
This unnatural phenomenon is attested to by the well-known English
physicians, Doctors Cheyne and Bayard.
The General died eight days after suspending his heart action for half
an hour.
* * *
Leach, the noted dwarf, (1789-1818) had arms so long that he could
touch the ground while standing upright.
* * *
THE FORK-TONGUED FRÄULEIN
Surely there never lived a more unfortunate young woman than this
Frankfort Fräulein. She had two tongues but could not speak a word!
Her case is reported by both the _Medical Record_, and the _Courrier
Médical_ of France. This peculiar mistake of nature is extremely rare
although it has happened before.
THE GLASS SNAKE
The glass snake is not made of glass nor is it a snake. It is so-called
because of its odd propensity of snapping into pieces at the slightest
touch. It is a lizard, but it is indeed so singularly like a serpent
that it can only be distinguished from one by certain anatomical marks,
such as the presence of eyelids, and the solid jawbones.
To catch a perfect specimen of the glass snake is very difficult
business for when alarmed it has the remarkable habit of contracting
the muscles of its tail with such exceeding force that the member snaps
off the body. The snake will sometimes break into several pieces if
struck slightly with a switch. It is found only in North America.
THE LEFT-HANDED FAMILY
The family of Colombière, Nancy, France, were all born with two left
hands--that is, both hands were left hands. This peculiarity was
transmitted through the males; the females were exempt. They are
perfectly normal in every other way.
THE MAN FAMILY
The Bossant family of Gijon, Spain, have had no girls born to them
for more than one hundred years. They are a large family but for some
reason no girls.
* * *
John Sinclair, of Halkirk, Caithness-shire, England, was married three
times, and each wife bore him ten sons. He died in 1890.
* * *
Vaclav Kratochwil, of Prerau, Czechoslovakia, has blue eyelashes.
[Illustration:
THE
FORKED-TONGUED FRÄULEIN
of FRANKFORT.
GRETEL MEYER WHO HAD 2 TONGUES
--BUT COULD NOT SPEAK.
SIEGMUND
KLEIN
weight ... 146 lbs.
PRESSED
233¹⁄₂ LBS.
TO ARMS LENGTH
OVER HIS HEAD
H. HANSON
LOST A POUND A DAY
FOR 100 DAYS
LONDON’S
HONKING
PEDESTRIAN
HONKS TO
WARN AUTOS
ASIDE
THE GLASS SNAKE
SNAPS INTO
PIECES AT THE
SLIGHTEST TOUCH]
* * *
[Illustration]
THE HALF WOMAN
“Violetta,” as she prefers to be known, was born without arms or legs,
of normal parents less than thirty years ago in Germany. She is a lady
of perennial good nature--realizing that what one never possesses one
never misses. Her body is well formed otherwise, she enjoys perfect
health, and her senses of sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch are
all developed and perfected in their separate and various functions far
beyond the average normal person’s.
Violetta’s accomplishments in overcoming the unkindness of Mother
Nature are astounding. She rarely needs the assistance of anyone, and
is able to get about with remarkable facility. She can dress herself,
comb her own hair, thread a needle, sew, and perform other feats
apparently bordering on the impossible.
* * *
[Illustration: LIU CH‘UNG Governor of Shansi AD 955 HAD DOUBLE EYES]
THE DOUBLE-EYED MAN
Liu Ch‘ung, or Liu Min, as he was sometimes known, was born with double
pupils in each eye. This strange freak of nature did not in the least
deter this active man. He became Governor of Shansi, Minister of State,
and through intrigue with the Dowager Empress, had his son proclaimed
Heir Apparent. He also loved wine and gambling.
I refer you to Herbert A. Giles’ book on China.
* * *
THE MAN WITHOUT EARS
Ezechiel Eads, of Athens, New York, who died in 1884, was born without
ears. The sides of his head bore no trace of ears whatever; neither had
he openings for ears.
However, he was able to hear through his mouth which he opened wide for
the purpose.
* * *
THE FAMILY PHYSICIANS
The Curtis family of London has maintained an unbroken line of doctors
for 224 years, until September 25, 1927. Until this date there has
always been a member of the family with an M.D. Degree. The last
of this long line was Doctor William Curtis who died at the age of
eighty-seven.
* * *
LION-HEARTED
The lion has the smallest heart of all predatory animals.
Philip II, of Spain, one of the most cowardly of all tyrants, possessed
the largest heart of any known man.
* * *
Joseph de Mai, of Naples, was born with two hearts. He sold his own
body to the English Academy of Medicine for $3,000.
* * *
Plinius tells of the child called Eutimenius who was sexually mature at
the age of three years.
* * *
Magdalena Strumarczuk, of Tobolsk, Russia, had her breasts on her back.
She was the mother of three children and nursed them normally.
* * *
Sophie Bunnen, wife of a Pomeranian farmer of Prussia, gave birth to
eleven children in sixteen months. She had sextuplets and quintuplets.
(1880-1881.)
Reported by Dr. Gottlob, famous German obstetrician.
* * *
Duke Leopold Eberhart, of Württemberg, married his seventeen children
with each other.
* * *
THE DUSTY OCEAN