Glimpses of real life as seen in the theatrical world and in Bohemia
James Glass Bertram
Paperback
(RareBooksClub.com, March 6, 2012)
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1864 Excerpt: ...better half, carrying a child. At these places are usually congregated a multifarious crowd of exhibitions, swings, merry-go-rounds, Punch-and-Judys, and living skeletons--the general price of admission being limited to the coin I have indicated. What a powerful cause of excitement to the whole country round is that almost indescribable scene, "the fair," where, as I used at one time to think, all the wonders of the world were concentrated, where under canvas roof, there was a heaven upon earth, since the very angels could not be more beautiful than the enchanting being who danced on the tight-rope in the travelling circus. A whole street of shows, with the caravan of wild beasts, containing the great lion-king in the centre of one side, the grand original Cirque Olympic being its vis-drvis; and next door to these always a theatre, with "Blue Beard," the "Castle Spectre," "Fortune's Frolic," and a pantomime every twenty minutes. On either side ranged booths of various sizes. One held the astonishing black brothers, Muley Sahib and Hassan, celebrated for jumping down each other's throats, with lighted candles in their hands; another contained the only real yellow dwarf now travelling. In the immediate neighbourhood of these celebrities were located the great Hibernian conjuror, the pig-faced lady, the spotted boy, the Norfolk giant, the wonderful black giantess, the far-famed ventriloquial celebrity, the original theatre of arts, containing the best storm at sea ever yet invented, the five-legged sheep, and the sea-unicorn--these two in the same booth--rthe learned pig, and a host of similar exhibitions. All around was the busy hum of the show, the eternal itera tion of " Walk up, walk up, ladies and gentlemen;&qu...