Ten Thousand Wonderful Things: Comprising whatever is marvellous and rare, curious, eccentric and extraordinary in all ages and nations
History
Ten Thousand Wonderful Things: Comprising whatever is marvellous and rare, curious, eccentric and extraordinary in all ages and nations
Curiosities and wonders; Encyclopedias and dictionaries; Folklore
"3. An _Eagle of the Sun_, that takes the loftiest flight of any bird
that flies. There is no bird but this that can fly to the face of the
Sun with a naked eye.
"4. A curious Beast, bred from a _Lioness_, like a foreign _Wild Cat_.
"5. The _He-Panther_, from Turkey, allowed by the curious to be one of
the greatest rarities ever seen in _England_, on which are thousands of
spots, and not two of a likeness.
"6 & 7. The two fierce and surprising _Hyaenas_, Male and Female, from
the River _Gambia_. These Creatures imitate the human voice, and so
decoy the Negroes out of their huts and plantations to devour them.
They have a mane like a horse, and two joints in their hinder leg more
than any other creature. It is remarkable that all other beasts are to
be tamed, but _Hyaenas_ they are not.
"8. An _Ethiopian Toho Savage_, having all the actions of the human
species, which (when at its full growth) will be upwards of five feet
high.
"Also several other surprising Creatures of different sorts. To be seen
from 9 in the morning till 9 at night, till they are sold. Also, all
manner of curiosities of different sorts, are bought and sold at the
above place by John Bennett."
SOMNAMBULISM.
Some years ago a Hampshire Baronet was nearly driven to distraction
by the fact that, every night, he went to bed in a shirt, and every
morning awoke naked, without the smallest trace of the missing garment
being discovered.
Hundreds of shirts disappeared in this manner; and as there was no fire
in his room, it was impossible to account for the mystery. The servants
believed their master to be mad; and even he began to fancy himself
bewitched. In this conjuncture, he implored an intimate friend to
sleep in the room with him; and ascertain by what manner of mysterious
midnight visitant his garment was so strangely removed. The friend,
accordingly, took up his station in the haunted chamber; and lo! as the
clock struck one, the unfortunate Baronet, who had previously given
audible intimation of being fast asleep, rose from his bed, rekindled
with a match the candle which had been extinguished, deliberately
opened the door, and quitted the room. His astonished friend followed:
saw him open in succession a variety of doors, pass along several
passages, traverse an open court, and eventually reach the stable-yard;
where he divested himself of his shirt, and disposed of it in an old
dung-heap, into which he thrust it by means of a pitchfork. Having
finished this extraordinary operation, without taking the smallest heed
of his friend who stood looking on, and plainly saw that he was walking
in his sleep, he returned to the house, carefully reclosed the doors,
re-extinguished the light, and returned to bed; where the following
morning he awoke as usual, stripped of his shirt!
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account