Through this
hoop he squeezes his body with absolute impunity. The physicians
do not agree as to his immunity, and some of them think that
Rhannin, which is his name, is a fakir who has by long practice
succeeded in hardening himself against the impressions of metal
upon his skin. The professors of the Berlin clinic, however,
considered it worth while to lecture about the man's skin,
pronouncing it an inexplicable matter. This individual performed
at the London Alhambra in the latter part of 1895. Besides
climbing with bare feet a ladder whose rungs were sharp-edged
swords, and lying on a bed of nail points with four men seated
upon him, he curled himself up in a barrel, through whose inner
edges nails projected, and was rolled about the stage at a rapid
rate. Emerging from thence uninjured, he gracefully bows himself
off the stage.
Some individuals claim immunity from burns and show many
interesting feats in handling fire. As they are nothing but
skilful "fire jugglers" they deserve no mention here. The
immunity of the participants in the savage fire ceremonies will
be discussed in Chapter IX.
Albinism is characterized by the absolute or relative absence of
pigment of the skin, due to an arrest, insufficiency, or
retardation of this pigment.
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