AMAZING VERSATILITY OF COMMON FLEA

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 10, Issue 95, 17 February 1947, Page 2

AMAZING VERSATILITY OF COMMON FLEA

Have you ever- wondered how performing fleas are trained? Well, according to W. Buchanan-Taylor in a ; BBC broadcast, it is just as difficult as you would imagine it to be. First you catch the elusive flea, remembering that he holds the world record for jumping (it has been stated that if a man were equipped with spring heels of the same proportion to weight as the flea’s, he could jump as high as St. Paul’s Cathedral in London). Having got the flea and put him in a nice little pill-box padded with cotton wool, you take him to a watchmaker. A watchmaker is suggested because it is extremely unlikely that you will find a professional flea harnesser in your locality, the craft being nearly extinct. If the watchmaker has a steady hand, as he should, he v/ill put a ! very thin gold wire round the neck of the flea, leaving, as spare, about an inch and a half of the wire, which will be heavy enough to prevent the little fellow jumping. As an example of what can be done, fleas have been dressed and undressed, harnessed to miniature vehicles, fought duels with swords, and indulged in boxing matches,

fired miniature cannons, lived in kennels, walked tight-ropes, worked in model cemeteries, performed exhibition rescues from supposedly burning miniature houses, balanced balls, and done ballet dancing and trick cycling.