THE HAIRY FAMILY.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume VIII, Issue 2319, 12 June 1886, Page 1 (Supplement)

THE HAIRY FAMILY.

On Sunday night, April 11 (says the Times of India), the Mandalay hairy family, whioh has long been famous in Burmese history, arrived in Bombay from Calcutta, They left Mandalay On Jan. 16, ami had passed the whole of their time in the interval in Calcutta, where they have been seen, by Lord and Lady Dtlfferin, Sir Frederick Boberts, as well as by huge numbers of resident?, there. The present members of the family, who have never been out of Biuntoh, consist of three Maphoon, aged 63, and her son, Mo-po-sin, aged 39, form the curiosities of the Bhow. '£he third, is im ordinary Burraeae woman, who was at, one time maid of honor to the Queen of Burinah. The old tody, ■.. who is seated on an improvised .platform, rarely makes any movement beyond fanning herself, is quite Wind, and with the exception of her hands and feet, is more or less covered with long hair a3 soft as silk, She is not at all repulsive in appearance, while her face k particularly soft and. ,sweet. Her son who is of medium height, is \ by no means.averse .to.a cioso inspection. His,skin is a pale brown;, and Mm wbole of bis face is, similarto his mother's evpn. to the drum of his .ears, covered with soft hair 1 , while on bis body arms and legs there is an abundance of silky coating, in places it is as mucli as five inches long, but is not anything like as. thick in growth as the hair on his face. This is the fourth generation of the family known to history, and the exhibitor relates that etvoli generation.has. been seven in mtnibcr, three of each being hairyand the other four'displaying.no extraordinary phenomena. Qblone|;¥uje; when Oh a mission to tWOoiirt of AyainSep- ■ teiuher, 1855, was, the 613 ; .liuly. who is now to'fe seen,; and liisvaccount of her js given' Mow.. The description of,vth.e;.lady : : applies; her presentoonditiorias^weUVlis to to thiit 'of her: wehad : a singular, visitor''at; tKa dence, i.the daughter, ofShwemaong,: : ;the:?'.Homo.

hirsutus' described and depicted in Crawford's narrative, where a portrait of her, as a young child, also appears. Not expecting "such a visitor,, one started and exclaimed' involuntary as there entered' what at first sj«ht seemed an absolute realisation In the flesh of the dogrlnwled AniiM,-,, : Thewhole of. Maphnnn's face wis covered with hair. ;Oii a part of the cheek and between the nose and the mouth this was confined to a short down, hut. all over,the rest.of th'eTace was a thick silky, hair of a...brown color, paling about the. nose and chin, 4in or sin long..,At; the sides of the nose, under the eye, and on;.the cheek bone, this was'very fii|ly ; d'eypipped, but it was in mid.on'blie"ear"tliat it was most extraordinary;, Except tho;.extremo upper tip no pun of her.ear was visible; all the rest was nllod and veiled by a large mass of silky hair, growing, apparently out of every part of the external organ and lian'iiini; in a dependant lock to a length of Bin to lOin. The nose, densely covered with hair as no animals is that I know of, and with long fine locks curving out and pendant like the wisps of a tiuo Skye terrier's coat, had a most strange appearance. The beard was strange in color, and about four inchfs in length,. seemingly very soft and silky."