Direct to me No. 4 fox and Knot Court
King Street Smithfield.
JOHN BROOKS.


We shall let this versatile John Brooks close
the pre-Chabert record and turn our attention
to the fire-eaters of Chabert's day. Imitation
may be the sincerest flattery, but in most cases
the victim of the imitation, it is safe to say,
will gladly dispense with that form of adulation.
When Chabert first came to America
and gave fresh impetus to the fire-eating art
by the introduction of new and startling
material, he was beset by many imitators, or--
as they probably styled themselves--rivals,
who immediately proceeded, so far as in them
lay, to out-Chabert Chabert.

One of the most prominent of these was a
man named W. C. Houghton, who claimed to
have challenged Chabert at various times. In
a newspaper advertisement in Philadelphia,
where he was scheduled to give a benefit
performance on Saturday evening, February 4th,
1832, he practically promised to expose the
method of poison eating. Like that of all
exposers, however, his vogue was of short
duration, and very little can be found about this