CHAPTER TWO.
WATTON'S SHIP-SWABBER "FROM THE INDIES."-- RICHARDSON, 1667--DE HEITERKEIT, 1713 .-- ROBERT POWELL, 1718-1780 .-- DUFOUR, 1783 .-- QUACKENSALBER, 1794.
The earliest mention I have found of a public fire-eater in England is in the correspondence of Sir Henry Watton, under date of June 3rd, 1633.

He speaks of an Englishman "like some swabber of a ship, come from the Indies, where he has learned to eat fire as familiarly as ever I saw any eat cakes, even whole glowing brands, which he will crush with his teeth and swallow." This was shown in London for two pence.
The first to attract the attention of the upper classes, however, was one Richardson, who appeared in France in the year 1667 and enjoyed a vogue sufficient to justify the record of his promise in the Journal des Savants.

Later on he came to London, and John Evelyn, in his diary, mentions him under date of October 8th, 1672, as follows: I took leave of my Lady Sunderland, who was going to Paris to my Lord, now Ambassador there.

She made me stay dinner at Leicester House, and afterwards sent for Richardson, the famous fire-eater.

He devoured brimstone on glowing coals before us, chewing and swallowing them; he melted a beere-glass and eate it quite up; then taking a live coale on his tongue he put on it a raw oyster; the coal was blown on with bellows till it flamed and sparkled in his mouthe, and so remained until the oyster gaped and was quite boil'd.
Then he melted pitch and wax with sulphur, which he drank down as it flamed: I saw it flaming in his mouthe a good while; he also took up a thick piece of iron, such as laundresses use to put in their smoothing-boxes, when it was fiery hot, held it between his teeth, then in his hand, and threw it about like a stone; but this I observ'd he cared not to hold very long.