To the Aquarium at 5, & again saw "Zazel" and again astonished
(as every one was) at the courage and coolness and skill of this girl of 18;
who, drest as an acrobat, walked the tightrope without a pole, lay down on it
& rose again on one leg & the like: Then swung herself about on the
trapeze like a monkey, and sat on it like a strong man, with big arms folded,
and sitting thus, flung her body round and round it, holding it by the hollow of
her knees: then leaped 60 feet down, head fore most: Then let herself down, feet
first, into a cannon, and was literally fired thence into the air, falling flat
on a net: and 15 minutes afterwards, was seen in neat women's clothing, walking
quietly home with her sister, as modest and demure as any schoolgirl.
Arthur Munby diary 1877