Andrzej at an auction

No, Andrzej wasn't sold at the auction but the auction's owner Manfred von Paulus, an Austrian nobleman, had personally asked the Dietrich twins (the boy's trainers) to acquire a performer to show off his wealth and taste. Of course the Dietrichs sent their most insanely flexible pupil. At one point during the evening Andrzej lay on the table and would be stretched any way by the audience. Several people even placed small bets on whether the boy could be stretched in a particular way and some people bet against it. It was only a game for such rich people, so the boy was then given all the money for the bets he won.

Andrzej won all of the evening's bets and was quite tired by the night, so he was taken home by a horse-drawn carriage, his jacket's pockets literally stuffed with the amounts of cash he'd never seen before. His parents were very happy with him and suggested that he keeps only a little of the money and puts the rest in the bank, so he could have some extra by the time he really needs it.

Andrzej's full story begins here: