The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1872-07-11

A New York special OF the 9th inst.
gives the following account of the
smashing mp of John Robinson's
menagerie, near West Haven, Conn.,
on the Sd inst:
The inhabitants of West Haven,
Connecticut, are excited tonight in
anticipation of visit from twenty
three monkeys. yulture and a twelve
foot anaconda, which escaped from
John Robinson's Circus, the train be-
ing wrecked by rotten bridge which
fell on it while Transporting the Circus
to West Haven, ON the morning of
July Sd. Eight of the cages contain
ing animals were wrecked, aud their
occupants fed to the woads and fields.
The ticket wagon was smashed to
atoms and driven through the Mexican
lions cage. The disturbed and wound
ed beasts set up yell which was
Joined in by all the animals, and a ter
rible discordant howl went up from
all kinds of beasts and birds as the
timbers of the bridge went crashing
through the cages. The lion cage was
knocked off the car and one of the
lions escaped. The zebra cage was
shivered to splinters, and the zebra,
badly wounded, escaped to the fields.
There were fifty monkeys in twocages,
both cages were smashed and thrown
off the car. Many monkeys were
killed, being stabbed by splinters,
crushed by the shock, or run over by
the cars, which still kept moving,
bringing the cages in contact with the
broken bridge imbers. About thirty
of the monkeys fed to the woods,
scampering up the bank screaming
and chattering, perching on fence-rails
clinging to apple and cherry trees and
throwing the fruit about. The cage
containing the white peafowls and
cassowary was wrecked, and the birds
escaped. The cage containing the
paraots, davs, cockatoos, silver and
gold pheasants and the vulture, was
crushed and the birds flew to the sur
rounding woods. The variety cage
was thrown from its car, and the tapir
and copia banna were injured. The
tank wagon containing the seal was
smashed, but the seal was saved. The
frame of the sea lions cage was
smashed, and the sea lion is supposed
to be injured internally, as he has been
torpid ever since. The ends of the
cage containing the harte beaste and
African antelopes were smashed, but
the animals escaped uninjured. The
Bengal tigers cage had hole stoved
in ii, and the tiger made a desperate
effort to escape. A ready minded
Snowman clapped plank over the
gap and hung on until help came, and
then after terrible struggle the ami
NAL was chained to his broken cage.
The cage containing the aligators.
boa-constrictors, and other reptiles,
was crushed, and one of the boas was
so injured that it subsequently died.
The other escaped. Several other rep
tiles and many birds of plumage- es-
capped. The ostrich cage was smashed
and the ostrich escaped. The train
was stopped before the car containing
the horses reached the bridge, and
they escaped nninjured. In the last
fat car were the elephant, two camels,
a three-horned OK, and sacred OK.
The instant the crashing began these
animals Joined in the uproar. The
elephant maddened, began knocking
down the cameis, buffaloes and oxen.
When they were all down he swung
his trunk as though sorry there were
no more to whack. All this occurred
in an instant, and the circus men were
promptly at work securing the broken
cages of the fiercer animals, and hunt
ing up the missing. Many citizens
of West Haven Joined in. the chase.
The zebra made fierce fight, and es-
capped after being once captured. A
rope was finally secured about the
zebra's neck, and he was tied to tel
egraph pole. DIR. Sheppard, of West
Haven,attempted to sew up the zebra's
wounds. He broke. his needles and
the zebra's wounds went unattended.
After long hunt nearly all the ami
mails were recovered. Some of the
wounded, the Vulture, the anaconda
and the monkeys are still at large, and
the people of West Haven, tonight,
are greatly excited over the prospect
of visit from the anaconda or vulture.
The monkeys were chattering in the
trees and throwing apples at each
other all day. The damage to the cir-
Gus is S45,000. -. ..ss,i..,
DIR. HORACE GREELEY attended the
Peace Jubilee at Boston, on July 3,
and was greeted with intense enthu-
siasm by the vast audience. He was
escorted to the press room by Alder
man jerks, previous to the concert,
and was introduced to the ladies and
gentlemen representatives ofthe press.
After few minutes pleasant CONVEX
sation, in answer to general call, he
spoke as follows: 5.Fz5s af.os gYa
alt has fallen to my lot recently, as
you are doubtless aware, to be placed
before the public in somewhat con.
spicuous attitude. We who work for
the press and live by press work live
in the public sight and under public
criticism to greater degree than
most people, and yet l think to-day
my position is a little more exposed
to cavil and disappointment than that
of most of you. It has been said of
me, and take it as a great testimonial
and compliment, that while in the
business that Ihave pursued through
out life, / have shown myself very
fairly competent, very fairly diligent
and successful. yet if L were, or should
be invited into another line of life.
into different, and if you please,
higher responsibilities, L should be
found unequal to them. Well, ladies
and gentlemen, [ cannot well expect
to have anytoing better said of me by
my friends, much less by my adversa-
ries, that is to say that / have done
we'll that which have had to do. Gap
/ plause.) 1t would seem q tolerab bl v
fair deduction that one who has been
doing well all his life that which he
had tried to do, may, possibly, reason
ably be expected to do well in some-
thing else if he were to undertake it.
Some of my critics observe that though
for myself personally am tolerably
honest and respectable, person, yet m
associates are not very desirabie-an
unworthy set. daughter and applause)
L am sorry for that, because my asso-
ciates through life have been mainly
the gentlemen and ladies | see about
me (whose acquaintance made while
engaged in the matter of preparing
information for the public press, and
if my associations were disagreeable |
can hardly hope to find better in fu-
ture life than those l have had. |
| t,ust this did not mean 10 saw that