Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1875-04-15
p. T. Barnum's Latest WOnders-A
Colossal Exhibition.

| p. Il. BarnumS Latest WOnderS-A
| Colossal Exhibition.
| Hayper'S Weekly devotes nearly two col
umns to explaining and eXtolling the great
| enterprises with which P I. Barnum is max
| ing historical his forty years career as the
| most liberal and daring Snowman in the
| world The statistics which Harper Brothers
| give us from authentic sources are nearly
| overwhelming. They make an ordinary head
| dizzy. Mr.. Barnum has always boosted that
| he gave his patrons double their moneys
| worth, and his claims are generally acknowl-
| edged; but this time he seems to have far out
stripped himself. Last year he obtained from
the Connecticut Legislature a charter for
| The P T. Barnums Universal Exposition
| Company" with a capital of million of dol
lars; Mr.. Barnum who is President of the
/ company, and Mr.. Coup, his Manager, have
| spent many months in Europe perfecting their
| plans. The object of this great company, as
they announce, is to elevate amusements, di-
vest them of all Objectionable features, and
| thus render them worthy the patronage of
| the most moral and refined classes. They say
| that eventually they will have score or more
of exhibitions (traveling and permanently
| IN America and Europe, and they intend that
their chartered title shall be guarantee of
| the merits OF whatever they bring before the
| public. The present season they have but
two exhibitions One is Mr.. Barnum's we'll
| known Museum, Menagerie, Circus and
Travelling Worlds Fair" the other is simply
called "The Great Roman Hippodrome." Mr..
Barnum seems to have devoted years to per-
| fecting this great enterprise, and nearly one
| year of his personal attention was paid to it
| in Europe. At an expense of several hun
| dred thousand dollars he erected great hip
| pOdrome building in the heart of New York
| city, and under an outlay of over $1,000 each
day he has run his establishment in New
| York for nearly year. This Exposition
| Company are engaged to ship the entire Hip
| podrome to Europe next autumn; mean
| while they have undertaken the difficult task
of transporting it entire to the principal cities
in America. Haaper's Weekly says:
"The Great Roman Hippodrome will re-
semble moving camp. There are ], 200 men,
| women and children in Mr.. Barnums service,
| and the stock includes $50 horses and ponies,
besides elephants, camels, English stag and
| stag hounds, trained ostriches, lions, bears
| tigers and other animals For the exhibition
| of the menagerie and the various shows, dis
plays and performances connected with the
| enterprises, two enormous tents, each 500
| feet in length and 300 in width, have been
| provided, one OF which will be kept in
| advance in order that no time may be lost
by delaying in making ready. The question
| of transportation by rail-a very serious one
was solved by the construction of $50 cars
| twice the usual length, built expressly for
| this purpose. Among them are number of
| horse palace cars, constructed with COM
modious stalls, in which the horses can lie
down and rest while on the journey and arrive
atthe place of exhibition quite fresh for the per-
Torrance. Besides moving the tents, animals
and all other material in these Hippodrome
cars, berths will be provided in those devoted
| to the personnel of the company for nearly all
| the employees. Besides the great exhibition
| tents, and stable tents for the horses and
other animals. There is also attached to the
| company large corps of Dlacksmiths and
carpenters and builders, some of whom pre-
cede the show several days, to make ready for
the exhibition by preparing the ground, erect
ing seats, etc. The dressing room tents alone
will cover more ground than an ordinary
circus.
"To move such an enormous establishment
without hitch or delay requires the employ
ment of clear headed, practical men at the
head of each department. Everything is so
arranged as to move with the smoothness and
precision of clock-work. At the appointed
hour the canvas will go up, the street process
sion will move. the performance will COM
mence. When all is over and the great tent
emptied, everything will be packed up by those
detailed for the work, and the caravan, with
out the loss of minute, will be on the move
| toward the next place of exhibition.
1.-THE programme of performance will be
varied and attractive. Donaldson will make
daily balloon ascensions with a car large
enough to contain a company of five or six
persons at cost of about $500 day for this
| feature alone. linen Lu6Te VIII DC Tic No
man races in chariOtS driven by 'AmaZOnS;'
the liberty races in which forty wild horses
are turned loose in the arena, in exact imita-
ton of the famous carnival races OF Rome
and Naples standing races in which the
riders stand on bareback horses; hurdle races
for ladies; fiat races by English, French and
American Jockeys; besides camel, elephant
and ostrich and monkey races. Another
feature will be the exhibition of Indian life
on the plains in which the actors will be
scores of Indians, with their squaws and pap
pOoses. They will put up genuine Indian
encampment, hunt real buffaloes, give war
dances, pony races, foot races against horses,
exhibitions of daring horsemanship, lasso-
throwing. a band of Mexican riders, mount
ed on famous mustangs, will make a pretend
ed attack on the Indian camp and give
mimic but faithful representation of the
wild scenes enacted on the Western frontier.
The English stag hunt will be an exact pict-
ure of the sport Itself, with company OF $50
men and women in full hunting costume, and
a large pack of English stag hounds. There
will also be many other interesting and at
| tractlve features, the mere mention OF which
would make a small volume.
"Mr. Barnum certainly deserves great credit
| for an enterprise which is calculated to afford
a vast amount of innocent popular amuse-
ment; and although this gigantic venture
involves an enormous outlay of money it will
present too many attractions not to be gen
orally sustained"
Amazing as this exhibition seems from the
description given by Raper's, we can say,
from actual observation, that one feature is
to be introduced into the travelling Roman
Hippodrome more interesting and instructive
than any other It is the great procession
known as 1.-THE Congress of Monarchs." The
HdrpeY'S omitted mentioning this because,
probably, they supposed Mr.. Barnum would
not dare incur the expense of transporting
such an enormous affair through the coun-
try. But he will do so, and here is brief de-
| scription of this dazzling and bewildering
exhibition, as given by New York contem-
porary:
''Of all the gorgeous pageants the world
ever saw the Congress o. Nations is the
greatest, and how the surprising genius of
even Barnum could produce it is a wonder.
The costumes are true to life, and many of
them are genuine, having been procured di-
rect from the nationalities which they repre-
sent. The individuals employed to personate
the historical characters have the most faith
| f11I fn in foe nd