The Hillsdale standard. [volume] (Hillsdale, Mich.) 1851-1909, 1879-05-13
A showman's Experience In the South.

bpne, correspondence under the date
Of May 9Th. ls79-gives the following
report of a showman's experience al
the South the past winter. He writes
from Kenton, Hardin Co, o.
While at this place I interviewed q
Snowman who was exhibiting here
and, and ss the matter obtained was
very interesting, and withal quite i'm.
portant just at this time, 1 will repro
duce the conversation.
The Snowman was the older of the
Sells Brothers, proprietors Of the grea,
"Seven-Elephant" travelling circus
He was not aware that / was a newspa-
per-correspopdent, and talked with
much greater freedom than he other
wise would have done. / had been
slightly acquainted with HIM when he
lived in Columbus and was engaged in
other business. aud in that way con-
yersatisn began. said to him:
II understand, Mr.. Sells, that you
have been South during the winter. -
Now, you are not given to exaggera-
tion, on,-showmen never are,-and, as
understand ii, you are Democrat.
How did you find things down there?
Are they SO bad as they are represent
cd by the newspapers"
"We have been South nearly all win.
ter, and i used 10 be Democrat, but
/ sm so no longer. / am thoroughly
converted. IL used 10 be the fact that
showmen were almost all Democrats,
but that day has passed. No man can
go through what we did and hold to
that faith. You know il is generally
conceded that showmen are nobodies
The Southern chivalry peculiarly be-
lieve this, and act upon il in every way
they can. They don't put on any airs
about us. We see them in their nat
ural air, and can judge how things are
going on.
"What are some OF the instances
which you observedf"
"They are so many that / should tire
of telling them all. This will illus
trate: We were showing at a town in
Tennessee, and a man with a very bad
face staggered up to the box-ofiice,
drew large revolver. deliberately
cooked it, and. leveling it at my head,
said: That's the ticket that admits
me TO all G. d Yankee shows.
asrer pays anythiDg;" and, significant
ly winking, he still brandished his re-
volver. A compaion stepped forward,
and, instead of making any effort to
prevent damage from the threatening
Southerner, he said to me:
Hes perfect gentleman sir,-a
perfect gentleman, but slightly in Ii
qaor. Better let him pass; that's the
way they oil does. OF course we let
bin pass. There was nothing else TO
do. The agent for the California Min
strels, who is with US here, saw friend
OF his shot in Texas, in cold blood.
simply because he was Snowman. 1t
was at the hotel. A Southerner with a
big revolver came swaggering in, say
ing that he had come a certain number
of miles on purpose to kill a Cd
son OF b. of a Yankee Snowman. .
He drew n bead on the Snowman. The
latter reasoned with him, saying: You
have the drop on me, there's no doubt
about 1t. But have never done You
any injury, and don't want 10 kill me
in cold blood. do you?' But il was all
in vain. The cold-blooded wretch
didn't take his eye off the man until he
had discharged bis revolver three times
and mortally wounded him. The land
lord paid no attention to the matter.
The people OF the town were content TO
say that the murderer vas "a gentle
man in liquor. He was never arrested
for his crime, and the landlord didn't
even order him TO leave his house.
Where do you live when at home,
Mr.. Sells?"
al live in Columbus, in this State.
and we returned there last mouth.
There were some hundred or more Of
us men, and they were all voters in the
Fifth Ward Of that city, where their
families were staying. They had al
most TO a man been Democrats before
this trip in the South, but that had the
same effect on them as on ma. There
was a good deal of wonder expressed at
the large majority for the Republican
ticket that was rolled up in this ward.
Their vote and influence largely did il.
for they did a good leal Of talking with
their friends. ! tell you no man can
be Democrat aud see how Democracy
Is running things in the South"
Mr.. Sells was of the opinion that
there was in reality only the one thing
that the negroes were going TO do. II
they once get into a new country, they
can have some opportunity TO grow up
with 1t and be halfway independent,
while in the South the revolver will
ever rule them.