Gloucester County Democrat. (Woodbury, N.J.) 1878-1932, 1880-11-11
LIFE AMONG LIONS.
A Talk with a Noted Tanner Of the King
of Beasts,

]
{" began with lions about 1865. |
was bossing the animals in John
O'Brien's circus in Girard Pa. Felix
! Mcdonald, the lion man, got bite that
| put him for two months in the hospital.
| Somebody had To 60 into the cage, and L
went. I'd seen him often, and | knew
the animals pretty well. l didn't have
much difficulty till the next spring in
Pottsville. ] was tantalizing the lions
| four of 'em-With raw meat, and one of
the females got behind me and, quick as
flash. bit through my calf. I kept
quiet and turned around and hammered
her until she let CO."
How do you train them?"
"We treat green ones-those captured
| in Africa-and tame ones born in menag-
cries verv much the same. The wild ones
are better and safer. This is because q
lion used to a cage, and to being poked
and teased, is less afraid of you. I'd
sooner handle tea green lions than one
that's used to the public. Besides, the
green ones have great deal more play
and spirit in 'em. We begin with them
| when they're two n a half. or three
years old. When first go into cage
of untamed ones | have fire near by.
with three or four iron rods in it, red
| hot. If the beasts go for me the men
stand ready to jab the irons in their
mouths and make 'em let me go. Ihave
been roughly handled sometimes, but
never badly hurt. 1t takes two years to
train one perfect, because you have to
go slow with 'em. Not one lion in FIVE
is good for tricks, anyway.
Just as soon as you find one that
don't act right you have to throw him
out. Some of them are too excitable.
Others are sulky, and lie down in the
corner, and if you 60 behind them you
take big chances. You want to keep
your face toward 'em all the time. I've
worked on one for five months-the
third one there-and all he'll do is to
jump little.n
How do you teachp"
1--WE teach 'em to jump over stick
by having a board fence in the middle
of The cage and driving them over it.
To make 5em stand up in the corner,
we have tackle hitched to their neck
and pull 'em ND. Then we pet 'em,
and they finally get used to it. We
make 'em lie down by whipping them.
| When they're triced up in the corner
we catch 'em by the mouth and nos
trils, and teach 'em to keep their mouth
/ lpen by SO ing it. Then we git to
| sticking our neads in"
"Fhat's rather risky, amt it"
Not very. You can tell in an instant
when they are gying to close, and jerk
| your heaG out. / saw one man killed in
that way, though. His name was
| Whiltle-Joe Whittle. | broke him
in Maryland, and he took four lions
| (5Wo of 'em were Frank and George that
[ am using now) and worked 'em for
three years. Finally, in Frankfort,
Pean., Joe was nervous one day and
| thought be w0dld have arehearsal before
the show. He puI his head in Frank
mouth and the beast closed on him, bit
ing clean through his face and partly
| through his head, so that his lower Jaw
fell down on his breast. They tried to
get him out, but Frank grabbed his leg
with his teeth and he was badly cheWed
before they got him. He died few
days after"
Do they get up any affection for
youP"
"No, they amt much on affection.
They would go for me If ] was outside
just as quick as they would anybody
They're deceiVing brutes, and y
quick. / recollect in Galveston o.4e of
The boys, who was little drunk, sHo~e
they would not hurt a fly. and went up
to the cage. In minute one of them,
don't know whether it was Frank or
George, had him, and his right shoulder
and the right side of his head weren't
worth much when they got him away
I've only had FIVE accidents that
amounted to anything. Once one Of
them clawed off my shirt and most of
the meat On my chest along with it, but
my scratchrs are mostly little ones"
hands that had evidently seen hard
usuage, having been gashed in all di-
rections.