The daily Cairo bulletin. (Cairo, Ill.) 1878-1???, 1881-04-24

10 BURR ROBBINS AND COLUMNS ALLIED
| sHoWs-sOME INTERESTING POINTS ABOUT
THE BUSINESS.
Frank Mckee, advance representative for
the Burr, Robbins g. Colvin Great Ameri-
can and German Allied Shows, put in an
appearance yesterday, and from the extern
siye preparatory arrangements he is max
ing, we Judge that the show he repres.
sents will be the biggest affair in that
line Cairo will have this season.
DESTROYS ofobtaining a few points in re.
gard to the allied shows, THE BULLETIN
man corncred Mckee in his sanctum yester-
day, when the following conversation en-
sued
SWELL Mckee, what are the prospects
for circus men the coming season3" asked
THE BULLETIN.
swell, sir, in fact, the prospects for the
larger organizations are not very fattering,
looking att froma financial stand point for
it is becoming popular plan for managers
to pool their interests, thereby forming
such costly organization that nothing
short OF packed canvasses Will ever pay the
management for the enormous outlay of
money. am speaking of
the large shows, Of course the
small clrcuses can live if they can get the
people inside of their canvass, but with
such show as Robbins 81 Covin have
formed it is decidedly risky undertaking.
But Robbins e. Colyin are not the sole
owners. 1t is an organization different
from any other on the road. It's an instl-
tuition created by the joint cooperation of a
number of eastern and western capitalists,
formed into a stock company, duly incor.
porated and chartered by the state Of Wis
consin and endorsed by the ground OF the
state
THAT is rather novel plan for a circus,
is it notN
Yes sir it is, and you can readily see
that an institution such as this and bearing
the endorsements that it does, would not
dare to stoop to trickery or to inveigle pco.
pie under Its canvass by making misrep-
resentations on paper, which it can not
substantiate. Furthermore the manage.
ment have given their agents the strictest
orders to engage in no sQuabbles with sim
liar shows, by using scurulous insinuatons
and venemous personal attacks in such a
manner as to nauseate the reputable com.
munities."
"Your expenses must he rather heavy
"Well should think so. The expenses
of running an organization like this
ranges from 1900 to 81 800 per day. We
have thirty men in advance of the show
alone, almost 1000 sheets of colored pos.
tiers are spread upon the walls, 10000 pro-
grammes and couriers are distributed and
five or six hundred Autographs at each
stand we make. Of course not all this in
the town alone for we bill the country
heavy. Our weekly newspaper bills aver
age $1,000 Our salary list is very high
as We employ none but the best of people
in every capacity. The name of Chas w.
Fish is alone a sufficient evidence of the
class of arenic artists we have. We run our
own cars, owned exclusively by us, two
special trains making thirty-two cars, in
addition to an advertising Car and two or
three other advertising brigades"
How about your menagerie features!'
"Of course, as in everything else we
have got the costliest and the rarest.
Giraffes, hippopotamus, herd OF the ele-
plants and a family Of sea-lions are among
the principal menagerie features, and such
animals as these cost more than the ordi-
nary menageries OF several similar circuses
combined
THE BULLETIN man, at this point,
reminded the circus ambassador that space
was precious and the interview ended not,
however, before Mckee insisted that he
had not half told the story.