Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922, 1883-04-27

. HORSE" he said to q Journal man
"was made when l was years old
My father guided the animal Will
the old-fashioned cord or 'junge,' q
II was called, and still reoollec
very we'll how scared lwas. It tool
me four years to learn how to corr
my first somersault with ,afety, and
/ have not completed my education
yet. The first timo lit on my feet,
the second on my knees"
GLOW are the horses trainedY'
"The first thing circus men do when
they get new horses for training Is to
simply keep them In tho stables with
others for certain length OF time
until they have got used to their new
company. It's singular how Jealous
horses are Of new oomers. You may
laugh, but horses haze their way OF
what l might call 'guying' green stock
as well as human performers. The
next operation Is to blindfold them,
whom they arc led into the ring and
trained to the circular motion. This
requires much time and patience.
Some hornes have two weeks, Others
twice as many months. The natural
tendency Of horse Ia to 90 straight,
and this constant round Is strange an d
unnatural to him. He is first walked
around, then trotted, then galloped.
each stage being thoroughly mastered
before the next is attsmpted. Now
adays We use system Of checks and
lines which renders the process much
easier.
"After the horse has been thorough.
ly broken into each motion, then the
blindfold Is removed and the per-
former commences to try tricks with
him. The horse being naturally an
observsnt animal 10 placed ~ the side
of another, which Is trained to give
him confidence and 80 the two work
together, the rider first trying one
then the other by turns In order to
familiArizs the new arrival. 1t IL o
. great mistake to suppose that harsh.
ness is resorted to as means OF break.
Ing In circus horses. Horses 30 train.
cd are seldom to be depended upon,
and the rider never knows when he
may be left"
SIS turning q somersault on Q horse
more difficult than any other way2'
''Muoh moro difficult because OF the
peculiar motion. In fact, the perfor.
mer has to reverse completely the
ordinary mov ement he would make IL
he were merely dercendlpg to the
ground. Instead Of allghting on o
level plain he has to alight on an In
clined one. Pads are never used now
by performers of more than ordinary
merit. I have q horse that will run In
q 48 foot ring In less than $40. When
you connider that 1t Is necessary In one
act to turn four somersaults In one
revolution around the ring, you can
form Rome Idea of the diff ,ulty of the
feat. Agood, Intelligent animal will,
technically speaking, 'feol' his rider
and accommodate his motions 90
much as possible to his own
"Are horses sensible of the applause
of the audienoe2'
"Almost as much we are. 1t Ia
wonderful to contrast what a horse
will do under the stimulus of applau 10
with what he will do when the
audience is cold and phlegmatic
They are apt, however, just the same
a. we when the approval Is too stlmu.
lating. That ID one Of the reasons
for the several checks and reins that
you see circus horses provided with.
These are not by any means intended
for ornament, as some people suppose,
but are strlctly necessary"
"What Is the value of o we'll
trained circus horaes2"
II have just bought one from Bar
mum for 81 COO. As rule, riders
own their own horses exclusively. I
have two, Madame Roland has two,
Madame R)oler has also two. In all,
/ suppose there are from ten to o
dozen horses In Barnum's show that
are the property of the riders. This,
Of course, does not include the stock Of
trick horses"
"Do you groom your own animal.7'
"No. 1 have my own man
who attends to that, whom have to
pay. In fact, q thoroughly traine d
groom ID almost as necessary a. q
thoroughly trained horse, which
needs a. much care a baby. Prior
to every aot q horses back ID
rubbed with rosin to prevent the
performers feet from slipping
This has to be carefully washed
out after each performance, otherwise
1t would make the animals back sore
In a very short time. Then the feet
require we'll looking after. A groom
must also be something of veterinary
surgeon. He must also prevent the
animal taking cold. Some of my
blankets alone cost me $50 apiece"
"What would you do In the event
OF an accident to your horsel'
''TAke stock horse. There are ia
this circus some oight or ton horses
owned by the fem that have been pur-
chased for breaking In to the bushes.
just for such emergencies as you rug-
gest. They are fed upon the best Of
everything that money can procure.
OF course an accident to q horse be-
longing to performer would be Q
very seritui matter, hence the grea'
care that is required.
"Mr. Barnum has circus horse 70,
which he wouldn't take So, 900. There
are horses here money couldn't buy.
have also pure blooded, thorough
bred Arabian mare, perfectly trained
ono of the few In this country. A
lady performer has also an Eaglisl
hunter, that leaps four foot bar fou
times within a 48 foet ring. TIL,
Oldest horse in this show is 10 years
The average prime Is from eight to ter
years."
"Can you tell me II circus horse
make good roadsters!"