Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1884-11-26
Sharp Rivalry.

nose naming trl-COlOTeu posters
remind me-" said an old bill-sticker
to-day, "of my experience with two
circus agents in an Illinois town some
years ago. was the city bill-poster,
and owned all the sign-boards and ad-
vantageous sites for posting. More
than that. was the only bill-poster
in town. One night there was loud
knocking ut my door, and upon
answering it l at first thought that a
stranger had mistaken my house for
the doctors, for he was ont of breath
and talked very rapidly. l soon
learned his mission, however, for he
said: Excuse me for arousing you
at an unseemly hour, but it's a matter
of necessity. l am the advance agent
for F---'s circus. ! want to engage
every available inch of advertising
space that you command. BIS
agent came on the same train with
me, and | suppose will be here in five
minutes. We show OH the 10th, they
ON the 18th. Now name your price.
First come first served, l told him,
and as he said money was no object,
I agreed to stick his posters on every
board l had the next day at double
my usual price and pocketful OF
tickets for the show. l didn't get to
bed that night at all, for the first
agent hadn't turned the corner when
the representative of BIS great
moral show brought me to the door
by loud knocking. I told him he was
too late, that F. had engaged all
my space. But I must be posted il
I paint the sky with my bills, and
you must find something to stick them
to- I happened to think of several
vacant lots in prominent parts of the
town, and before morning the agent and
Ihad awakened the owner obtained the
exclusive right of erecting boards on
the lots. All next day I spent in
fairly covering the town with paper
advertising F--'s show. Meantime
I had high fences built around the
vacant lots, and the second day ]
spent in artistically daubing them for
BIS benefit. The town began to
take an interest in the rival circuses
Every show-window and half of the
private houses displayed handbills Of
one or the other Of them. Business
began to flourish. bought so much
lumber for new sign-boards that the
price ran up. Excitement became SC
general that the town council took
the matter up, and was granted the
privilege of putting up posters in the
courthouse yard. divided the space
between the two shows. Finally the
agents had second story added to
each prominent sign, and even Ian
terms were hung out at night to make
all the posters legible. F bribed
the janitor of the court house to dis.
play a streamer from the domes, and
B succeeded in having his colors
displayed from the steeples of two
prominent churches, F plaster.
ed the roof of the railroad station
with giraffes and zulus, and B.
rented large residence, which he
caused to dazzle with pictures Of
the alligator and the Circassian
woman. BY the time the first circus
was due there seemed to be nothing
in the bill-posting line that had not
been done. The very air was thick
with the odor of colored inks and
paints. But there was one great clos.
ing act. The morning Of the 10th
F--is day-was just the kind
Of day for big crowd; but for
some unaccountable reason the coun.
try people didn't show up very mum.
erously. One who came told why
He said that a few miles out on every
road leading to town, arches had been
built across the roads and on them
hung the words: The circus has
been postponed until tomorrow, the
11th. The tiger and the Zulus have
broken loose look out for your chill
dren and CATTLE
"F-- was so mad over the mean.
ness Of his rival that he actually post
poned his show until the next day
when the people came by thousands
There were enough people to FIJI both
tents, and before morning the crowds
of both shows commingled in one fra
ternal drunk. k."-Indianapolis News.