The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1886-06-11
TIE OLD-TINIE CIRCUS.
Some Experiences of Tented Shows In tho
Backwood1owns.


Milwaukee Sentinel.
'The good old days of circus fights
nave gone, but there is an occasional
row between canvasmen and tough cit.
liens that brings back most vivid rec
elections OF the lively long ago.
The speaker was Charlie Bell, the
lecturer at the dime museum. Mr..
Bell has been identified with tent
shows ever since he a. three years
old. being descended from II circus
family.
"Why, it was no longer ago than
last SUMNER" continued Mr.. Bell,
that l was compelled to take a hand
in about as lively a fracas as | ever
witnessed. There was no one killed
outright, but there was some fearful
hard knocks given. 1t vas in a town
called Wall Lake, out in Nebraska.
The day before the riot we showed in
another town. forget the name now
about twenty miles from Wall
Lake. After the afternoon per-
Torrance there ives q party of
us sitting on the hotel stoop, when
we heard cries for help. 1t seemsthat
four toughs had set on the Sheriff,
and it was his shouts we heard. Well,
we went to the officers assistance,
and with our aid he managed to give
the thugs q terrible humping. The
news travelled ahead OF us to Wall
Lake, and by the time it reached
there it was magniiied into q state
ment that the circusmen had cleaned
out a town Just below. This put the
Wall Lake thumpers or their mettle,
and they decided to make mischief.
Before the show opened in the alter
noon l noticed a rough-looking, red
whiskered fellow, who had come into
town especially to make trouble. Sure
enough, during the afternoon show
the fellow with the red w%hiskers was
on hand, primed for q row Hestood
up in front OF the reserved seats, so as
to obstruct the view of some of the
people. l was playing clown, and I
courteously asked him to sit down,
but he refused.
"'See here said !, you sit down or
you'll be knocked down
lis that so?' said he. 'Mebbe
you've cleaned out n town, but you
can't clean out Wall Lake
''He no sooner had the words out
OF his mouth than 'biff' went a can
vasman's fist in his face, and the
crimSon-bearded desperate was kicked
out OF breath beneath the canvass"
and the speaker laughed heartily as he
recalled the scene.
"While the evening show was going
on" continued Mr.. Bell, 1--WE had the
ranvasmen all ready for q iracas.
The manager gave out instructions to
fight ii necessary, but not to kill any
body. Well, we We're a little surprised
that they did not interrupt the show,
but when we were packing up the
tough citizens clustered around and
watched us, but made no attack. |
noticed the r~ed-headed chap saying
something TO the crowd, when they all
hurried Off. We had lett our band
wagon down town i'll front OF a livery
stable, and the minute | saw that
gang wheel off | surmised that they
were going to break up the Wagon
Now, it was q very elaborate affair,
and we dld not propose to allow it to
be sacrificed, SO we hurried after them
and sure enough, they had almost
torn one side off the Wagon when we
reached there. We sailed into the
gang. The administered leader, as
soon as he saw real fight ahead.
made a break for his horse to Get out
OF town, but he didn't get faN One OF
the boys fired at the horse and killed
1t, and then Jumped on Mr.. Red-Whis-
kerS and Just caressed him with q
stake until his mother wouldn't have
known him. Well, we got the best o.
1t, and We had twenty-five OF our as
sallants stretched out on the hotel
stoop, all unable to walk after the
licking we had given them. And the
beauty OF 1t was that the sheriff ar
rested the whole twenty-five and they
all went up for a couple OF months for
disturbing the peace.
"les, clrcusmen generally get the best
OF such tighcs, because they are better
organized, and then they are iightin,
Tor aprinciple. They are Just like men
defending their homes, and that makes
them hit hard. Still | have heard OF
clrcusmcn getting the worst of the fra
cas-. Did you eve hear how Dan Rice
rot square with the Troy thugs? Well,
I'll tell YOU
Troy has yet the reputation OF be-
ing the toughest town in New York
state, ana twenty years ago it was q
terror. Well, Dan Ricc's show was
mobbed there one night, and the cir
cuSmen wereall ~quiteroughly handled.
The next day Dan telegraphed to his
advance agenttoGo back and billI'rov,
as the show would 90 back there agair
When the Troy rowdies saw thereturn
of the show annDDnreI tbav cp,;,o1
grlmly, and promised to demolish it
entirely this time. In the meantime
Rice went to New York and engaged 100
singers, regular short-haired brutes
who would rather fight than eat. He
brought them to Troy with the show.
In the evening the tent was filed, but
there wasn't a single lady in theentire
audience. Dan had his hundred pueil-
lists scattered through the audience,
and had the canvasmen ready to
Jump in at the word. Well, the show
went along all right until Dan was in
the ring doing his famous act with his
ollnd horse. There was something
thrown INTO the ring by one Of the
spectators. That was enough. Dan
yelled, Hay, Rube,' and those hun
dred pugillsts began their work in row
nlstyle. 'Bif!' bang went their pom
aerous blows right and left, and you
could see men falling in all directions.
Ihe clrcusmen were soon into the
melee, and how they did pulverize the
Troy toughs! 1t was four or five
years before the bad men OF Troy
ever tackled another circus"