Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1886-10-28
A MEDIEVAL CIRCUS.
Features Of Unique Performance in Il Ron
manian Village.

! During one of the days of my stay al
/ Bogsham the inn was the scene OF unus-
ual commotion, writes a correspondent OF
of the San Francisco Chronicle. A great
er number than ordinary filled the public
rooms, and everybody appeared TO be in
state of excitement. Upon inquiring
the cause | was pointed to rude placard
which hung upon the wall of the room,
| and which announced, partly in German
and partly in Hungarian, that circus
would be held in the large room of the
inn. Upon the placard were two horses
heads and two flags, which were supposed
to represent those of the United Empire.
All sorts of wonderful things were prom
ised in the programme, including gym
nastlcS, Rcrobatic feats, horse-riding, bal
let-dancing, and so forth. The prices for
admittance we're: Front row land bring
your own chair. 80 kreutzers; second
row I to sit on benchesl. 20 kreutzers;
third row Ito stand up), 10 kreutzers;
children, half-price performance to be-
gin at 1880. By O'Clock, and before the
remains of the evening meal we're cleared
away, the doors of the inn were besieged
by crowd of peasants and boys who had
come to see the show. They peered in
through the windows and half-opeded door
and although frequently repulsed by the
landlord came again and again, apparent
ly much edited by sight at the grand
folks in the DINING room, whose man
ners of eating and drinking and smoking
and talking appeared to them quite won
derful
Before the crowd was admitted ! went
into the large room to see what prepara-
tions had been made for the circus Be
tween this and the dining room was the
small apartment previously mentioned,
and in which we're now congregated a
gypsy family, consisting Of a man and
wife and eight children, the woman hold
ing babe to her breast, As it turned out
afterward, the principal performers were
the father of this numerous family, a girl
of about - years OF age and two small
boys aged 10 TO u. The latter we're the
clowns, and, although their extreme juve-
nifty did not promise much amusement,
they turned out to be really very clever.
Behind the screen in corner of this
small room was a rude bed, in which,
was told, the whole family slept together.
Going into the large room beyond,
found that no preparations had been
made for the circus, nor as | afterwards
learned, were any needful, the entire prop
critics consisting of pony, slack-wire,
hand organ, few chairs, and a couple
of bits of old carpet. At 1880 o'clock the
doors were opened and a crowd or peas
ants entered the dining room and passed
through the small apartment TO the large
room. In the course of five or ten min
ptes this was crowded TO suffocation, and
when later on the distinguished guests
were admitted. who were to occupy the
front seats, they had to elbow their way
through a mass of some two hundred peo-
pie.
The performance commenced with the
wonderful pony who trotted about the
boarded floor Of the room and stood on
his hind legs, and laid down and permit
ted the gypsy girl to sit upon him and
fondle him and tease him and do all man
ner of things with him, until she was re-
lieved by the two clowns, who went
through bit of clever comedy acting,
and for their reward received largesse
from the distinguished guests, whose
hands they kissed when they received the
money Then the maiden again appeared
this time upon the slack wire, TO the slow
music of the hand-organ, and when this
was over there were lofty tumbling feats
by the father and the two boys, who were
now changed from clowns TO acrobats.
Then the distinguished guests were again
importuned fer largesse, and the recip-
lent who was the mother with the baby,
kissed their hands as the boys had done,
and went back TO her place which was at
the door whore the money was taken for
admission, | was as much amused in
watching the audience as the perform
apce. The men were all clothed in sheep
skins, all smoked, all laughed boisterously
at the sallies of the clowns, and all ap-
peared to enjoy themselves amazingly.
They were rough, sturdy lot, and locked
down with a good deal of content upon
the women. OF the latter. the only come
ly ones were between rhe ages of - and
20 but many of them were thin and hag-
gard. Beyond the age of 20 they looked
Prematurely old and were weather-beaten
and deeply marked with lines of care.
During the performance one of the men
set fire to his sheepskin coat with his Gig
arctic, and this occasioned a good deal of
commotion. After the fire was extin-
guished order was restored and the smok.
ing went on as before, until the room be-
tdhlt ~ lOhl bluV oAic bDulu Hdlulg Sbt
across it.
The performance wound up with pan
tomime, in which the gypsy girl and an
other little girl and the two boys took
part. One of the boys is cobbler, the
gypsy girl is his wife. The other boy is
a gentlemen who comes to be measured
for pair of shoes, and the other little
girl is his wife. The gentleman no soon
er enters the cobbier's stall then he falls
in love with the cobbler's wife. The
cobbler gets jealous beats his wife, and
drinks himself into a state of insensibil-
ity, of which the gentleman takes advan-
tage by picking the cobbler's pocket and
stopping with his wife. The cobber re-
covers his senses and revenges himself
by making love TO the gentleman's wife;
whereupon the gentleman returns, sur
prises the cobbler and pitches into him.
In this encounter the cobbler gets the
upper hand and compels the gentleman
to cry out for mercy, and that the elope-
ment was only a bit of innocent Irritation.
This explanation satisfies me cobbler,
who takes back his own wife and releases
the gentleman's wife, when all parties
shake hands and the pantomime comes
to happy end
Simple as this plot is, it was very cley-
erly carried ont by the children, and 20
.I,.. a L Il