Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1888-08-03

90 10 S30 week Tor doing II, the contract !,
being usually made by the proprietor with |
the leader who has so many men to pro |
vide and paws them himself. When the |
of agents, biil-posters, tcketsell-
ers and so forth are added it can easily he
seen that $500 n day can easily 20 ia this
direction alone.
But expenses don't begin to stop here.
Advertising swallows mp some 800 or 800
Il day. Columns Of newspapers are taken
nd paid for, miles Of fences covered with
elaborate lithOgr obs costing from to
cents piece or even more, and windows
hlled with pictures of performers aud Dor
traits Transportation is heavy item now
a'days for many OF the circuses travel by
iraln almost entirely Baruum Robinson
Forepaugh and others own their own cars
to the number of fifty or more, but &C.
cOrding to the new Interstate commerce
law The charge for hauling these is a SER
lnuS item. In the old days contracts used
to be made by the trip whether long or
snort, but now mileage must be charged.
Even now only some of the outgoinq- have
been mentioned. Animals have to be fed
and so have human beings. The former
consume in an ordinary menagorie sew
erai tons of nay, and five or six hundred
pounds of hrea aud neat, while the horses
get through vast quantity of feed The
human empiOyt' are generally fed in u
special dining car q" during exhibition in
TIE cooking camp teir, the meals being
prepared by the regular circus cooks This
Item amounts probably to Sl5O a dav.
wAlle when ARRANGEMENTS are made with
local hotels the cost OF meals runs TO 81 "A
day head, this IN a majority ui eases he.
ing pal by the performer. and hands
themselves. me principal ri lrrs in many
stances also HOARD thelr own horses 70 the
EXPENSES above enumerated mus be add
CT the rent pad tor the ground on which
the tent l. pitched, the license fees. which
Ter
cdental7, while the interest on the sum
sunk in the purchase of animals for the
lnrnaGere, amounting ia the case of the
more Important shows to $l0O, 900, or even
inore, costumes for parade4, railroad
wagons and "tabln8uX cars" rs the hi0blv
ornate affairs used ia professions are c,l'
ed, ana 50 forth, comes to no iuconsidrr-
aple nuuh-r OF dollars. | suppose Bar
mum and Forep9ugh have between them
over million aud n half dollars iuyes ted
In stock OF this description
Wheu IN large towns the performers
generally board out in the smaller hotels,
or IN whar are termed professional
boarding houses. the proprietors of which
are accustomed 60 the WAYS and mnnners
OF their clients, but when on march the
railroad car takes the place of hotel or
boarding house Most of the performers
are married, and husband and wife are
ooth wage-earners in the ring. If they
nave no children ef their own it is not un-
commod with them to adopt one or more
IN order to train them no to the profession
aud thus secure probable support for
their old age The children, however are
usually left at home, the training process
occupying the winter months Thus the
three little children of Niue. DockrelI.
the famous woman rider now in Paris,
are being trained to follow their mothers
footsteps. At their home Is fitted up a
miniature ring, and when the parents are
travelling the chlcren are instructed by
relative. They have had the usual &C
cidents," said Nine Dockrell recently,
but they love their work and are fearless
riders"
Life on the road il far from easy, for a
circus company, unlike theatrical com
bination rarely t 'ns for more than a
single day in Uep''c Early in the
the trainmen and t, tmen 'egin to unload
the wagons and hau. out he tableaux
cars. Then the tent is pitched aud the
perf6 rmer5 assemble in tn dres ling tents
and prepare for the parade In this all
take part, and it is looked UPON hv the
principals as The prime nuisance Of the
day. The parade over the dressing rooms
are once more occupied, and soon all are
ready for the afternoons perfo nance
Discipline behind the scenes" is strict
indeed. a system OF fines keeps vagrant
SORTS IN check. and thodgh TO an out
d,
thing moves with the regularity of clock
work. Each ''turn" rs an appearance in
/ the ring is called has to be made to the
second, for should the performer be even a
trliie behind time he or she w0nld dsar-
range the whole schedule of the pro
gramme. But little skyl7rking il iudulg.
ed In, for al are intent on business. The
show over the people betake themseye~
eltner 10 their lodgings or to the camp"
tenn, snatch hearty meal and rest g
while before the evening show begins, al
tne close OF which "A ruth is made for the
train and the hunks in the sleeping cars ar
RAGGED so rs 10 occupy much less room than
those In a Pullman There are sometime
tnree or four tiers re soon occupied, and
before the tram Is under way the tireG
performers are asleep. The tent anC
tralnmen are the last to turn in for hey
have been engaged in striking the canvas
aud getting he animal cages and tableaul
cars safely on board. They work will
Incredible qnickness, however, and soot
all Is ship-sha1e and the train is rushing
onward with the slumberng crew to tn
next stopping place, where all begins owe
again.
HORACE TOWNSEND.