Omaha daily bee., 1888-03-02
SELLING A SHOW AT AUCTION
Circus Curiositfes Knocked Down
Cheap for Cash.
SPIRITED BIDDING FOR LIONS
Elephants and Tigers In Small De.
mand-Prices for the Cages OF
the Doris show-selling
the Ring Stock.

st. Louis Globe Democrat, Feb. %;
The heavy and steady down-pour OF rain
yesterday morning was not sufficient to
dampen the ardor of the showmen who
were in attendance at the great sale of
effects at the Doris Il Calvin show. An
old circus man has had too much ex-
perience with bad weather to mind
little rain, and there were fully a hum
dred would-be purchasers on hand, when
kirk, OF the Block & Selkirk firm,
mounted stool in the old carriage build
ing and announced that the days per-
formance would begin with the sale Of
the animals.
This is what the big showmen had
come for. On the preceding day when
the costumes and miscellaneous traps
were sold, there were lot of junk
dealers on hand. Yesterday the out
slders were horsemen from Broadway,
looking for bargains in their line.
The menagerie, as has been explained,
is located in the south half of the car
riage building, and the cages are ar
ranged in circle.
THE BIDDERS.
It was expected that the competition
would be quite brisk between the rep
resentatives of the Bailey, the
O'Brien, the Sells, the Orrens,. the
Robinson, the McFlynn and the Fore
Bingley and Ferguson and Fontaine
were understood to be on the look out
for cages and wagons.
The first animal put under the ham
mer was q beautiful gazelle with long
horns. When the creature was knocked
down to Bingley for $40. and moment
later he bought the cage for $86, Doris
face fell, and he CALCULATED his disgust.
The running gear of a menagerie cage
is alone worth $3.50. Dens can not be
turned out of the shop for less than
$3.50. The gazelle was worth $3.50 il he
was worth a nickle.
Next white llama and cage
was given to Bingley for $l5l, about
one-half the value of the cage. =.
Bingley next secured two ferocious
little wildcats for Sc, and wanted the
two kangaroos, but George Fisher, of
the Robinson show, scooped them in.
paying e93 for both. Mr.. .Bingley was
permitted to buy the cage for $58.
Next in line came villainous-lookipg
spotted hyena, which Selkirl1 said would
make good Watchdog. Frank Frayne,
the actor, had mailed an offer of $40,
but Bingham bid $3.50, and got the
varmint without opposition.
VERY Low: PRICES.
A beautiful sable antelope from South
Africa was run up. to, SlT0. He can
be bought in London for $400, Receiver
Delano refused to accept the $l7O offer
Of John O'Brien, and the antelope WIS
~ A ~,,A la a
day and brought $l55, this time Fore
much excited, and every moment add
dressed the crowd about the ruinous
prices which the ANIMALS, and particu-
larly the cages, were being seld.
The bidding for zebra broken to har
ness was quite spirited. The beast cost
Doris 500, but Henry r. Barnum only
had to pay 5000 for him.
Then Betsy, the elephant, was sold.
Doris cxpatiated upon her good quail
ties, her great age, her arniability and
cleverness, and said that he had paid
"a, 100 for her. The Sells, Forepaugh,
Robinson or Orrins put in no bid for
her. John O'Brien was the means of
running the price up to 800, at which
figure It passed into the hands OF Nc
Flynn, who is running 10c show in the
south.
Some Of the showmen, did not think
that McFlynn had struck much OF a bar
gain, for the elephant is in a very bad
physical condition, but he replied that
he was without an elephant and that
the country people will stand the alb
sence of any feature of show except
that of the elephant.
Doris was furious at the price the
elephant brought, and Selkirk made a
division by endeavoring to sell the ele-
plants chain Tor So 400 to make UP the
elephants seal value Of S4,1O0.
A beautiful Flack deer, catalogued as
an English black deer, the only one in
the country, passed to Bingley for 823,
He paid S75 for the cage.
THE PERFORMING LIONS.
Then came the event Of the auction
the sale of the finest den OF performing
lions in this or any other country. All
the big showmen had their eyes on it..
At the request OF Receiver DelanO, the
trainer, Pearl Saunders, went into the
cage, accoutered AS ne was, in his
working clothes, and a long overcoat,
and put them through their remark
able performance. Saunders never lets
day go by that he docs not enter the
den. George Conklin never enters the
cage with his lions in the winter. He
Iears 10 nAnule tnem except unaer
tent and surrounded by all the familiar
details OF circus life. John O'Brien
| started off the bidding with
an offer of $l,20O. John Fore
paugh and George Orrin immedi-
ately entered the contest. O'Bricn
dropped out Mt 90 900, and Henry Bar
mum then came in. At $1,000 Fore
paugh quit, and then it lay between
Barnum and Orrin, each making s. bids.
Orrin's last bid was s2,S75. Barnum
studied deeply for several minutes and
then shook his head in the negative.
The crowd had closed about the rival
showmen as they bid against each other
and dead silence, barring the voice OF
the auctioneer, prevailed. Orrin
breathed sigh of relief when the lions
were declared his, and Mt once began to
try and sell the performing den, for
which he has no use. The lions will be
sent to the Orrin show at the City OF
Mexico, and are lost to America. Orrin
also opened negotiations with Saunders
to accompany them.
Next magnificent lioness, mother OF
two of the performing quartet, was taken
in by John Forepaugh for $3.50. She is
worth $500. Bingley bought her den
for S7l. Then Bingley bought lioness
dirt cheap at s85, but a st. Louisan, who
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