The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1889-05-09
How the Circus Idea Took
Possession of the Jeun-
esse Doree of
Three Coun-
tries.
A NEW VOCATION FOR DUDES.
Nobility on the Sawdust---Various
Items of Interest for Ladies to
Pass Time Over.

The Editor Of the JERSEY CITY
NEWS presents has compliments to the
ladies Of Jersey CITY, and respectfully
Sn0Stes their cooperation IN making
this column a feature Of general inter
est and utility. Information and Sug-
geStions are earnestly solicited, and
assurance is gdoen that all commampS-
cations a0dU 9ece50e immediate and
careful attention, and a0dU be regarded
as strictly confidential If the aoqSters so
desire.
Fashions travel rather slowly from
Europe to this country. 1t is now as
much as two years and a half since
the fashionables quartered for the
winter at Pau devoted their energies
to an amateur circus performance.
That unique representation which
was given in the Theatre DIES Varieties
was an immense success. All the seats
were taken a month in advance and
such a brilliant and fashionable audi
ence had rarely been seen before in
in Pau, and that is saying a good
deal. William X. Thorn, Jr., of New
York, fairly astonished the natives by
his agility, grace and daring. BLACK"
Mr.. Cruger's poodle, who wore the
gold medal around his neck awarded
to him the previous summer for rescu-
ing a drowning man at Biarritz,
performed under the auspices of his
owner. Baron d Este did e~xcellently,
but Alfred Torrance carried all before
him; he was simply marvellous. He
rode standing, danced, and was so
easy aud graceful that the braves were
fairly deafening when he came for
ward to accept the crown offered him
by the Societe d Encouragement.
Count Fritz Metterhich was much adj
mired. But there was fairly delirious
applause when a large, handsome girl
bounded into the ring. She wore a
pale blue satin corsage and a number
of short muslin skirts of the same
color. The ring-master assisted her
on her horse, and she stood and danced
on his bare back.
She was laden with bouquets and it
was only when she came forward to
bow that the slight blonde mustache
of NJ. de Cuadra was noticed under
the thick coating of poudre de riz.
The receipts were enormous. They
were handed over to a town charity.
Since then the swells of Paris, and
other Continental cities have amused
themselves trying to become acfobats,
- o-, ar11 Ar,o n1auASn1o Pour yoonfhn
since this fad reached England, and
an amateur performance was recently
given by the mobility and gentry
at the Royal Riding School, Hyde
Park. In this case the ladies assisted,
probably being more accustomed to
riding and jumping over fences than
the fair denizens of the Continent.
This new fancy having taken root,
there is no telling where it will lead.
Certainly a. procession of freaks would
add to the naturalness and could
easily be selected. After a while, no
doubt, instead of the stagestruck
amateurs we will have circus maniacs.
The male professional beauties will
probably not be anxious to disfigure
themselves as clowns, but prefer to be
ringmasters. This is a snowy, central
position, rather safe, and with a little
practice they can easily become quite
expert at tossing the young lady
riders on to their saddles. 1t will
take some time to become accustomed
to the new order of things. Instead
of admiring the love lorn Romeos with
their far-away chances, the girls will
have to transfer their attentions to
some brawny, muscular individual
with stony, sawdust stares. In one
of the old,comedies, where an entire
household are represented as being
stage struck, the different members of
the family and the housemaids are
wandering around with their several
parts, which they are to personate in
some theatricals, studying and recit-
ing and gesticulating. Now, proba-
bly,, they will be occupied glueing
large sheets of paper on to hoops, and
sewing spangles on to pointed bits of
silk and satin. 1t seems that during
the last two or three years women of
a better class than in former years
have taken to going on the stage.
Naturally, they were in need of money,
and took to the theatre because they
could make more than in any other
fashion.
Now, the circus will open another
avenue of employment, as they are al
ways talking about, for the women.
Some poor timid souls may hold back
for a while, but habit is everything.
Then, if a reduced lady happens to be
real heshy, see what a salary she
command as a fat lady, and no trouble
either, and some of the little impecu-
NOUS dudes can be somewhat more
dissipated than usual for a month or
two and order their clothes made skin
tight instead of baggy, and there they
are, $500 a week skeleton dudes. OF
course they don't really have to ac-
cept a Castle Garden bride. In one
way the girls of the period will
be ready without any training.
1t seems the fair equestriennes
of the ring wear everything fearfully
tight, they wear the Suggest bodices
and tights possible. Then there is
one real nobleman in the ring and
there is none at present on the stage.
He has quite a story. His father,
Captain Poulett, nephew and heir of
the Earl of Poulett, married in 1849 a
handsome young girl of respectable
but inferior parentage to his own. His
family would never have anything to
do with the couple, and the gallant
Captain finally became tired of his
alienation from the style of people he
was accustomed to and deserted his
young wife and infants SON.. The Captain
succeeded to the title and estates in
80