The Mason County journal. [volume] (Shelton, W.T.) 1886-1927, 1890-02-21
wet the canvas. |"

establishment. what are you going 10
wet the canvas fOr?"
Why" said, they always wet the
canvas"
81 guess you think this is magic
lantern show" said the man, with in
dignation. ''No, my boy, that dodge
don't work. These paintings are painted
right on the canvas, and this is grand
moving panorama of the IIarper's Ferry
Insurrection, and you don't get in with
no pail of water past me-
There was gloom and detection amoug
the boys when the nature of the show
was made known to them. We had no
time to make a new plan of campaign.
and the man at the door was memorable.
At last our agony was intensified by
hearing the lecturer begin his discourse,
and we on the outside. 1t was summer
and the windows were open, and we
could hear what he said as he pointed
out the beauties of the pictures showing
Harper's Ferry, and this set us wild. 1t
was agreed, however, that if we didn't
of the people shouldn't, and so we set up
the awfulest yell and howl that ever was
heard in that district The school-hOuse
was of wood with siding ON it, and by
means of stick we could make the most
frightful noise down along these clap
boards, and soon it became evident that
the lecturer inside was not able to make
himself heard He was very indignant
at this and threatened to stop the eX~
hibition, but somebody told him that if
he did stopit he would have to give back
the money and so there was a saw-off on
that. Finally he said:
isn't there enough people here to put
stop to this racket
The constable rose and said that if he
he would go out and see what could be
DONE
There's nothing to be DONE" said the
lecturer, Except to arrest the crowd:
that's what ought to have been done long
ago."
The cOnStable'S own son was one Of
the mob, and as soon as he heard that
his father was coming he cut under the
school house and hid. The constable
came out and said that if we didn't quit
! this noise he would arrest the whole
crowd of us. suggested that he would
| have to catch US first, which view of the
| subject seemed to commend itself to
him, and then one of the boys said
"Now, it's just like this, we are going to
see that show else the folks amt agoing
to hear it."
"Well,' said the firm constable, I'll
60 and talk to the man at the door and
see what he can do"
| So he went to the man at the door
and they had confab, and the con-
stable told him that he was pOwerleSs in
the matter and the best thing he could
do was to let usin-there were only half
| a dozen of us anyhow. the worst boys in
| the town, he said. and if he allowed US
to come in every thing would GO along
quietly.
| SO the constable's son crawled out
! from under the school house and the
rest of US got in and saw the great NOV
ing panorama of the Harper's Ferry in
surrection painted on the canvas.
| think the worst disaster that ever
took place in the show business in that
village was the affair at the acrobat
show. There came to the village a
troupe entitled the Royal Acrobats and
Grand Spectacular Exhibition of Con
tortionist Wonders. The Marvel of the
Age" This combination was refused
the use of the school-house. They had
no pictures of the flood or the animals
going into the ark. and their show was
not historical panorama that was ed
ucating and elevating in it's tone, so the
trustees agreed that it was not at all
The sort of thing to encourage. and they
refused to allow them into the school
house at all. Some years before man
had started to build in the village
tavern that was SO evidently too big for
he place, that people wondered at such
/ reckless waste of money. He almost
completed the downstairs part of thu
editice. when his money gave out, and
for several years this building stood a
monument to the reckleSSness of the
builder. The doors had been boarded
broken down, and we boys used to have
great racket throughout this building,
which we called 1.-The big Frame be-
cause it was the largest place in town.
The room that had been intended
for the bar-rOom. and which was one
of the amplest rooms in the house, had
been lathed and plaStered, and in this
building this acrobatic combination
agreed to give their show. This was
pie for the boys. We knew just exactly
now we could corral that show without
spending cent. In the afternoon of
the day that the show was to be held
we went up stairs in the big frame.
There was no stairway, but we boy,
climbed as we had often done before, an0
ne bored some dozen of holes through
The plaster in the ceiling so that W.,
could lie at our ease on the boards and
look down on the great aggregation as
we'll as the audience. On the upstairs
oists there was no flooring, but lOOst
boards here and there, and we arrange,
80 that we could lie on these rough
boards without making too much noise
so that IL would attract attention down
below. Every thing would have worked
well but for one little circumstance
The jOists were about two feet thick
and it was very difficult to get the eye
down to the hole in the ragged plaster
so as to command good view. Some
body was doing perilous acrobatic feat
on tight wire. bit the audience were
10 see an acrObatic feat that was to knOci
that silly in about two minutes, al
'hough none OF them knew it. The
light wire was almost out of the range
u vision, and one of the boys leaned
over to get better view, and fell head
'irst down on the frail lath and plaster.
lie would have been all right if he
aad lain Just were he was, for, though
The plaster fell in shower on the