Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1890-01-04
Written for THE EVENING STAR
CIRCUS MEN IN WINTER.
What Becomes of the Heroes in Span
giles and fights.

giles and fights.
PROTECTING THEIR ACTS AT DIFFERENT POINTS
SCHOOLS WHERE NovIcEs ARE rAUeHr-How
HORSES ARE TRAINED FOR THE RINa-A SCENE
IN A PRACTICE BARN.
What do circus people do in winter? What
becomes during the cold weather, when, though
lost to sight they are still to memory dear. of
all those dashing looking men with black
mustaches and those lovely pink and white
young women with preternaturally statuesque
arms and legs, who, in tights, spangles and
gauze skirts, go flying around the sawdust cir
cles on bareback steeds during the heated
term, delighting the rural mind and breaking
the rest of rural youth. Do they initiate the
robin, who, according to the familiar nursery
rhyme, when
The north wind doth blow and we shall have snow"
will
go to the barn to keep himself warm,
Ana put his head under his wing, poor thing"
1t seems strange that while the newspapers
ueVote 50 much space to the sayings and doings,
the fortunes and misfortunes of actors and
actresses. they seldom or never refer to circus
people, though, from the fact that the number
OF persons connected with every circus is many
tlmes greater than that comprised by the
largest dramatic company, the sawdust folks
are more numerous class than the children of
Ihespis, while from the hazardous, gipsylike
character OF their profession. their daily lives
are frau5ht with much deeper romantic inter
est than those of the wearers of the sock and
buskln. In Berlin. Vienna, Dresden, Hamburg.
Paris. Lyons and st. Petersburg there are large
winter clrcuses," where the sports of the
arena may be enjoyed throughout the cold
season and the press of those cities devotes
quite as much attention to the artists of the
sawdust circle as to the votaries of the stage.
DOUBTLESS the same would be the case in our
own country If winter crcuses were main
tanned In our large cities, but, though there
can be little doubt that such establishments
would pay handsomely in New York, Boston,
fhliadelphla. Chicago and ST. Louis, yet there
Is not single place of the kind in this country.
PRACTICING BARNS.
II we visit Frankfort, a suburban part of
Philadelphia; Fordham, NY; Newark, Nj,
and West Chester, Pa, we shall learn the
answer to our question: What do circus people
do In winter? We shall find that like the robin
above mentioned, they do indeed go to the
barn to keep themselves warm, if not to put
their head under their wing. To put it more
plainly, there are maintained at each of the
places have named large ''practicing barns"
as they are technically called, supplied with
regular forty-two feet circus ring, in which the
circus people promote the circulation of the
blood by practicing their acts all through the
cold season. When a circus performer accumu-
lates money he invariably invests 1t in farm
on which to pass his time when resting from
his professional labor, and such people usually
have practlcing barn of their own for indi-
vidual use. Less fortunate members of the
profession spend their winters at some one of
the four places have named, in order to enjoy
the advantages for practice afforded by the
public practicing barns, which are the property
OF some circus manager or retired performer.
Not only do they practice their old acts but
they learn new ones as well. besides breaking
and training new horses to the ring-a task of
no inconsiderable magnitude. Every rider is
required by circus managers to furnish his own
horses and the principal artists usually keep
from two to four. These they are compelled to
maintain during the winter at their own
expense. Young people DESTROYS Of becoming
riders are also instructed in their chosen pro-
fession in these practicing barns during the
cold season.
GROUP OF PERFORMERS.
1t was a strange sight that met my gaze as
strolled into one of these practicing barns the
other day. A motley group of circus perform
ers was gathered about the ring in which
beautiful young girl of about sixteen years was
taking her first lessons in bareback riding.
There were two or three handsome young
women among them with their two or three
husbands, and their two or three mothers and
their eight or nine little children, who do the
one OF these interesting families was in the
habit OF balancing the father of another Of the
families on the top of great pole. The father
of third family often made pyramid of both
those fathers, with his youngest son for the
apex and himself standing upon two horses for
the base. All the fathers could dance upon
rolling casks, stand upon bottles, catch knives
and balls, twirl hand basins, ride upon any,
thing. Jump over anything and stick at moth
ing. All the mothers could (and did do fiy-
mo anta har xaI OF de
them were at all particular in respect of appear
ing in tights One of them drove four-in- hand
alone in a Greek chariot through every town
in which she appeared. They all assumed to
be mighty rakish and knowing, yet there was a
remarkable genteness and childishness about
these people, special inaptitude for any kind
OF sharp practices and an untiring readiness to
help and pity one another, deserving as much
respect and much generous consideration
as the virtues OF any class of people in the
world.
THE YOUNG LADY NOVICE
on the horse III the ring was prevented from
falling by an ingenious device called "a me-
chanic." 1t consisted of long iron upright
pole firmly fixed in the center of the ring. From
the top Of this pole there extended horizon
tai arm long enough to reach over that part of
the ring where the horse travelled. 10 the
outer end of this arm was attached block
pulley, over which passed rope. of which one
end was hooked into the girls belt, while the
other was held in the center of the ring by her
instructor SO that he could raise or lower his
pupil at will and thus keep her always on the
horses back, the arm of the mechanic being
made to pass around the ring by means of a
crank hear the base OF the pole, which was
turned by an assistant.
THAT girl is a very promising pupil" said her
instructor, in response to a question from me,
as he paused by my side in the center of the
ring. Teaching young folks to be circus
riders Is very different now from what it was
when learned my profession" he continued.
l was apprenticed to learn bareback riding
when was five years of age-the period Of
life at which We all began in those days. So
cieties for the prevention Of cruelty to children
have put a stop to that by causing the enact
ment in many states of laws prohibiting the
employment in hazardous performances of
boys or girls under sixteen years of age. There
was very little hazard in learning the business
for every precaution was always taken. by the
method you see, to guard pupils against acct
dent. Still must confess that some OF the old
circus instructors handled their pupils pretty
roughly sometimes, occasionally giving them a
severe cut with the whip. For my own part, l
never did a horse an injury yet, no more than
swearing at him went, aud can say the same
as regards my pupils"
TRAINING HORSES.
"How are horses trained for the ring?" 1
asked.
''You mean the horses upon which riders per-
form their feats? Well, to answer that aues-
ton l will begin by saying that the best age at
NH oh 10 frot hora .cf -