The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1891-01-28

of unusual intelligence, and his real life
has been romance as thrilling as novelist
ever portrayed, for he acquired some of his
"cutest' tricks of horsemanship while a
captive among the Indians.
He isn't very old, either-only 73-for his
fame was great in his early manhood. He
lives at Franklin, Essex county, n. j.,
where he owns comfortable, old fashioned
house and eighteen acres of land. He is in
easy circumstances and good health, fond
of chat, and has a whole trunkful of
medals, testimonials, presents, mementoeS
and the like from all sorts and conditions
of men, from Prince Albert and the lord
mayor of London to Artemus Ward and
George d. Prentice. 1t was in 1851 when
all the world was crowding to see the first
Crystal Palace, that Mr.. Stone rode at
Drury Lane, and Queen Victoria and her
husband first saw genuine bareback riding.
Eaton Stone was born in Burlington,
VT, Jan. s, 1918. At the age of 10 he ran
off with Buckley & Wick's circus, which
advertised as the greatest in America"
and had canvas capable of seating 1000
people. No other show in the country
could hold half so many. The musicians
put up and took down the tent, the riders
cared for their own horses, except the one
equestrienne, and the clown had to serve
as hostler for her. The manager records
as an extraordinary proof of his success
that he occasionally cleared So by a single
performances AT the end of the year Eat
ons father found and took him home, but
he soon ran away again and joined Purdy,
WEIGH & Co. s circus, with which he be-
came an equestrian.
Then came a strange episode. His err
| ratio disposition took him to the Cherokee
Indians, among whom he remained several
| years. He was then captured by the Pot
| tawatomies, and in a year among them
quite won their hearts by his skill as a
| rider. He escaped after some desperate
adventures, and in 1910 joined Raymond's
circus, with which he first took rank as the
champion bareback rider. In 1916 he ex-
hibited his so called "Indian bareback
feats' in New York city, exciting an inter-
est like that created in Europe by Buffalo
Bill, and in 1851 he went to England He
says that in some of the remote towns the
English DULLES would try to crowd into
the ring, in which cases he would let his
horse loose and utter wild Indian yells and
war whoops, which would scatter them.
His English experience ended in disas-
partners ran off with what they could
grab, and Mr.. Stone paid $4,000 debts out
of his own pocket. The English applauded
his honesty, and 200 gentlemen joined in a
banquet and testimonial to him at Bir-
mingham. For the next fifteen years he
was the champion of America; then his
suppleness began to fail, and in 1868 he re-
tired from the ring. Den. Stone remained
a clown till 1886, and now lives in Elan
ders, n. J. He has a daughter, but Eaton
and wife have had no children.
Some of Mr.. Stones mementoes are ex-
tremely interesting. One, presented to
him by P. [. Barnum, is a curiously chased
gold watch and gold chain containing
$4,000 minute links. The whole weighs
two pounds and three ounces. Another is
a medal presented by sixty gentlemen in
New York. 1t is of solid gold, surrounded
by a wreath and set with thirteen dia-
monds representing the original states
Five times in his career Mr. Stone suffered
by falls, being borne from the ring insen-
sible on two occasions. One of his famous
feats was always supposed by the audience
to be an accident and recovery This was
to fall backward and grab the horses tai
as he fell. After being dragged some dis
tance he would climb over the animal.
rump to his seat again. Such were the
acts that delighted the boys of 1850 anG
thereabout.