The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1891-10-04

Batty faintnd outright. But the little boy
calmly walked up t. the big lion and fixed
on his collar again, coming out unscratched.
When Mr.. Batty arrived upon the scene his
first impulse was To spank his apprentice for
foolhardiness, and this impulse was acted
upon. But on consideration. and when it
became known that the lad really could
handle the animals well and fearlesSly, the
prOprieLor'S attitude changed, and at once
all Batty's bills announced in the most up
roariou>ly large letters possible, the appear
ance nightly of John Cooper, aged II, the
youngest liOn-tamer in the world"
With Batty's Mr.. Cooper stayed till of
age, and after three years with Mrs. Ed
mond'S menagerie, began a long COntinrn-
tai career by accepting an offer of Herr
REM a wel-knOwn German Snowman.
For seventeen years lie wandered about the
Continent, with one menagetie and another,
until he knew Europe all over as well as his
native Birmingham.
His most serious mishap occurred at Brns-
sells while Myers circus was performing
there. 1t was winter, and CoOper'S lions
were dying from the effects of the severe
weather. On the day of the accident two
new lions. perfectly wild, had arrived from
Hamburg. Now, it was always one If
CoOper's boasts that all his training went on
openly before the eyes OF the public, and
that he could 60 among unframed animals
equally well before the public or in private.
So the new beasts were turned in among
the others in the evening. and Cooper went
into the cage. The theater was full to
overfiO wing, and the audience certainly
witnessed a sensational performance.
Scarcely had the trainer entered than one
of the new limos and one Of the old ones be-
gan desperate fight. Cooper took his whip
and started in TO quell the disturbance. In
striking at the old lion, however, he man
aged 10 give the new one a smart cut and
the savage beast Immediately flew upon
him, and. planting its claws on his left
sbouldar fDra 1ONVn all a flch ha
shoulder and breast. Raising his right arm
to drive the lion off, the hand and arm were
seized by the brute's teeth and the bone laid
bare from elbow to wrist. The other ami
mails, as of course is their wont, were not
slow to take advantage of the position Of
affairs and soon the tanners leg was bitten
through and other injuries inflicted. 1t
seems scarcely credible that during all this
time the man never for an instant lost his
presence of mind, and, with all his fearful
injuries, continued to whip the brutes into
subsection, and actually succeeded in doing
so before making good his exit from the cage
There is not an animal which you might
put before him, whether a stranger or an
old friend, that Cooper cannot label, class
ify and tell you all about at glance. BE
will say at once: This lion is good
tempered fellow. but he is in bad humor
Just for a time" or THAT tiger is dan
gerous beast but quite safe just at pres
emit" He is a sort of animal physiog-
nomist. and knows what passes through
brute's brain almost as well as the brute it.
self. He seems to know what an animal
will allow and what it will object TO by in
stinct.
Another secret of Mr. Cooper's success is,
perhaps. that he is almost a teetOtaer, never
drinking anything stronger than light din
ner wine. He has strong opinion, which
he often expresses, that nearly all the fatal
accidents to performers with wild animals
have been due to intemperance, often COM
bined with or leading to brutality.