The Helena independent. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1875-1943, 1891-02-20
SHOCKED THE BUCKEYES.
Women in the Larger Towns Start
Crusade Against Giddy
Show Bills.
Advance Agents With Reams of
Catchy Paper Driven to
Utter Despair.
Decolette beauties In Abbreviated Skirts
Made to Look Like Demure PhIIn-
deIphin nunksresses.

SPENdFrELp, Ohio Feb. 19.--The posters
with which Ohio bill boards have been dc; :
GRATED this season to advertise the blonde
ana brunette" type OF performances have
become 80 loud" and suggestive that the
religious and moral element Of the commu-
nifty has been shocked without measure.
The Hentz-Santley beauties. Sam jacks
languishing Creoles and the houris OF half
dozen more "oggnesations' have looked
down on the bald-headed pedestrian OF
Ohio within the past few weeks in Spring
field. Dayton and the larger Ohio cities.
The ladies Of these cities finally concluded
to start crusade against the posting Of
these indecent pictures. In Dayton 80
successful were they that they prevailed
upon the city council to pass an ordinance
making the mayor Of the city the censor
of the show bills, which it was
proposed to post in the city. Before sim
gle lithograph ls posted it has to r1n the
gauntlet of the mayor. The mayor watches
the show bills and the ladies watch the
mayor. If he allows any bills to 90 up
where the skirts are even abbreviated he is
gravely waited on by committee of the
ladies with large, engrossed copies of the
ordinance. Nothing goes on the boards
but the most moral bills. 1t makes the ad-
vance agent of show with grand ballet
and quartet of skirt dancers want to 20
and hide somewhere when he finds that all
his elegant paper representing lovely maid
ems in violet tights capering around Cupid's
bower, is to be sidetracked and Gun never
be gazed at by the susceptible youths of
Dayton.
Springfield has stood the pictures good
while, but when the good ladies of the w.
G. r. y. saw what had been done in DAYTON
they woke to sense of their duty and i'm
mediately proceeded to go and do likewise
in Springfield. They went to see the mem
bers of the city council, and asked their CO.
op ration in endeavoring to suppress the
posting of indecent show bills. This was
readily given, and an ordinance WAS intro
duced last night aimed at the suppression
of such art. Right on the eve of this, in
came the advance agent for the May Dav-
enport Burlesque company, which has pic
lures of the most extravagant type. In
stead of posters, the lovely maidens of
'tbeAhow stand around the streets and dis
tribute handbills in the following choice
language.
City building. Tuesday evening, Feb. II,
Bnrlesque company. A bevy of bashful
young maidens. All bald heads furnished
with wig, front seat and tights. Don't let
it take brick bat to make You tumble.
Come early and avoid the rush at the
door,
The theaters would not book the com
pany, so it finally engaged the city hall for
day. The principal scene represents the
ladies of the ballet in elegant negiige in
drawing room. They are attired for the
most part in red tights and their native
modesty. Three of them are reclining in
languishing position on gorgeous
fanteil, with their little high heeled satin
slippers in coquettiahly elevated position.
Others are represented as charming zouaves
and simpering hussars. The principal
scene is fanked by small bills'' repre-
senting young ard beautiful skirt dan
GERS with their feet clasped in their hands
and both members high above their heads.
Other pictures of impossible beautiful fe-
males with abnormally developed lower
extremities occupy the boards, and alto
gether it forms about as glowing an exhi-
bition of nude art az Ed Stokes bar-room
in New York.
Was this tempting bower of beauty al
lowed to remain i'll all its loveliness? Not
much. Tonight the beauties ON the bill
board next to the grand opera house look
sadly out on cold world with their charms
obscured and hidden under prosaic white
paper which has been posted over them.
They are now presentable enough to move
in the best society as the friendly bill post
er has clothed them. if not fashionably and
according to the latest cut. yet at least
decently. The advance agent of the show
heard about the crusade against i'm
moral bills and concluded that ne had
better hedge by having piece of white
paper posted over the limbs and the
more suggestive portions of the picture.
The brilliant scheme was carried out.
Wherever shapelv limb showed itself in
the picture 1t WAS modestly covered by
white paper. The lovely busts and arms
of the decollette beauties of the company
Jared no better and were soon obscured by
decent white wrappers which make the
dizzy blondes look as demnre as lot of
quakeresses. If the show ever gets half the
laughter and applause that greeted the bill
poster when he was dressing the sylphs of
the ballet on those three-sheet posters, the
manager will think he has made the hit of
l, 10 fa