Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1892-07-21
sTUPENDoUs SELLS BROTHERS.
Coming Of the Big Show Of the World.
The coming to Great Bend on Mon


Coming of the Big Show Of the World
The coming to Great Bend on Mon
day next, of Sells Brothers, mammoth
and marvellous amusement enterprise
is heralded by an international chorus
of delighted compliments from millions
of tongues and hundreds of nsNsn
papers, in which America and Aus
tralia join in tones which echo and re-
echo clear across the wide Pacific.
Recently returned from its memorable
six months tour of New South Wales.
Victoria, South Australia and Queens
land, it comes crowned with such
foreign recognition as no other epter-
tainment has ever obtained. The Aus
tralian press is a unit in recognizing
that not one of its big advance prom
ises was permitted to go to protest. AS
an example of the impression it created
in strange land and among stranger
cities, we learn from an extended notice
in that great Australian daily, the
Melbourne Age, of 18th of January
last, that sit must be pronounced
brilliant success. for it may be safely
said that no such panorama of wonders
has ever before been unfolded to a
Melbourne audience" That "all is
so good it would be hard to pick out
any particular item as being the most
worthy of praise" and that ''it would
take too much space to mention in
detail all the wonderful performances
on horseback and foot that were given"
That the traces were splendidly con-
tested, and furnished brilliant spec
tacles." OF the startling and weird
performances by the only troupe of
Bedouin warrior gymnasts, it says:
Decidedly one of the strongest and
most fascinating displays was given by
the troupe of Arabs. These are led
into the arena by their chiefs, land
after a preliminary war dance some
surprising feats in the art of handling
weapons are given. Some attack each
other with the Arab creeses, others
with swords, and whilst these latter
contests were going forward there were
not few amongst the audience who
held their breath. The men were
armed with sword and buckler, and
they engaged in combat with the SEEM
ing ferocity that characteristics combats
in the desert. Thrust, cut, parry-the
blows fall on the steel bucklers Of the
fighters like hail. and when it is lsaid
that the slightest mistake with the
shield must mean mortal wound-for
the swords are as keen and sharp as
ever used in an Arab fray-the extreme
skill of the wielders can be estimated.
But the eyes Of the swarthy warriors
are as true and their hands as sure as
the steel of their swords. and never
breathing pause took place in the
lightning exchange of blows. They
run scarcely any risk, for they are war
riors of the desert, and the descendants
of long line of warriors who have
been trained to these games from child
hood; but all the same it is highly ex-
citing for the spectators to watch.
There are some other feats by these
Arabs almost as wonderful. One of
them will take up the long rife that
they use, and by one finger twirl it
round and round at such a rate that 1t
is almost impossible to tell there is any
thing in his hand; whilst another
would perform the same feat with the
rife unbalanced on the back of his
elbow. Then again they are splendfdly
: 1.-the, and all marvellous acrobats,
whilst their strong man can bear ten OF
them on his shoulders, and when he is
not doing that he would run down a
horse with a moderate start One
noticeable thing about these wonderful
men is that the bulkiest of them does
not exceed IL stone IN weight, whilst
: the majority would perhaps scale s to
stone. Yet they are not only as 1.-THE
as panthers but as powerful as bulls
and a striking contrast TO the bone and
Drawn of our own athletes"
1t should be also mentioned that the
entire great show will be presented
here, as it is not divided, never was,
and never will be and in addition to
the splendid feats and features which
caused a daily antipodean craze, there
will also be exhibited here for the first
time a magnificent separate collection
: of rarest living Australian savage
creatures.