The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-12-03
A STRANGE PART.
An Actors Experience as the Hind
Legs of a Property Elephant.
From Cassell's Magazine.


zone of my strangest and most uncom-
Portable experiences, sir, was being the
hind legs of an elephantw says an actor.
I'D gone out to Australia, like many
other young fellows do, or rather did a
few years ago, with the fixed idea of max
ing my fortune Needless to remark, |
failed dismally, and soon lost the little
money ! did possess. ] had been well ed
ucated, and tried one thing after another,
with the invariable result that every
market seemed overstocked. As a last
resource / went around to the theaters TO
try and get job. At one | was success
full, being told that 'one of the chaps was
i'll, and the boss in roaring temper |
made my way round, and arrived in time
to hear the aforesaid boss remark some
what loudly and in scarcely polite Ian
guage:
what does the "hind legs" mean by
being ill? His business is to be "hind
legs and if he doesn't turn up tonight
he won't have another job in my theater.
l rather timidly approached and asked if
| could, perhaps, supply the missing
mans place Well, young man, If you'll
come and be ''hind legs of an elephant,
you can; if not, clear out the pays ten
bob week The outlook was not cheer,
ing, but | was too hungry to be proud, so
l answered that ! had no knowledge of
the duties of hind legs, but / would do
my best and hoped that a few rehearsals
would perfect me. | followed the front
legs, who had been a witness of this in
terview, and was quickly set to work
First ! had to put on a pair of large, loose,
dirty brown-looking trousers, with the
cardboard feet attached. These were
kept on by straps over my shoulders.
1.-THE front legs attired himself in a
similar garment. Then we both stopped
down to about half our hight, and large,
dirty brown covering was drawn over us
to form the body, to which the head, etc,
were attached. The cord working the
trunk was given into front legs keeping,
while | was accommodated with that APP
pended to the tail At first it was most
difficult to arrange our strides properly,
and we commenced by the front legs
making up his mind to take walking
tour by himself, poor hind legs descend
ing into little jOg-trot gallop to keep
anywhere near. Then we found the posi-
tons reversed, and l was told to stop
tripping up them front legs At last we
were fairly perfect, and were released
with aching heads and stiff backs till the
evening performance.
81 was naturally pretty punctual for
the first time but when the cry, The
stage waits for the elephant, was heard
no front legs were there. The manager
was furious and the audience inpatient
when at last my other half was discov-
cred in the bar only getting a drink.
He was promptly hauled along, but the
walk of the elephant was decidedly curl
Gus during the evening. However, we
managed to get along somehow. but /
wasn't sorry when my week came to an
end, and, taking into consideration the
discOmforts of head and backache the
decidedly unclean condition of the skin
and the long hours spent in rehearsals
and performances, ] don't think | ever
took a more hard-earned ten shilllingsn