Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1893-05-06
THE BIG SHOW,

THE BIG SHOW. |
Several thousand people crowd
ed in town last Saturday to see
Forepaugh's Big Show, and they |
saw it out in Venice, Beautiful
Venice, Star of the Deep Mud. |
1t was bad advertisement for
the boom ground. The Cumber-
land Valley Commons, high and |
dry, with heavy sod, and within
reach of pavements, would have |
been park in comparison. We
admire the Virginia ladies now
more than ever, because they
are not afraid of little mud and
exercise at the wash tub. The
show comes but once a year and
is worth some sacrifice of ETH
quette to see it or perish. The
morning was fair and the happy
young people put on their best
alas for the luck low slippers,
fine skirts, and delicate fabrics,
and mean people to stand in
front of their doors and windows
and augh,-jealous l guess be-
cause they could not go to the
Big Show. The parade was the
first great attraction, a grand af-
fair, cut short by the rain.
The first event of the perform
ance is novelty this year, and
consists of big iron barred cor
rail-, set up in the midst of the
main tent, in which a "happy
family" of two American pam
theirs, two Asiatic leopards and
two lions, with pair of huge
dogs, a Dane and mastiff, and
a small black bear, all go
through a concerted drill under
the direction of Albert Stradler,
a nervy little black haired
Swede, who handles his big
pets like kittens. The animals
built pyramids of themselves,
and two of the lions sedately
seasawed on a long board across
a trestle, while Stradler beat
time for them with his whip.
Since the presentation of elab-
crate spectacular performances
has become feature of the trav-
cling shows, there has not been
produced a pantomime which has
more warmly appealed to the
popular sympathies than the
"Story of the Revolution" The
setting of the piece was simple
but quite realistic, and the per-
formers were well trained |
to their parts, though it
might have been noticed by
some of those nearest to the ac-
tors that there was perceptible |
Bowery twang to the tone in
which a number of the long
haired patriot farmers in Cont
mental cooked hats greeted the |
commander of the American
Army with Hurrah fer de far
der er lis country"
The revolutionary spectacle |
began with the midnight ride of
Paul Revere, followed by the
famous fight on Concord |
Green, Bunker Hill, the signing
of sthe Declaration of Indepen-
dence, the destruction of the
statue of George III, Washing
ton crossing the Delaware, and |
ending with the Inauguration of
the first President.
The troop of wild Cossacks adj
ded a novel feature to the eques-
trian exhibition and fully |
vindicated their claim to the IL
tie of the most wonderful caval-
rymen of the world. Mounted |
on rugged-looking little horses
not unlike the western "cow-
pony" they performed feats that
would have won the admiration
of even a genuine cowboy.
The dancing and singing of
the terra Gotta coated riders was
as unique as their horseback ex-
hibition, and their part of the
days programme concluded with
a running fight for pocket
handkerchief, which the princess
and the stalwart Sargt. Andre
Kcincatzi succeeded in carrying
off from all the rest of the rough |
riders in a break-neck. race
around the hippodrome track.
The regulation portions of the
performance were well carried
out with bareback riding, ira
peze performers, contortionists,
and gymnasts. The family of
Japanese jugglers and wire
walkers were especially clever,
defying the laws of gravitation
and equilibrium with equal i'm /
punity. The jockey and chariot +
races were reckless and exciting.