The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-03-05
RENz's CLEVER CLOWNS.
High-Class Pantomimists ard Magi
clans With a Circus.
From. the Chfcaao Times.

From the Chicago Times
REM, the greatest circus manager Of the
age, who died some months ago in Berlin at
the advanced age of rs years, was known
to carry with him always a corps of
clowns who were unique in their line. They
were artists in the pantomime, feature
which REM introduced first; besides they
were as clever tricksters as any magician
in bis special line.
One OF these amusing pleasRntries which
never failed to bring down the house was
the vanishing lady" A woman seemed TO
disappear from the center of a platform be.
fore the very eyes Of the spectators, and for
which even the most fardghted could not
account. IL was done in this way:
In the center Of a platform, free from
every Kind Of machination, trap doors, etc,
and other stage contrivances, the clowns
| constructed before the eyes of their audience
little house Of light wood panels. When
the house was finished they decided among
themselves to find ledger for it, and, as
their clownish appearance might interfere
with the rental OF the premises, they adopted
the lackey's garb and went in search
| of the ledger. Presently they return with
| lady, whom they followed at a respectful dis
tance and installed in the little house. They
continued playing their roles, bringing her
| fan, carrying flowers refreshments, etc. :,
mated conversation, finishing at last by
overthroWing and demolishing the house,
when, to the stupefaction of the audience
and to the two lackeys themselves, no lady
is visible. She seems to have melted into
air before their very noses. The key to the
situation is as simple as it is ingenious.
The trick is played by three clowns. One
| Of them is dressed as the lady, who becomes
the ledger Of the other two. Underneath
her fashionable array the supposed woman
wears lsckey's costume exactly like those
| OF her two servant men. Piece by piece she
divests herself of her clothing while inside the
house, and piece by piece all is carried away
| by the other two underneath their coats, as
| they come back and forth on their
errands. In the busy to and fro the audi
ence does not become aware of the fact that
one of the lackeys has dropped out at the
| last moment and his place Is taken by the
| lackey inside the house just as his COM
| panion commences to demolish the latter, in
which job he diligently joins.
Another amusing combination of clown
skill which mystidsd the visitors Of the
REM circus was the following: After an
exhibition of various tricks the two clowns
propose to play Magician for the delectation
| of each other. One Of them takes q large
mantle, into which he wraps himself, aud
| places on his head tall, cone-sbaped hat.
| be then asks @ small boy, who happens to
| be anear, TO sit down on a chair. The
| would-be magician places on the boys head
an egg, an apple, goblet, or any other OBJ
| ject that may be handy, and covers the
head of the child with his hat, removing
| the latter several times to show that the ob
! ject in question Is still there. When he
raises the hat for the last time the
| object is gone no one knows where. The
comrade OF the imDrovised magician feigns
! the most absurd mystification Suddenly
ia Irttn
the arms of his friend, turns him about
| and shows to the audience that the hat is
| pierced in the rear with a hole large enough
te extract object after object, just as with
his right hand he is in the act of lifting the
hat from the boys head.
The second clown, by the most amusing
| play of mimicry, informs his companion
that he has but very little faith in the
magic talent of the former, and will give
| him a better display of the black art az
| practiced by himself. He snatches the
mantle from his shoulders and wraps him
self In it, cooking the tall hat over his ear.
| he then takes the second sheet, or mantle
which he throws around the child as he sits
| down on the chair, and q moment later
snatches it away. The child is gone Again
the audience is mystified beyond express
sion. The second artist puts on Il triumphant
| air, and strides away with majestic tread.
AS he turns to go to the door the child is
seen depending from his shoulders. In the
moment in which he has thrown the mantle
around the small boy the latter has crawled
between the legs Of the chair and the
clowns and has hooked himself to the lat
! ters back.
This last trick, which was always skillfully
! performed, was time and again received
with loud applause by the visitors of the
| Circus "Renz"
it would lead too far to enumerate all the
feats OF REM favorite clowns. but they
were numerous, and never failed to make
up some of the best numbers of the show.
| These clowns were artists in their par
ticular''genre, and among the highest priced
employees Of his crew.