Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1894-05-03
4 cLOpN ron FIVE MINUTES.
lie Made a Tremendous hit" i;nt II Cost
Hin Eight Hundred Dullars.

Him Eight Hundred Dollars.
There sat in fashionable restaurant
the other evening o man Of iron.gray
hair and digaiic1 bearing, who, ii APP
pearnces could be relied upon, had
never in his lie done anything rilicu
lous lie was 80 dign,ici that ae was
almost stately, remarks the New York
Tribune. PnFt.y. pink ri complexion
and erect, hcwas picture Of the gentle.
man Cf case. And yet this man at one
period OF his lite was clrcus clown.
Twenty-Five years ago he live! IN Nor
folk, va. His father, q wealthy Nir-
ginian, owned . steamboat ana q steam
ship line, To Norfolk one day came q
circus. When il closed its business there
It engaged q steamboat to take itfurther
south. The boat stopped at several
places, but everywhere, as they would
say now, tine show was "frost." When
the end Of the water route was reached
the circus owed the boat $500 AMI had
look after tie interest Of tho steamship
company, was the son Of the owner of
tue line. He tciegraphed 10 his father
explaining the situation.
Let the circus GO was tie answer,
BIT! 20 with it. Collect OH account
wherever you can"
80 the young man-thc same who, %
years later, made 50 good an appearance
IN Il fashionable New York restaurant
became Hstrullur with circus He was
with 1t 70 make collections on account,
but there was nothing ~ collect Bust
ness got worse; everybody, even the
wpull-bc collector, went Jrokc," and
still the circus wandered on.
The young Nirglnian, who vas at first
regarded as a prosecuting demon, TO
make himself less Objectionable 10 ;he
circus people, began to offer his services
in various ways. He collected tickets,
sold them, and made himself generally
agreeable. One evening, in little town
way down South in Dixie, clown Tell
~. u was necessary to have two clowns,
for one said all his funny things to a
second. y circus without Il clown is
worse than "lllmiet' with the sweet
Prince eliminated, and So the manager
went 10 the young Nirginign.
GU il have u be- second clown to-
night" he said. "fhgra will be moth
ing for you To do. Won paint you,
chalk you aud make you up"
81 second clown the son Of Norfolk
prepared to be.
The two clowns were accustomed 10
make then entrance by turning Il double
sotnersault pl 4 springboard, landing IN
tile rug. Wheu the time came on that
evening the Nirlnian made sudden
resolve. In his b1yhUod he bad turned
handsprings aud sOmersaults. He
would try 1t again. The first clown,
the real article, made his entrance in
the approved style. Then came the
substitute. lie ran out boldly on the
board and spraug. lie was Shot high
into the air, thrown over and over, and
came down with terrific thud fiat on
his back. Slowly lie arose, staggering
weakly around the ring, on his face that
look OF comical agony which man
wears who has had the wind knocked
out of him.
He was greeted with a storm of ap.
plause, The spectators thought that that
was his part-that he was trick clown.
They shouted, clapped their hands and
howled with delight. Painfully bowling,
he staggered out of the ring and then
threw himself on the ground, gasping
TO get back his breath. Outside, in the
ring, the crowd was roaring for him to
appear again. The ringmasler came TO
| him.
They're crazy over YOU" he said.
You II have TO do that again fer them. u
Thunder" groaned the new clown,
clasping his stomach. do that again ?
See here you owe lis $500. Let ME off
from doing that again and we'll call it
| square,