The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1896-06-15
a TALK WITH MR.. SELLS.
Some Of the Financial Mysteries of
q Very Big show.

W
a Very Big Show.
Mr.. Ephraim Sells is the big man with
the show. He is not big physically
but when he speaks his word is law.
There is probably no man in the show
business who so thoroughly under
stands handling men as Mr.. Sells. He
is everywhere When a piece Of canvas
is to be spread he is on the ground and
he is not long in detecting a la.bOrer
who shirks his duty He gives out in
structions about the animals and keeps
his eye on the performers.
Mr.. Sells has general oversight over
all the details but unless something
goes wrong ne does not spend much
time with any particular thing. He
knows the names Of all the elephants
and takes great pride in the animals,
special favoritesi probably because they
are worth more than any of the other
animals ia the menagerie.
Mr.. Sells is quite democratic in his
manners. He eats his meals in the
performers tent and sees that no one
goes hungry. Twenty years in the
show business has given Mr.. Sells a
brusqueness, which seems to be a nee
essary adjunct Of the managerial pro
fessiOn.
This has not been a very good year
for us said the veteran Snowman to
journal reporter. but do not com
plain because 4 know how hard money
comes. Our tour in Kansas has not
been as successful as it might have
been but I am not surprised The sur
prising thing to me is that Kansas peo-
PIE are in as good shape as they are
kansas is made up of people who
came west to make homes. They are
the best class of people on earth but
about the first thing they ran against
was the mortgage shark and I believe
Kansas is cursed with worse men Of
that class than any place. Some of
your bankers belong to that class, too.
Wen. the farmer has been working for
the mortgage shark ever since he came
to Kansas. He raises a. crop of corn.
sells it and turns the proceeds over to
the man who holds his mortgage. Then
this state has not had first class crop
year Tor nVe years. All these things
help to make the people hard UP.
We have made our show bigger and
better than ever but the people have
not the money and that is all there is
to it, We have taken s.. 500 a day since
we nave been ia Kansas, and that
seems IKE q lot Of money, but it takes
Sz,50O a DAY to run this show, and you
see we have not q great deal left.
An ordinary man who visits this
show Of any big show has no idea
about the magnitude of the affair and
what it costs. That menagerie repre-
sents quite a fortune I was offered SA-
SOC for the rhinoceros before we left
New FORK, and the elephants are worth
from $l 500 to 1000. "A low price for the
pair of hippOpotami would be $50 600
SO that you can see that there is a pile
Of money tied up there. Then the tents
Mr.. Sells and the reporter were stand
ing near the horse tents while he was
talking, and the conversation was in
i. terrupted by the sound Of some one
whipping a horse.
Here, theret' shouted Mr. Sells in
his loudest voice, what is the matter
there2'
This horse is being whipped for
kicking, shouted back the stable man.
Is it Tom ?" called back MIR Sells
mo, it is Mac" the man answered.
This apparently satisfied the proprie-
tor, but the beating of the horse was
not resumed
Mr.. Sells places the value of the SHOW
this year at $3.50 600. ssBut' he said
there is no sale for this kind Of a
thing There are probably four or FIVE
big shows in the country who might
use our stuff, but outside of that there
is very little sale for any of it. I have
to stay in the business because 7 can
not let go. even if I wanted to- The
man who has money does not want this
business, and he would go broke in two
weeks, anyhow
You have no idea how particular
we have to be. We keep an inventory
Of everything belonging to the show
and we know it when a cot is missing
or anything else, no matter how small
In the matter Of tickets given to
stOrekeeperS Tor putting Autographs up
in their windows we keep close tab. The
first set of bill posters come around
and make a contract with the store
keeper by which the merchant is to
keep the autographs in the window un-
til the show comes.
Sometimes it happens that the man
tears down the Ilthograph after he has
his ticket and the advance people leave.
In week or two another set comes
around and they inspect all the litho-
graphs Every window is mum bered
and when a Autograph is missing a
note is made of it and the number is
kent for reference. The merchant has a
ticket with a number corresponding
and it is placed on the no good list
This list is tabulated and a man sits
near the ticket taker with the list
When a Autograph ticket is presented
it is referred to the man with the list
and he reports whether good or rot
If he finds the man has torn down his
Autographs the ticket is refused Some
times they raise a great fuss about it.
but then we take out their contract
and show it to them. Often they
threaten to sue us. but they never do.
than i'm a small place. because it COS is
much more to bill a big place. Show
bills cost from four and half to seven
cost from five to nine. Then a great
many more bill boards have to be put
up in a large place, and there are
great many more papers we have to
use for advertising. Tt costs US S1 COO
more to show in Kansas City than in
Topeka
II have been in the show business
twenty-five years and I do not know
when I VIII get out, perhaps never
said Mr.. Sells meditatively, as the re-
porter left him.
YOUNG ALLEN SELLS