Phillipsburg herald. [volume] (Phillipsburg, Kan.) 1882-1905, 1897-05-27

BOOu round North American.
Damn
Then, being out Of breath, or great,
relieved, she subsidized for a moment
and then renewed her excitement, ant
made known her state Of mind by as
sorting that she would leave for Pari
the very next day, II she had tt
swim.
Rather than to have the pretty spit
fire drown let her have her way, ant
her way came near costing her he
life.
BY the time for Zarena's appearance
l had become so nervous and over
wrought through anxiety and excite
ment that | could have wished thu
French mink and all the rest OF thu
aerial female Us "ln the deep bosom
of the ocean buried"
How many times in the course of hi
career does a manager solemnly vow
that he will never admit another dan
ger-defylng aerial act to his theater
and then go and put the most danger
GUS one he can find in his programme
at the first opportunity?
Everything was at SKIES and sevens
anyway, in front of the house thai
night, because the Frenchwoman had
drawn to an overflow, and there were
too many people in the house for com
fort. The doorkeepers seemed to have
lost their heads, and were snappish
and uneivil, and the ushers were any
thing but polite and obliging. On the
whole, guess l was ratified myself.
Here she comes! Amt she daisyT
called an irrepressible small boy in the
top gallery.
The Frenchwoman came out and
went out.
From my Office den / could hear the
cheering reception to the lady from
France; then came crash from the
orchestra, and the great midair perils
begun. didn't want to see them, but
/ couldn't keep away, and felt rather
surprised at myself when l became a
part Of the audience and was craning
my neck to catch a glimpse of the
tiny figures as they appeared evoluting
at a giddy height aloft.
1t made me feel quite dizzy to look
at them, and l turned away to note
the averted gaze Of others. I started
to return to the office, mentally VOW
ing:
This Is the last"
At the office door turned back again
to view the dangerous performances. A
great hush was upon the audience.
believe that / could hear everybody's
heart beat. Mine was humping at a
fearful rate.
Out Of the stiffness heard Kissing
command from the lips of the man!
The Frenchwoman answered in an
excitable undertone. There was a
quick passage of words, the tennor Of
which no one could catch. Were they
quarreling up there over the heads of
the audience?
Words, more words, and fierce words!
/ was in frenzy If they were not.
Suddenly the woman made a dash
down the elaborate rigging suspended
from the act; to me 1t appeared as IL
she was attempting to escape the man,
her pursuer, who was close upon her.
The audience took the movement for a
part of the performance, and applaud
ed, but intuition told me that some
thing was occurring mot down on the
bills"
Evidently fear lent celebrity to the
womans movements. / took 1t that
she was fleeing from him.
The pursuer shrieked horrible oath,
and was upon the little Frenchwoman
lust as she reached the bar Of sus-
pended trapeze.
Help! Help! My God, the man is
madp
AT her agonizing cry many Of the
audience sprang to their feet, just as
many others swooned.
Who was to help, and from whence
was the aid to come?
The lunatic was already attempting
to unloose the woman's hold on the
trapeze.
Part of what next occurred l did not
see. l heard the voice Of man in an
INNER circle cry in French:
Hold! 1 GOMEZ"
The next instant the figure of a man
clinging to a rope required for the fin
ish of the flight for life" shot across
the space with unerring aim, and a
arm wrested the woman from
her perilous position. And then the
fools of auditors, thinking that what
they had seen was "a part Of the show"
made the theater ring with cheers.
AS that act, thank the Lord, was the
last number on the bill, such of the
audience as were not overcome found
their way out, and the others were
sent home when they we're sufficiently
recovered.
The shock to the Frenchwoman was
terrible one, but she came out Of 1t
thankful for her narrow escape and
grateful to her former discarded part
ner, who had devotedly followed her
from Paris and been the means Of saw
ing her life.
In all the hubbub the lunatic had
walked off in his tights, and such at
tire in the street being unusual. he