The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1897-06-25
AN AERIAL SENSATION.
The Ringing Brothers Have Some
Thrilling hid Air Acts to Offer.

The Wonderful Dacomas and Fishers.
The greatest sensation thus far
presented by any circus performers is
in the form OF startling series OF
aerial feats that in themselves ap-
pear absolutely impossible. 1t has
fallen to an American team to evolve
this newest sensation, from the old
fashioned trapeZe performances,
which, in former days, with old time
circuses were considered the acme of
perfection and intrepid daring.
1t used to satisfy circus goers to see
swinging trapeze act, in which a
few somersaults were turned into
net, a few long flights through the
air. suspended from a trapeze bar,
were accomplished by the artists, and
few gymnastic turns or acrobatiques
afforded-and that was supposed to be
all that could be accomplished in this
line of work. There are four artists
with the Ringing Shows, known un-
der the name of 1.-THE Dacomas" and
four more who are billed as 1.-THE
Flying Fishers" whose work is little
short of marvellous. AS it is radically
different from anything of the sort
seen in this country heretofore, a
brief summary of some of the things
these performers do, may not be I'M
interesting. What may be said of
one team may also be said of the 9TH
er, for their acts, though differing
materially in detail, are Of the same
general character.
At either end of the great circus
amphitheatre are erected a pair of
immense scaffOld-like structures,
reaching entirely to the dome of the
big tent. One of these scaffOlds,
which is merely two tall poles with a
cross beam on the top, stand at the
right side of the tent and similar
structure has place on the left side.
Reaching from the top beams OF one
to the other, are strong steel cables,
small in size but of great tensile
strength and midway between the
high supports depend swinging
trapezes. Room is found for four of
these swings in each of the two dis
tinct acts. There are three young
ladies in one of the teams and two in
the other. The smallest of these is
used in the most skillful and danger
Gus portion of the program. Swinging
from the trapeZe on the extreme right
of the tent, in either case, the heavier
ran of each quartette, hanging head
downward, catches the member of his
troupe who swings entirely across the
amphitheatre, from another trapeZe,
sOmersaults and lands fairly in the
hands of the "carrier" as he is called.
Difficult forward and backward dou-
BILE and single somersaults are
thrown, pirouttes, twists, dives and
long leaps are accomplished with
lightning like rapidity, until at times
it is bewildering to note the shooting
human forms darting through the
air. The muscular carrier" is always
Just at the right spot in exactly the
proper instant of time and falls, with
these artists are almost unknown.
After short session of this rapid
work, the two stronger men Of each
team take places in the tOpmost part
of the rigging, on stationary bars.
The lighter members of the troupes
are then hurled from one side Of the
tent to the other, at height of 60
feet above the ground, by sheer mus
cular strength, and are caught, just
as surely as fate, by the strong arms
of the "carrier" at the farther side of
the rigging. The most marvellous
performances imaginable are afforded
by these artists. They simply play
ball with human beings, tossing them
to and from SO rapidly that it is diff
cult to follow all the moves, but never
failing to catch them by hands or
feet just in the nick of time. 1t is a
thrilling and highly original sort of
aerial work indeed and performed by
no other artists anywhere. Ringing
Bros. exhibit at Mankato Independ-
ence Day, July 3.