The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-02-04
TOLD BY THE CIRCUS MAN.
The Big Giraffe Catches n Cold, Which
Settles i'm Its Neck.
Boston Herald.


Seems to me 1 told you once" said the old
circus man, about the giraffe having a sore
throat? 1t is serious matter for any giraffe to
have sore throat; bad for the giraffe and bad
for the owner. When you come to take
eighteen-foot giraffe like ours, sore throat
meant large expense and large amount of
trouble; and the big fellow handnt more got
this before something else happened to him
that gave even more trouble He caught cold,
and the cold settled in his throat suppose he
was still sensitive there-and 1t gave him stiff
neck, so that he couldn't bend his neck at ALL
You can't have any idea of what stiff neck
means until you see a giraffe afflicted in that
way; we'd had all sorts of trouble with animals
in way another. but for real bother this
beat em all. We discovered it one day on the
road. The giraffe always ducked his head under
the branches that hung down, sort of like
swan or goose does but this day, carrying his
head right up straight in the air, he brought up
against branch that was at least fifteen feet
above the ground. That such amazing
thing that we knew something must be the mat
ter, and when the CRANES keeper came up and
spoke to him, and all he did to bend his
nose down and look down. why. we saw he
couldn't bend his neck, and then we knew what
the matter
''Wen, of course the first thing we did was
to set a to march alongside of him with
tent pole with crutch in the end of it to lift
the branches for him. Most of the time. almost
all the time. in fact, could steer him clear of
overhanging branches and of course lots of the
way there was long stretches where there wasn't
any trees at all; and then we'd come to places
where the man would have to lift branch to
let the big giraffe 70 under: and great pity it
was too to him compelled to go about in
that manner.
'He went that way for about ten days Ordi-
narily used to put his feed for him top
Of animal cage that he wouldn't have TO
bend down more than eight or ten feet, but he
couldn't do that now So we set a ring in the
center pole eighteen feet from the ground, and
used to reeve rope through that and make
one end fast to the bucket with his food
drink in it, and hoist it up and let him eat there.
On the road We used to throw the rope over the
crotch of q tree at a suitable height. For his
entry into the great tent at show time we had to
regret that because it mighty impressive
thing to see him march in in that way. 1t made
him look thrty-siX feet tall instead of eighteen.
'"rwice day used to so up a ladder
and put strap around his head, and we'd hook
fall with bo'suns chair. and would
ride down his neck and rub in liniment. He
used to like that very much, and it helped him
greatly, too and one morning when the
went out to give him the usual rub they were
delighted to the ola chap with his head down
pretty near to the roof of the grizzly bear cage,
which stood next TO him which showed that his
neck coming around all right, and also in
Dictated that he'd take his breakfast this morn
ing in the old way, If you please"