The Providence news. (Providence [R.I.]) 1891-1906, 1898-11-16
CAICEDO THE WIRE WALKER.
He Chats Interestingly About His Dangerous and
Risky CaIlIng---Hs Two Falls.

he 1hdlS interestingly ABOUT MS udngeiouS anu
Risky CaIlIng---Hls Two Falls.
There is always a strong sense of alb
no'mality in stage folk who do sur
prising gymnastic fcats. 1t is hard to
conceive of a juggler sitting quietly at
tea in the bosom Of his family OF. the
lady Of the flying trapeze washing her
children for school. yet they do such
things, exactly like other people, and
away from the glare of the footlights
are apt to be peculiarly domestic. The
great Caicedo, the remarkable wire
walker, who is at Keith's New Theatre
this week, has family of five chill
dren--two girls at school i'm South
America, and three boys at home, with
his wife, in New York. He says he is
going TO give them all a good educa-
ton, so they'll never get in his line of
business, which ne thinks is too risky.
How did / learn?" the little acrobat
said to recent interviewer. "I'll tell
you. i was born in the United States OF
Colombia, and when | was only Z 1
went with a circus. / was rider first,
but once 1 saw some rope walkers,
Bondin and a young man they called
FL Nulo Eddy, and what they did set
me to studying. They used very large
ropes, two inches thick. and not very
high, and L said to myself: suppose
somebody did what they do, only on
wire"
Il had noticed that balancing was al
ways very easy TO me, so / spoke TO my
teacher, but he only laughed. Then /
got wire and began to practice.
practiced every day for 10 years. At
first / fell all the time and the thing
seemed impossible. / found the wire
n q i.
small; if you miscalculate by fingers
breadth you are gone. Each night /
would go home discouraged, but in the
morning / would try il again. In few
years / learned to do the feats of the
Japanese and TO dress and undress
while / kept my balance. But, pouf! IL
was nothing. II was only the beginning.
The one trick OF turning a somersault
on the wire cost five years solid work.
In 10 years / could do all / wished.
Now, / am never afraid. All think
OF is to get applause, and If the audi
ence is warm, as they say, i am happy.
Have / ever had bad fall? Yes, twice,
The first time / was at Vienna about
seven years ago. / am OF very ner-
vous temperament and easily upset. Be
fore / went on / had a quarrel with the
stage manager. My blood was boiling,
and L trembled all over, but | got near
ly through my act, still thinking of that
man, when all of sudden kind OF
mist came over my eyes and | fell head
long. / struck on my crown, and for
weeks the doctors said / would die.
Then they declared would be crazy. for
in my delirium / was constantly talk
ing with my family in French and
Spanish, thinking they were present.
At last / got well, but itjaffected my
memory, so that | am obliged 10 make
a memoranda of anything i wish TO re-
tain.
MY second fall was worse. 1t oc-
Cured four years ago at the Palace
Theatre. London, which was then just
opening. My act went all right up to
the somersault. but just as / sprang in
TO the air tainted and fell the 80 feet
TO the pit. / lay I'm bed for eight weeks,
but i'm three months was back at work.
No, / can't say / felt queer when l re-
turned. | was glad, for IL is expensive
to be sick, and n man requires to keep
steadily at work when he has "A large
family. j hope TO retire some day, but
not yet-not until l get my children ed
ucated.
''By the way" said Caicedo. a smile
playing over his swarthy features. "Ih
glad the war is over. At the beginning
OF il people thought I was a Spaniard,
and / had a hard time to make them
applaud. In Baltimore. one night.
man i'm the audience called out: Re-
member the Maine. and I tried 10 stop
right there on the wire and tell him /
was no Spaniard In doing so | nearly
fell off. Now the war is over and / am
happy"
Caicedo has had four red-letter days
in his career-his special performance
before the cZar OF Russia. his meeting
with the Prince Of Wales i'm Vienna. his
appearance some few months after at
Marlborough house before select
marty. and greatest of all. "A DorfOrn1-
ance i'm the Red sea, while on the voy-
age from England TO Australia. Some
hair Drained passenger suggested that
the king OF the wire should give n spe-
cial show i'm aid Of a charity. The cap
tain at first forbade the show. as there
was a fresh breeze and the ship was
heaving considerably. Caicedo said
that did not matter: he was as safe on
his wire among the rigging as he was
i'm theatre, so long as he could see his
wire clearly below him; and the cap
tain consented TO let him have his way
after taking the preCaution to have a
lifeboat swung free ready for launch
ing. and stationing four seamen with
life belts along the deck rails. Three
snapshots were taken of this perform
ance. Two show him I'm the act Of turn
ing somersaults from his wire 10 or 12
feet above the lifeboat. with y seaman
i'm IL armed with a life buoy. The other
shows him lesping high above the wire
maintaining perfect balance. while
the captains bridge forward shows out
at an angle OF about 25 degrees from
the straight line. evidence of the roll
that was on the sea.
CaiCedo walks and dancer and turns
somersaults as easily i'm mid air. with
spurs clicking at his heels. as IL he were
merely tumblng about on the stage.