The Jasper weekly courier. [volume] (Jasper, Ind.) 1858-1922, 1899-01-06
HE LOST THE MATCH.
ENoS WAS GREAT, BUT TIE OTHER
MAN HAD TRICK THAT BEAT Aim.


shows That Wa. Witnessed by the Citi-
uens For Miles Around and Umpired by
the Mayor Of the Town.
II suppose, +" said the old circus man,
"that the greatest bass horn player that
ever lived was Enos Stulkinton. He
PLAYED the bass horn in our band. There
have been men with "A better knowledge
of music, perhaps, and some with q
more finished style, but none that could
! touch him in producing thunder. His
playing care to be one of the features
of the show. He was "A star attraction
where he was known, but TO most people
he came as a surprise. something more
than they had expected, and they en-
loved him all the more on that account.
For instance, mt every performance,
before the actual beginning Of the show,
we used 10 give a band concert. and Mr..
Stulkinton would begin to get in his
fine work there. As the people listened
to his first ~thunderous 'oomphahs!' they
were amazed. But when they heard the
canvas of the great tent flap In unison
with the blasts of his horn they all
laughed, and thereafter throughout the
performance they all paid close atten-
tion when Enos raised the instrument.
I'VE tried, of course, always to make
a route for the show that wouldn't con-
fict with anybody else. for there were
plenty of towns that wouldn't stand but
one show at q time. Two would lose
money in them, however good they
might be. But sometimes we ran against
some stubborn man that wouldn't give
way, and then there was nothing to do
but to show and peat him if we could.
''Once. when we struck a town with
another show, we learned somehow that
they had a great bass horn player in
their band, and of course we challenged
'em for a contest. And they took up the
challenge very promptly. There wasn't
much time 10 prepare for it, but we
billed the town in an hour and got per-
mission TO put up a stand on the public
square, because it was to be a free ex-
hibition. and that attracted attention.
The contest was at loon, and OF
course the two bands played as accom-
panists Of the horn players. And that
made a big band concert, and the crowd
was something enormous. The terms
were that each man was to play once,
and then a vote of the people was to be
taken. The man defeated in that round
had a right TO call for another. II the
man defeated in the first round Won the
second, the man who won the first
round had a right to call for a third
round. But the winner Of two rounds
by the vote Of the people was to be de-
clared the winner of the contest.
well, the men in our show bet
every dollar they could rake and scrape
on Enos, and some of the more gentle
hearted of them Thought they were just
robbing the men in the other show. Our
old man not only bet all his money, but
he bet the idol Of his heart, the famous
old giraffe of our show, against the
other shows moth eaten buffalo, and he
was so dead sure that he threw in a Gin
namon bear to boot.
"Our side had the first inning, and
our band showed 'em how to play, and
then Enos stood up for his solo. And
how he did make the thunder! 1t was
complain, complain, oomphahr as it
had never been heard before, and he
fairly carried the people of their feet.
Then the other band played a tune,
and their man got up. And there's no
use talking, he raised more thunder
tnsii Enos did and set the people
shouting.
"Then the mayor got up TO take the
vote, as he'd agreed TO do, and he was
interested now as much as anybody.
And the people voted for the other man,
as we expected they would. But we
hadn't any doubt about the final result,
for we thought that Enos would un.
shackle now and break away and make
the blow Of his life. And he did. We,
who had been hearing him for years,
had never heard him approach what he
did now. 1t was wonderful. He set the
people wild, and we thought we had
'em sure.
But the other mans very first 'oom-
phah y made us tremble, and as he went
ON we knew we were lost, money, gi-
raffe, everything. We'd never heard
anything like this before. II wasn't just
simple peals Of thunder-it was a thun.
der factory in full blast and working
with a double force Of men. There could
be only one verdict.
THAT afternoon the whole town
went to the other show and left our big
tent empty. The other people came over
for the animals they'd o before show
time. They wanted to take 'em over
and walk 'em around in their ring. The
old man had 'em brought out. When
the giraffe realized what had happened,
he wound his neck around the center
pole and wouldn't bulge. But the old
man finally persuaded him, and Over he
r went TO be made a show Of in the other
circus.
"Enos Stulkinton never blew q bass
horn again. He'd had the opportunity
Of his life, had missed it and he hadn't
the heart. After that he always blew .
baritone.
For my own part, / always thought
there was a trick in il. Don't Won know.