Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1899-07-24
CIRCUS OF TO-DAY.
Not What They Used to be in Our Boy
hood Days.

Circus" contemptuously shifted
Paterfamilias, who had consented to
personally conduct is-First-Pair-of-
Trousers to the circus in Madison
Square Garden. why, there amt any
red lemonade and what's a circus
without red Iemonade?"
whats red lemonade, pa?"
Search me, but I never saw cir
Gus without it," replied Paterfamilias.
COR gumbo," added the father of
two young hopefuls who were stand
ing just behind Paterfamilias No. in
the line before the ticket Office.
That's so,' assented Paterfamilias
No. 1.
What's gumbo, pa?'
'"Taffy, my son. You don't get any
of that kind of taffy nowadays. They
made it in big kettle and pulled it
from a great iron hook fastened in a
tree The man who ran the candy
and lemonade tent made it in the
morning, before the crowd came, ex
cept the boys. There were always boys
around We got hunk of gumbo for
carrying ten bucketfuls of water for
him. When the candy was cooked
enough and had cooled he took it from
the kettle, a yellow mass, and threw
it over the hook. Then he pulled it
out and threw it back over the
hook again"
Eyes, and wasn't it delicious?" added
Paterfamilias No. 2.
'You bet. There's no such candy
nowadays" assented Paterfamilias
No. 1. when went to the circus, :"
he continued, partly to his son, and
partly to Paterfamilias No. 2, "they
pitched the tents in big open field
or common. Everybody in town went
and everybody from the country for
miles around came in town to go to
the circus. They came in big wagons
with green sides and boards over the
tops of the sideboards for seats, with
pa and Johnny on the first seat,
Samuel and Neighbor Jackson's Sa-
rony next, ma and Susan next and the
children in the bottom. Circus day
was a great day. There wasn't any
school and we had more fun than on
any other day in the year"
YES agreed Paterfamilias No. 2.
''Do you remember how we looked over
the circus bills on the sides of the
barns for weeks before the circus ar
rived and wondered if the girl in the
gauze skirts really would jump
through the hoop of fire, and, if she
did, how she would keep from catch
ing on fire and how they could get a
board strong enough for the elephants
to teeter On?"
eyes; and how we boys all got up
at 4 o'clock on the morning of circus
day, by pre- getting only
catnaps through the night for fear we
wouldn't wake up, and walked out
about two miles to the siding where
the circus train was to unload. And
how we watched with awe the ele-
plants and camels carefully walking
down the plank from the cars, and
circus men unloading the other ami
mails, wagons and tents And some of
us might get job helping to unload
That was unexpected fortune, for we
hardly expected an opportunity to help
before the tents were up.
Finally the circus wagons began to
move toward the grounds, and we fol-
lowed. Arrived at the grounds, the
engineers marked them out, and the
canvasmen began to drive stakes, once
in a while making feint at the crowd
of boys gathered around to keep them
at a respectful distance. After the
tents were up the wagons were got
ten ready for the parade, and when it
started we followed Everybody in
the town was waiting for it, and it was
worth seeing in those days-great gilt
wagons with trainers in gold lace and
brass buttons sitting in the lions
cage, and the queens riding upon the
elephants, and horses and clowns and
statuary till you couldn't remember
half of it. Why those parades must
have been over a mile long. It seemed
10 in those days.
"And after the parade the tight rope
walker gave a free exhibition at the
circus grounds, which all of the cOun-
try people and boys went to see. And
then the country people hunted for
shady places to eat their lunches, and
we boys, those of us who were lucky,
got jobs carrying water. We didn't
think Of dinner at all, just waited I'M
til time for the circus to begin, hoping
that Providence would present some
chance to us to get inside the big
tent Just looking at the long row of
peanut and popcorn and candy and
lemonade tents leading from the edge
Of the grounds to the main tent was
sufficient for dinner. And the oppor-
tunity to lie in the grass in the sun
and take in the wonderful sights was
not to be neglected The circus peo-
pie prepared their dinner over portly
stoves in side tents. My, but they
we're great. Once in a while one Of
the boys would run away with the
circus. I tried it once, but they sent
me back, and I was broken hearted for
a week.
"And the idea of buying tickets at