Morris tribune., 1900-05-26
PERILS OF G YMNASTS
THE RISKS THEY RUN WHILE GOING
THROUGH THEIR ACTS.

Fall Even Into the Net Which rs
Spread Beneath Them Is Liable to
Result I'm Serious Injury Nerve
and Confidence Necessary.
1t doubtless appears to the onlooker
at the circus that the midair gymnasts
-"aerialists" in the vocabulary Of the
arena-are quite safe from injury so
long as they have the broad, soft net
spread beneath them. They may swing
the tent will permit, or toss a child
from hand TO hand through long, peril
GUS distances, and all the while the
blase spectator observes with the mere
suggestion of thrill, assuming in his
inexperience that there is no real dan
ger in what is called with greater truth
than color this marvellous feat of dar
ing" AS matter of fact, however,
the aerialists are in imminent danger
of broken necks through every work
ing moment of their turn which be-
comes evident indeed when it is said
be borne through two seasons without
a long period of rest between for what
may be called nerve recuperation.
A famous gymnast who is the head
Of family of performers said that the
midair gymnast branch of circus work,
complishment, was SO full of danger as
to be fought shy of by faint hearted
people, who preferred ground work"
and smaller salaries to it's risk Safety
lies wholly in self possession, attention
and nice, practiced calculation of dis
tances through which to leap or turn or
throw. There are four in this family,
and the safety Of each depends, not on
ly upon the individual, but upon the
nerve and skill of the others. When
the family is in action, it becomes at
once a machine, and each member
moves and turns and even smiles with
mechanical accuracy. If one part
should fail, the whole would for the
moment be in danger Of destruction.
'Now," said the gymnast, 1--WE are
merely human. We can't all be perfect
in action all the time, so from time to
time the machine goes to pieces, but
we are SO well schOoled that we soon
put it together again. When there hap
pens to be a fall-as there does fire.
quently-three hearts pretty nearly
stop beating upon our bars until the
fourth of the family rises from the net.
1t wouldn't be possible to continue our
act if every one of us didn't know how
to fall. That's the secret of it, and the
danger lies in the loss of nerve when
the fall takes place. Men in our branch
seldom break legs. They break their
necks or backs and quit the business
once and for all. You've seen fall,
no doubt Well, did you notice how the
boy doubled his legs up and got his
face as close to his breast as he could?
If he failed to do that, he would never
survive the fall He'd break his leg or
his back sure. It's terrible time for
me as the head of the family every
time there's fall"
The gymnast has high fall to dread
The acrobat, on the other hand, has to
guard against a fall through but two or
three fect
There's as much danger in our work
as in any circus" said a certain star
one of the best acrobats in the business
and a good and trustworthy man out
of it 'F+:l 80 tI!nh!ing particularly a
man is liable to break his back any
minute or dislocate his ankle in landing
badly. My family (of six, two Of
whom are boys is~so well trained that
it works perfectly. So just now l lave
an easy mind. Last season, though, l
had two bad accidents and had to dis
charge a man. He didn't catch my
apprentice one time, with the result
that the poor boy dislocated his Shout
der. The fellow looked at the audience
for an instant, and then the trouble
came. so lost confidence in him and
let him go. In our business, you know,
every one has to have confidence in ev
cry one else-perfeet confidence. If
you can't get that condition, you can't
work, that's all. You can't keep your
nerve. Our accidents are nasty ones
lOO. II mdy NC d 1dAI VI lulSe AecI cAlO
a broken back come from it. You can't
tell when accidents are going to hap
pen either. They come so unexpected
ly that they knock you out. The head
of the family has to bear the worry,
though. He's responsible for his ap-
prentices, and the 10 I've taught have
brought me gray hairs pretty early in
life"
This man is thoroughly conscientious
in the training of his boys morally as
well as in their work. He regards his
care of them as a high duty, and he
watches them in the circus ring as
as mother might. Hence
they are saved from many an accident. |
He always breathes easier, too, when