The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1901-01-14
CIRCUS IN WINTER QUARTERS.
Many People visit the ChampionviIIe
show Ground.

snow GrOunO.
The William Sells-James Gray circus
aggregation is comfortably settled in win
ter quarters at the southern boundary OF
Championville, as the old government
hospital site will be known, and some
fifty people are employed in repairing
the canvas, painting the cages and wa
CONS. and overhauling all of the para
phernalia used by company Of the Sells
Gray sort.
The circus people are using several of
the old hospital houses for eating and
sleeping quarters and in the neighborhOod
Of fifty horses are quartered in the sta
bies built for the army horses The stock
has been greatly depleted, but the pro
prietors of the show say they will make
additional purchases and will 20 on the
road from Savannah with a first-class
aggregate All of the canvas and wa
CONS are being fixed up, and when the
work is completed they will look as II
they are just from the factory. 1t is said
that there is much work to be done yet,
and that the show will not go on the
road much earlier than April l.
The circus quarters have proven quite
an attraction for Savannahians, and when
a Morning News representative visited
the place yesterday afternoon the grounds
were crowded with visitors. A Waterman
prevented the sight-seers from entering
the menagere, which is located in one OF
the long buildings. A night or two ago
there was fire in the place and for a
time it looked as if all of the animals
would either be cremated or make their
escape. A valuable trained monkey, and
the pet of the animal attendants was
smothered to death and as precautoh-
AIRY movement. Proprietor sells issued
iron-clad orders that no one should be
permitted to enter the place. Until the
monkey was killed the public was per-
mitted to look at the big lion and the 9TH
or smaller animals. At present the men
agerie is not very pretentious one, but
the circus people say that other animals
are to be brought here and that when the
show goes on the road this will be one
of its features The cages were placed in
the building and the animals have been
made comfortable for the winter.
A ring has been made on the grounds
and the horsese are put through their
work daily. 1t is necessary to keep the
animals in training and ii they were al
lowed to rest from their regular perform
ance for any length of time they would
have to be trained again for the work
Several new horses have been bought and
these animals are being broken by their
trainers and will be accustomed to work
in the ring when the show goes on the
road. These performances are interesting
and are an exact reproduction of the
equestrian part of the regular pro-
gramme given on the road. The riders
work the horses Just as if large au-
dience were present and the animals do
not attempt to cut their acts short be-
cause the crowd is made up of small
boys.
The public will be permitted to visit the
grounds daily but only in special cases
will persons be allowed to look at the
lion or the smaller animals. No one will
be allowed in this sacred building unless
accompanied by one of the proprietors or
armed with an order from one Of them