Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1899-1903, 1902-05-06

from the old Leon Washburn circus.
Charhe was terror there; he was a
bad one at all times. But with the
Washburn show he was kept chained
TO heaVy stakes, chains extending over
his neck, round his body and around
each leg; he was so wild the great
heaVy chains We're never removed, and
as years passed they had worn down
into his flesh fully six inches, worked
right down into the quick, through the
raw flesh until it was frightful to look
at, and the suffering must have been
intense.
when Hoffman first got Charlie he
went up to him at once, and began re-
moving the chains. The attendants
were almost scared to death; they
thought to remove Charles chains
was to let him kill every person within
a hundred miles, but Charlie knew
what he was about. When the last
chain fell from Charles body the ele-
plant reached his trunk around and
picked Hoffman up and as he clasped
the trainer to his body the elephant
looked at him, first inquiringly and
wonderingly, as if to say: You're a
brave one, but you're good fellow;
you're all right And Charles chains
stayed off and Hoffman managed him
fine.
1T was at Peru, Ind, last spring,
however, that the end came. Charlie
then belonged to the Wallace show;
and Hoffman had taken the herd down
to the river to be washed. All of a
sudden Charlie went mad and knock.
ing Huffman down as he stood in the
river placed his great foot on the
trainer and pushed him down into the
river bottom, crushing the life out of
him. Then the mad brute tore up the
river bank, but arrived there he stop
ped, turned around and looked at the
place where Hoffman had disappeared
He turned back, went and pulled the
mans body out and brought it careful
ly to shore; then went mad again.
Dozens of Winchesters were brought
and Charlie was shot scores of times,
but the lead never feased him. Final
ly strychnine was put in apples and he
ate them and presently keeled over.
Charlie was with my show several
years and saved battle for us once.
That was down at Rector, Mo-, when a
gang of toughs and moonshiners tried
to rush us, pull down the tent and start
a general fight. We fought there from
shutdown till o'clock in the morning,
and the elephant finally won the day
for us and saved our lives and proper
| ty. When he was turned loose the
moonshiners did not do thing but fly.
when Charlie belonged to the
Washburn show he stood off a crowd
of 5000 once up at Quebec. When that
| fight was over the trainers removed
two pounds of lead from Charles
body that had been shot into him, but
lit didn't hurt Charlie any"
During his seasons on the road with
his own show Mr.. La Pearl kept daily
dairy of the circus business. 1t shows
better than anything ever printed be-
fore how strenuous is the circus bust
ness. Here are a few extracts, as a
sample, Mr.. La Pearl having his dairy
with him now as a memento of his
show days:
Petersburg, Ind, June z, 1S92-Wil-
liam Ganley joined out; soaked inside
with booze and outside with water.
Ramsey. H., June 1S-This is a
town in Egypt, where every one is
looking for the best of it. A shake.
down town.
Raymond, H.. June 23-Immediate,
ly after the matinee heavy wind and
rain storm surprised every one, caused
a blow down, broke one of the center
poles. The wreck was cleared up, a
telegraph pole substituted in place of
the broken one and gave night show.
Attica, Ind, April %, 1S93-Rained
today. Every canvassman with the
show bowed, except "Side-pole Bill"
and ''Whiskers." The show was afloat
The lot was on the bottoms; the river
bank gave way and flooded everything.
| 1t took until daylight the next morn
ing, having a storm overhead and the
boiling, surging Wabash river to con-
tend with.
| BILL IS HNMpI ErER