The Savannah morning news., 1903-07-07

from the EnldQeAp flld fktColQ-
The circus with its jngling music
and atmosphere of mirth and wonder
has made secure place for itself IN
American life. Its strong hold upon
the people cannot be denied.
The muiti-colored poster, hung so al
luringly on the roadside barn, catches
the eye Of the small boy as he wends
his way homeward from school, and
makes him late for the evening chores;
its extravagantly worded and elabo-
rately pictured promise Of scenes OF
splendor and mystery arouses in his
sangufne mind a rapturous yearning
and a never-say-d determination TO
''see that show" it develops in him
a spirit of thrift and a propensity for
economy that, If maintained through
his after life. would soon make nm
rich
He seldom outgrows his admiration
for the idol of his early days. The idea
that the circus is an exhibition solely
for the young is entirely wrong-it IS
as pleasing and diveTtlng TO the graN-
aty of age as il Is joyous and thrilling
to the bueyancy Of youth.
Anything that would be enduring
and the circus has been so well pat
tronized in the United States that IL
has come up from a low level 10 a
point of excellence attained IN no otner
country in the world. The executive
end of the business has been develop
ed to the highest point OF perfection
The tented city, coming in with the
gray dawn. rising spectre-like out OF
the mist revealing its wonders dur
ing the day and then disappearing IN
the darkness. is almost like some
trick in agic. The system by which
all this is accomplished is quite as
wonderful as the astonishing things
even in the ring.
The circus men have perfected the
routine of their calling in every pos
sible way They have the adding ma
chine in the ticket wagon, the cash
register at the door. and carry their
own electric light plant with them.
About the only thing that seems lack
ing is a portable telephone system to
connect the various departments.
DEVELOPMENT of the Business.
The ARRANGEMENTS are so complete
and the precautions against accidents
so numerous and so sweeping in their
effect that, season after season, the big
show will traverse from twenty TO
thirty-five states. unloading and re-
hours, for nearly 200 days, without
missing a single performance.
Referring to the development OF the
business q veteran Snowman said:
In order to accommodate our peo-
pie, and prevent hardship to our stock,
in case our trains are delayed we can
feed them all while in transit. We
have dining cars attached to our trains,
and all stock cars are equipped with
faa1 boxas and Aside
from the humanitarian consideration,
this provision assures a great saying
in the health and strength of our
horses. Another new and fast-develop-
ing feature of circus life in America
is the improy ement of the moral tone
of the business. One of the highest
salaried men with every big show is
the detective who directs the work of
protecting the patrons from crooks. On
account of this precaution there is real
~ less thieving done around the big
circus nowadays than at any other
large gathering you can name. We
also make strict exactions upon our
people for good conduct. II is a part
of our agreement with every person
whom we employ that their conduct
shall be such as not to reflect upon the
good name or character of our organ
ization. and a violation of this clause
renders their contract void. The peo-
PIE of the circus are becoming more
and more ambitious for the good name
of their calling, and the rapid improve
ment in its standing is due as much
10 their own endeavor as to the rigid
rules enforced by the management. +"
The Rich Performers.
The newspapers frequently discuss
the affairs of prominent people in the
theatrical profession, specializing on
the size of their fortunes. but one
hears little about success among cir
Gus performers. This is evidently an
oversight on the part of the editors,
for there are instances without num-
Der where ring performers have be-
come rich from their earnings.
Mr.. and Mrs. Lew Sunlin, the latter
being known to the profession as AL
lie Jackson, are probably the richest
performers in America. They are with
the trained bull and the high jumping
horse. They have valuable property
of various kinds in and around Grand
Rapids Mich. one of their greatest
sources of wealth being some extensive
rock quarries near that city, which
We're purchased undeveloped with
money they had saved from their sal
aries in the business.
A close second to the Sunlins is Rob-
ert Nelson. the venerable head of the
Nelson family of acrobats. He collects
rents from many residences, owns a
block Of business houses and is the
proprietor of the Opera House in that
city. His sons are also thrifty bust
ness men, and the nimble little Mel
sons. who have delighted people all
over the world by their clever antics,
will one day come into a large for
tune.
Probably the highest salaried man
with the Barnum & Bailey Show this
year is Charles Andrews. He started
in the show business as a magician
giving performances in school houses
through the country, as we'll as in
halls and vacant store rooms in little
interior towns. He is now the owner
of much valuable farm land in Kan
cago real estate.
Rise of II Programme Peddler.
When Andrews started with his small
show he took with him little boy
by the name of George Wood, who
drew the princely salary of $3.50 a week
for peddling programmes and making
himself generally useful Wood is now
one of the most successful and best
known pony trainers in the business.
He is with Ringing Brothers this year,
and few weeks ago bought a half
section OF fine farm land near Topeka.
Kan, for which he paid $4,000 cash.
In addition TO this. he owns some fine
property near Brighton. Ia.
Edward Ship and Robert Stickney.
now appearing with Sells 6. Fore
paugh. are men of means. Both of
them have earned enough so they can
retire in plenty whenever they desire
Harry Potter grew up as a raw farm