New-York tribune., 1903-04-15
ORPHANS At THE CIRCUS.
The One Great Day IN an Institution
ChiLd'S Life.

"Ts that God. teacher?" asked the shabby little
girl in the scratch Tam O. Shanter and the pigtail
as high on the gilded van. drawn by it's three
rnagRihcently caparisoned steeds, she figure
with e gold its head. clad in religious
robes and holding & harp. And as the Queen Of
Shebas pageant wound its gaudy length around
the amphltheatre Of Madison Square Garden on
its way King Solomon, her eyes followed the
figure in a sort Of ecstasy. Anyway, whatever the
figure was. she was in paradise So were about
ak thousand other children, all from institu-
ton or another in New-York. and all guests for
TIE afternoon Of the greatest show earth"
HI. mister. amt il time begin?'' sang
out one Of the youngsters TO circus hand Oh.
rapture. touch a real circus the arm
and have him stop, II then about 12:45. and
the doors would not be opened for another fifteen
minutes and the mob of boys and girls had pushed
their way soidly through the vesJibule UP the
ticket takers brass ramparts Every second new
oetachments kept arriving, whipped into shape and
ragged into line by fussy adults. 1t was, ''Oh,
teacher, when is it going TO begin?'' and ''Oh,
teacher. Minnie is treading toes, and she
won't stop and went you tell her TO. please,
teacher" and Boys, boys, jostlng there,
mind" and ''Hully gee. but wish had settee.
When the greatest show earth formally
loosed its latchstrng the institution and lasses
entered the magic portals. and two by two in a
never ending line fled PAST the herds of elephants
the giraffes. the baoy elephant by the side its
mother. the kangaroOs and the ponies. They filed
past the lions, who with their paws folded
right Up by the bars Of their cage and covered the
miniature and women with q majestic. indif-
ferent gaze The ponies showed themselves as
greedy for peanuts the elephants, and poked out
1fetr mouths in suggestive way in their eager
ness for titbits. The mother kangaroo coUghed
'ladyIkely" 10 her children and they hoped back
from the bars, out Of harms way; the leopards
paced Up and down their cells. bored and restless
IN their captivity: the elephants swayed from side
70 side, fixing their young admirers with small
sinister eyes and twisting and untwisting their
trunks.
And the children. pausing now and then before
some exile o. the jungle, would gently point and
whisper something. But for the most part, they
we're aWed. silent. They enjoyed it, they marveed,
they were transcendentIy happy, but they cid not
talk about it. They We're suppressed, calm, col
lected. Emotion-its expression, anyway-does not
thrive in institutions. SO far excitement went,
the deaf from the institute Sixty-eighth-
st showed most Of it. They talked necessarily TO
each other wonder after wonder doomed up, and
laughed and nudged one another and expressed the
holiday spirit which many Of the others seemed
afraid to show.
It's the kids-the cripples and the orphans, you
know" explained the human PIncushion the
Bearded Lady. the advance guard OF children
bore down The gallery Of human curosities. And
tie Bearded Lady smiled down from her platform
upon the wondering mites before her and whispered
T,o-TrTS ,r-1e j,I1re sfIL- sUapc1oVyT1
and The human Mountain nodded 10 the American
Siantess, who also smiled down from her altitude
O. eight feet three The midgets cakewalked. the
epsnsOnist expanded, The disocatonist dislocated.
the aTmess WonCer clutCneG pen in MS rIsht loot
and Gettiy wrote calling card for one Of the
visitors md the Corean Twins embraced each other
fondy-au for the benefit Of the wondering boys
and girls.
L took slI the time there TO seat the chill
cren- School and hospital. home and kindergarten.
they straggled their sinuOus way the arena
Ike gigantic centipe0es, tnen charged upstairs 10
their places with cavalry rush The Hebrew
Orphan Asylum punched itself bluey in one bal
c0ny. with the scarlet hoods and capes of Lisa
Mission Haunting the gallery above. When the
Catholic Protectory boys came. il TO the music
of their band, and they paraded the sa~dust ring
drum corps from the Abigail school marched in
tTlurnphartIv playing Mr.. Bailey" and looking
very smart in their trig blue and scarlet uniforms
Last Of an came the crippled children from the
House Of St Giles the Cripple, IN Brooklyn Parents
and teachers carried them IN 70 the Garden where
hlg policemen Sratche6 them up and tenGerly bore
them in their arms 20 their seats Crlpples with
tiny crutches and wee. cruel iron boots occupied
the boxes ~
Is the show proceeded the children warmed. / nc ne
perigrfnations Of the clown with the aldeTIllanic
spotted stomach convlIlsed them. They were pleased