The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1903-09-12


Next week Kansas is coming to the
| state fair at Topeka and once more the
fair grounds will look as they did in
years gone by when the Missouri girl
| raced against the Kansas girl. in a ten
mile running race, and everyone Won
dered how they hung onto the jiggily
| side saddles.
Somehow the Kansas girl always won.
unless her horses broke their legs or
| jumped the fence or did something else
not on the programme The races were
pretty tough on the girls and tougher
| on the horses, but the band played, the
small boys ran onto the track at the
risk of being run over and the man on
| horseback with the red sash and the
| tin star chased them off.
| The man with the red sash and the
tin star has always been a feature. IL
not a fixture. of the fairs. Not only the
| fairs in Topeka but those everywhere.
| Often they are fixtures. This important
| individual is supposed to keep the track
clear but he is generally posing in front
| of the grand stand and trying to look
| like the equestrian statues OF General
| Sheridan. The man with the red sash
| lives from one year to the next just for
the opportunity of wearing that bright
bandage and that big tin star and hav-
| ing the people look at him.
| The only opponent that this wonderful
! individual has is Little Egypt" who is
not content with a red sash but has
| clothes, that is what clothes she has. OF
many colors. The Little Egypts" that
have exhibited at fairs would number
| into the thousands. They are all the
original and as the bankers says. The
little lady, who at the Worlds fair in
| Chicago set the whole nation to talking.
| This little lady we now have here before
us was brought to this fair at great ex-
nense The Lord High Garrifibio of
Egypt would not let her come until we
gave q bond for 500. 900 that we would
bring her back She is the favorite
dancer of the Nile. She dances that
| dance that lost John the Baptist his
head After you see her you won't
| blame John the Baptist one Bit.
Then the country men and the city
men crowd into the tent. They expect
don't. It's a mighty tame affair. The
dance that made Chicago famous" was
no worse-that is. not much worse
than what can be seen on ballroom
floor any day during the dancing sea-
son. OF course. the difference is that
the dancer goes 1t alone and there is
squeaky pig whistle to make the music
instead of an orchestra. But the men
expected to see something real naughty,
and if there is another dancing girl out
Ifit on the ground they will go right
over to it and be roped in again on an
other fake.
But the Little Egypts must have
formed a colony somewhere. for their
days at the state fairs are over. There
will be none here this year. They have
been barred by the statute of limita-
ton. The man with the red sash will
be all alone in his glory.
The usual au1usements will be on the
| grounds next week In the way of cane
and knife racks; those affairs where
you throw ten rings. that cost you ten
cents. at the canes sticking up through
a rack. If ring goes over cane you
get the cane. You don't have any
earthly use for the stick, and 1t is good
for nothing. but you ring it, and it
is yours Then you trade the cane in
for twenty rings and throw some more.
1t is a matter of time and trading
canes and rings until you have nothing
and are out ten cents. The same canes
undoubtedly travel from Maine to Cali
fornia. The knife rack. on the same
plan, is full of pewter affairs that
would not cut hot butter. If you ring
one. you feel like suing the proprietor
of the establishment.
To be real sporty at the races the
young men must, or they think they
must. bet on the races. The Kansas
law is elastic and allows bets on horse
races two weeks in the year. Two weeks
isn't considered long enough for a per-
son to learn how or to lose all he has
on earth: that is. if he has very much.
Kansas young men don't know any
more about betting on horse races than
they can learn by reading stories of
Sheepshead Bay and the Harlem tracks
in the east. There used to be a pacing
horse come to the races at Topeka dur
ing the fair Zach wear. by the name OF
Jersey Girl. This horse was the color
of Missouri clay. She could pace pretty
fast and looked like a streak of yellow
when she came down the stretch
winner. The Topeka touts used to
think that she ought to win. and they
bet on her everv time she raced in To-
peka. no matter whether she lost or
won. Jersey Girl quit racing after
awhile. and then the talent took to
Great Northern just because he was
good-looking horse. Great Northern
was about like the Great Eastern and
could travel about as fast. He quit the
track like Jersey Girl, and Topeka
pocketbooks ceased their annual suffer-
ing
There will be would-be sports next
week who will go I'D to the bookmaker
and announce that they would like to
spend about 81 betting on the next
race. The boolInaker will say, (Which
way2" and they. not knowing what to
say, will exclain. ''Oh, any way; don't
care.