The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1903-04-19

one ever saw him run or ever walk fast
Mr.. Bailey was born in Detroit hfty-dve
years ago. lost his father when he Sas Z
years old. and his mother when he was o.
He lived a while with his brother-in-law.
who oyerworked him and made him always
late for school So within a few months he
ran away. He got a job on a farm. binding
and shocking wheat for SO a month. but
Boy in rei a hotef at and Po n3 ! Mich Mich. Th z ee he
fell in with Fred Bailey. general agent OF
) the Robinson & Lake circus. who. on June
{ j.. 1850. hired the prompt. industrious, faite-
I full little fellow as one OF the advance bn-
Eade Of the show Twelve years later he be-
came a partner of ]. Z. Cooper in the IA
profitable tour around the world.
HOW BAILEY FOUGHT BARNUH.
Mr.. Bailey had distanced all competitors
save one-P- 7. Baruum-and he felt
strong enough to give battle TO this vet
eran Snowman upon the latters chossn
ground. For one entire. season a terri6c
war was waged for supremacy between
these two big rival amusement enterprises.
! Vast sums Of money were expended bY
both shows. and the warfare threatened TO
De rCinous financially 10 all concerned For
once Mr.. Barnum had met his superior tG
the business which he had made famous,
and for the first time had suffered defeat
For Mr.. Bailey had caused him to abandon
his selected territory and fly to remote sec
tons OF the country with his show.
There was one most important factor In
this now celebrated war of the big shows.
a short time before hoStiAt4eS began, one
q Mr. Baiiey,s large female elephants gave
the first baby elephant ever born in. cap
uvtty.? 1t proved an immense card for Mr..
Bailey. The birth OF the animal was chron|
icied far and wide over the country, and
rendered the name and fame Of Cooper and
! Bailey famous all over the land. Mr.. Bar
mum. quick to see the advantage of having
so important an attraction as a real. live
american baby elephant telegraphed 10
baby eiepSan 5000" Mr.. Bailey wiTee
In answen will not sell at any price"
Mr.. Bailey hustled with his show TO meet
ground. By the time Mr.. Bailey reached
the region where the Barnrm show was
exhibiting. the whole country was billed
spicuously printed In flaming type:
WHAT BARNCM THINKS OF THE
BABY ELEPHANT"
and underneath that heading was printed
Barnum's telegram to Mr.. Bailey. offering
the big sum for the animal. This poster
greeted Mr.. Barnum wherever he went and
worried him very much To avoid seeing
II, and In search OF better business for hts
and made direct for the Far West. leaving
Mr.. Bailey in u~ndisputed possession OF the
fighting ground. Soon thereafter the two
| formed a partnership and Mr.. Bailey took
entire charge OF the combined shows.
FATHER OF MODERN CIRCUS.
! It was Mr.. Bailey who bought Jumbo. the
giant elephant Of the London Geological
Gardens, the pet of a million English chill
dren.
Another great stroke Of Mr.. BsiIey's was
when he conceived the great purpose in
months he quietly formed his plans. per-
fecting every detail. looking after the
smallest things. as wen as undertaking the
big contracts with the steamship companies
! for conveying the stupendous institution
5000 miles across the Atlantic Ocean.
The exhibition took pace just as Mr..
Bailey said it, would To the show was
| added the spectacle of Nero" with 1900
people in the cast, and Mr.. Barnum was
iionfzed by the British public. while Mr..
Bailey. the designer OF the whole vast un-
dertaking. took his reward in crowded
houses and by seeing Mr.. Barnum covered
with praises for the huge success Mr.. Bal
ley had toiled to achieve
Mr.. Bailey might well be called the father
who little b. little developed the old-time
circus into the elaborate and complicated
machinery for popular entertainment We
see to-day. When the electric was first
lighting buildings he was the first to seize
upon it for use in the monster canvas pavr-
ions Of his show.
There nave been two great advances in
the circus business from the old tent show.
tn first advance was the multiplication
OF rings. addition of stages. hippodrome,
-menageries. and so on. The second ad-
vance. or innovation. as IL may be regard
tacular portion, represented by such pro-
auctions as Nero" and as that OF Co
lumbus," and they also were the product
Besides standing at the head of the lar
gest amusement Institution in the word.
Mr.. Bailey Is interested as an active part
ner in the two next largest shows, VIZ, the
Buffalo Bill Wild West and Forepaugh and
Sells Brothers Show. both OF which an
nually tour the large cities ST the United
States of America. He is also a large
stakeholder in banks. railroads. insurance
companies and various other commercial
enterprises.