The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1903-06-09
,cs-yr-zht. 1908, By Robert Howard
RusseIl.)


= Ray and these were generally unfit
Tor publication.
If n" BOrs Cauyasmaa mad n-tA
paid fo- every minute h. w"rA-d ne
would have quit the outfit Sometime
in the early eighties and today instead
of waiting for the first pole wagon TO
hit the lot. h. would have been living
on Fifth Avenue With reporters on the
doorstep 70 know MIA village got the
next Ifbrarv. HIS face was a bunch Of
wrinkles from tac-ng the storms and
his SANDY gray mOustache was clipped
dow u, horse brush length. He
ALWAYS .4rIl-d his coat on MS arm,
wor. q blue flannel shirt the Warmest
dsv- f- I5.- and had his trousers
Etnfr.d d.. Il pair OF red topped boots
that we're strangers to the lacking
brush and the gtIded chair Of the cor
her shine. Sometimes on sunday, NhSL
tho first section got in early ana the
I.v out for the tent was easy ne
wo.rf ont On = ceIIuIo.d collar and
screw i stud in the blue SHIRT ana trF
10 look ike q gentleman. But he didn't
Ike it,
tn. gang vas perched on the ring
bank lust after u big matinee when the
Boss Ca.vaSman came across f<hS :
and joined the crowd The afternoon
I'LL had eole TO the good and the
,-oEd VAS breathing easy and think
ing about the cook tent
Looks like u thunder storm tonight.
said tho side show spieler as he
@moo,hed out the sawdust and sat
down.
Well. retorted the canvasIuan as
h frightened the ground guys 70 the
three swing trapeze. 1t amt no bother
r-.rrrrr -
II don't know was the answer,
1--WE got to stand in front Of the lit
t.a tent and shoot off the CAB. RAIN or
rI-.~-'
That nothin'.' replied the Boss
~c,.rvaemau. less as soon $ the
crowd - in YOU can b" off to the sleep
Will. I've got this canVas to git to
the cars.
There was n silence. The fact that
= thunder storm was getting near
mad. everybody hin about the mar
who had TO handle the n He
could swear pretty Well under ordinary
circumstances but when the WIND was
OWN a gale. the canvaS getting
soaked and heavy and the earth around
the center poles beginning to soften.
what he could say in the twO-em talk
was something to terrify grown men
and make children laugh. The Boss
CIuvaSmau did'nt have much OF a
vocal uIarv for ordinary talk ana ne
only had n few cuSs words. but the
variations he could turn on this linn
tied supply of profanity had n slick
composer with eight notes and q
thousand tunes away to the evil with
no come back coupon. ne
let fly "a cuss it hit the air ike a
SIadge on the top of n six inch stake
Some Of the sweet takers thought II
was bad to have cusSing on the lot
E - ---p IN a HHhIChlT moral
show. hut the working outfit o
never have been able to make the
strike for the cars without the Boss
Canvasman'S swearing They would
have missed the stake pullers more
than the hot words that hit the atInoS-
phere when there wa tangle IN me
lines or some greeNy dropped the can
vas in the mud.
II was a story in the outfit that one
night the Boss CanvasInan had a
drunken crew with only one man dry
enough to unlaSh the south side OF
the main top. He put the b boy
t. work and cussed him so hard that
he did the work of, six In less time
than usual. When the DRINKS fell IN
to the lot the next morning. he gave
it tn them so strong that if theE went
To all the places he said. it would take
them all eternity to make the trip and
they wouldn't have time enough at
each stopping place to get scorched.
But no mistaking. the Boss Canvas
man didn't know What fear was ICns
before the war he had done towns
with a Wagon show. When the blue
and the gray started the mill down al
Manassas ne joined the FOrty-Elghth
Ohio and kept shooting until a MInnis
clipped him one ut G~ettySburG- He
had a red scar on his forehead and
his only piece IF iewelry was = tar
-. - - Irr-sn, TIL rrNr-
line for Bill with the bulIets-aIWays.
SAY. he remarked rs he drew
closer to the gang. There am NJ
thunder storms like there used 70 BE-.
There was no reply from the perch.
er= on the ring side. When thu BCs:
Cauvasman spoke il was like tn,
Clpt.u' svOice from the bridse-il
hands listening and ready for II,
Back in the sixties was whom tn
storms hit the country" continued tn
Boss CanVasman as he bit of a <
chew and stuck the tin tag to On
IF the blue poles. Seemed like y
AIIuS got a blow the night We wOul
strike the camp an il was hell Gatt!r
thu tent 10 the wagons None Of No'
boys EVER handled = wagon show. III
yep Wei. I'm going to tell L to 20
just how the days was before We IN
-l- trains an a big outfit
5,,u, five years fore the war. CUES
r. Mas l was stakir' wild a wlgO
Show II was July an We was dOiT
the towns in the Valley Of EirEiuL
I remembers il we'll for when : qui
cl- outfit 10 follow the flag. we /.
most rS cur scrappin' down the sam
vtl-y VIII. Wild the show We wa
GIvII p~--foruauce ev'ry a~fternOO
and r--uc an maxim the haul dow
tn" pix" between midnight an sur-ul
We had Il big top. q little meuagE
RE t@nt with me big wagon for IL
canvas an a long truck for the pole
Good weather 7 was easy Iosdir' =