Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1904-02-02
BOUGHT ELEPHANT CHEAP.
Farmer Found Beast Undesirable For
PIowinq.

Flowing.
There was nothing to It," said the
senior clown. Il guess any gent thai
has been in the profession long enough
to give any sort Of standing knows
what it Is to gaze into the cold, un'
feeling fact Of a Deputy Sheriff an6
scan the hard lines of writ Of attach
ment. That's what Barker did, ano
it's what I've had to do before now.
was with him at the time.
HE had no luck to boast Of at the
beginning of the tour-just enough tt
carry US along nearer to our doom
When we'd got beyond the reach o.
human aid, as you might say, 1t came
on us thick and fast. We struck th'
warm ashes Of two county fairs and
revival meeting, which seemed to 81
beyond the needs of the natives IL
point of excitement. At another towI
they wanted 500 for license and So
for the grounds. Barker compromises
at SIS and free tickets for the member
Of the village board and their fami
lies and IS and tickets to the owner o
the grounds, but that was bad enough
right then. After that Barker qui
paying salaries and the next thing th
advance agent telegraphed back TO
funds two towns ahead, and becaus
he didn't get 'em he went off with
Hungarian band concert company, ant
by the time we worked up to the littl
blot on creation where he had beer
stranded we found nothing there bu
his hotel bill, with bar attachments
and a lack Of enthusiasm on the par
of the people that was marked. Bar
ker made the best Of it, as he did
everything. He put on his plaid yes
and an air of prosperity and hustle'
around among the influential business
men, and it being publication day n
got in reading notices and cuts ant
editorial Endorsements in the two news
papers. But it wasn't nos use. w
hadn't finished the first performance
when they came in and attached tn
| WUOle SlOW, lCSCiplo hhSS'
| wasn't a chance to hold out.
Barker explained right there that
was a foolish proceeding and that l
they allowed the performances to go OF
he could satisfy all claims, but the!
were not open to conviction. Thel
Barker had a talk with bright youn'
lawyer there and he got the monkey
out as the individual property OF Jo
Simmons, and it seemed that tn
horses and the costumes were al
owned by the performers. I found
owned two Of the best in the outfi
that I'd forgotten all about buyinl
from Barker, besides nv trick mule
But where Barker fell down was on tn
elephant, which, as he said, was al
most as bad as If the elephant had fall
en- on him.
"'That there animile,' he says, be
longs to that gent there, as Is a Prime
in his own country and owns herds o
EN- He points to Ali Baba, the sad
dle-colored Hindoo that took care o
the elephant.
al guess you don't own none Of thi
show says the sheriff, kind o sarcas
YES says Barker, I own the ten
and that there stuffed lion. Tina
ought to be enough to satisfy your Dill
"If he can show the papers for
it's. all right, says the sheriff. Here
YOU dago, does that elephant belong t.
you?
"Ali Baba shook his head sort o
mournfully.
aThat settles it. says the sheriff
4 guess we'll take the elephant
at seems to me as II dey'd hav'
held the horses too If dey'd had an!
sense. Dey ought to have made Bar
ker show the papers for dem," observed
'Frenchy.'
$50 they ought" agreed the senio
clown. Maybe they would have, onl!
the bright young lawyer got 'em re-
plevined without a bond and the boy
hustled them 40 miles over the stat
line over night. They had to leave tn
elephant out on account of him not be
ing able to travel fast enough. Any
way they sold Mr.. Elephant at pub
| lie auction, and he was bid In by
farmer for $40. The farmer was unde
the influence, I guess, when he mad'
the bid, but as soon as he sobered VI
he said he calculated he'd get tina
much work out Of him.
Barker and me and Ali Baba wen
over the day after to see how he wa
getting along with the fall plowing. .
was mad when Barker proposed going
1 told him should think he'd be study
in some way of gettin' out OF tn
country alive. He'd told me he hadn'
got SO left to his name. Unless
should happen to meet with some o
the boys with the horses at Topeka, N
says, with wink, and they should b.
kind enough to set me up in business
again with a loan Of their stock
"As for that little trip out to th'
farmer he says, I'm going to ge
pointers On the circus business. Fv'
been talking with Ali Baba and gath
er there's going to be circus there,
when we left town Barker was car
rying his valise and Ali Baba and mi
both had our bundles. We looked as i
we were on the tramp, sure enough.
1--WE won't walk far, says Barker
as we got near the farm. Listen tt
that
1T sounded like a steam calliop'
gone crazy. Ali Baba's face curled W
into a grin.
"sIt,s begun already, SAYS Barker