The Cooperstown courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., N.D.) 1902-1913, 1904-05-19

vious eyes the figure upon whom every
thought was centersd ihsawesomS won
der. ~ - f. s. ~ "a "
."I wonder il she remembers how, her
pa ulster lick her for catching up the
colts" sniggered another member.
II guess them circus people just live
on popcorn and soda-water, and has
; all the balloons they want" the junior
member sighed, measuring Babbie's
short cut from wild horses to grandeur,
and planning disastrous future flights
for her own chubby limbs ~
Easy, Pedro easy, old boy" Mile.
Babette whispered, STOPPING to pat his
flying name. Before her arose a>sea
Of blurred and -swaying faces-men
and women bending eagerly to witness
/ her peril, drunk with the excitement
Of the desperate chances she was TAX
Ling. Gently, old fellow" she crooned;
you don't understand, but oh, Pedro,
I can't do it over again!" And the
holiday-minded throng did not know
that the gayly bedizened arms, flung
out in a wild appeal for help from some
unknown source, was not throwing the
customary kisses they had seen.
Again the band swung into its rolling
"Heaye-Ho;" again the One and Only
refined in the two horses; again she
crouched, sprang, described her rose
hued semi-circle and lit, slipped, threw
out her arms-and fell.
On plunged the horses, not noticing
the loss of their light burden. Before
Beppo could leap over the ropes they
were back and almost upon the pros.
trate little figure, Like a flash he
sprang between them, but even when
the ringmaster came up the curly head,
bound with it's gay flowers, did not
rise. The spangled form lay limp in
the sawdust, and as Jim gathered her
up in his arms she did not answer his
caress. ri
Mile. Babette is not hurt! ''Ft the rings
master FASTENED to announce. szsShe
presents her compliments to her indul-
gent audience, and says. she will re.
turn after the next act and do Tibet.
ter. l have now the pleasure Of pre-
senting to you one of the greatest
smirth- makers On this earth, Beppo.
The Famous Funny Fellow wilt give
an exhibition Of his company: ofsfools.
fun Of fun ana frolic.s' sa
:."Beppo! Beppo!"'. chorus of voices
started UP in. anticipation of their
promised fun. The swinging platform
was Immediately thronged with merry
andrews, lined up for their quips: and
Jokes. The crack of the ringma$ter's
whip reached the little group of terror
stricken faces that hung over the I'M
conscious Babette, and Beppo answered
its summons. springing mechanically
into the ring in revolt against this
throng Of bloodsuckers who hadabeen
RECALLED by Babette's fall. lSEr: /
|.s~Sgnaling al to Them to- stop their
clamor Of applause, he raised hisshand.
She's dying" heTcried wildly; a:can't
you stop your noise!" gs (
It was Beppo, the funny man, who
turned; his grdnnfngf mask toward them
and spoke. The first outburst Of ap-
plause had not ceased sufficiently for
the import Of his words to reach them,
but he was always funny, SO the
crowds answered back with a volley
OF cheers. The merriment of the even
ing had reached its highest pitch, and
the audience was in that happy frame
OF mind, ready to laugh at anything.
"Babette, she's dead, 1 say!" Beppo's
anguished tones repeated.
Sure, she's a dead one!" a fat boy
cried from the front seat. Whereupon
the audience seeing, as it supposed,
the point Of Beppo's joke, laughed up
roariously at this reference to. the
riders failure. and the fun went on.
The other clowns took their cues
from each other, and did their tum-
bling and sprawling stunts to the edlfi-
cation Of the crowd, but Beppo's effort
at sadness was tremendously funny.
the people thought.
At the end of the act, Beppo slid
backward of the platform, and made
for the greenroom tent, but not before
the people had discovered him, and
arose to call him back. "Three cheers
for Beppo!" rang above the general
clamor Of stamping, whistling, and
cat-calling. 'Bully old Beppo!" shout
ed the patronizing fat boy.
Peanuts! popcorn! lemonade!"
again shrilled through the audience.
''Waal, now, them clowns is dread
fully funny, amt they" commended
the hayseed citizen.
"She must make lots of money" the
foothill supervisor ruminated, his
fancy still clinging to the forlorn lit
tie figure he had known few years
before flying over the Timbuc hills on
wild colts, and taking her clicking
for the offense while devising another
feat But the spirits of the junior
member had fallen out of step with the
times. The glitter and glory Of the
life that was Babies had turned her
own little nankeen existence into Bit
terness. Some people get all the fun,
while others don't get any! The little
rebel in nankeen forgot that the cir
Gus music sometimes stops.
"And now, ladies and gentlemen %
the deep tones tried to say again: but
they could not be heard. The gay