The Roswell daily record. [volume] (Roswell, N.M.) 1903-current, 1905-07-05
LOOPING the Loop
fortginaLl

matted red hair, az got an idea.
What is 1t, Mar ?" asked the mother.
people has got used to my rIdin'
round the stage on my head ON my
bike. and he manager tole me last
night that next week I was to git out
That set me to thinkin'. and I've Just
hit on somepin better. I'm goin' to
shoot down an incline, up a loop, cross
a break. up~another incline and across
another break and on the stage"
La sakes. Nan; yell break yer
neck!"
you bet I won't"
putting up flaming pictures of Mile.
Yvonne P~asconnu. recently from Paris.
double looping the loop. The perform
ance was to take place at the same
theater where Fanny Anderson, alias
Nan Brennan, had been performing her
astonishing bicycle feats. which were
now to be outdon by the daring Mile.
P%asconnu.
The small boys looked at the pic
lures and began to save their pennies
for a gallery admission. Men wondered
IL the feat were to be done without a
net; women declared the performance
vulgar. but wanted to see it. On
the night of the first performance long
before the curtain rose Standing
Room Only" piacards were put up, and
there vas very little of that. The audi
ence waited impatiently while the 9TH
er varieties were gone through with,
n hen the last. the double looping
the loop by Mile. Yvonne Pasconnu,
came round. the house was ON the tip
toe of expectation. The curtain was
down for a quarter Of an hour, and be-
hind it the moving of frames and the
pounding of hammers could be dis
tinctly heard. Then, after the orches-
ira had exhausted itself, the curtain
was pulled up and revealed the struc-
ture Oh which the feat of the evening
was to be performed.
When mademoiselle came on the
stage. there was deafening applause.
Fanny Anderson had worn her own
Irish red hair and white and rose COM
pleAiOn without The freckles - but
Mile. Yvonne Pasconnu's hair was a
raven black. and her complexion was
Of IN olive tint AS she came tripping
fors ard in her tight costume not one
Of the audience saw in the little French
girl with a bridged nose the Irish Fan
ny Anderson with her nasal pug. Aft
err bowling to several rounds of ap-
plause mademoiselle approached a sill
yer mounted bicycle. with a glittering
Jewel in each end of the handle bar,
leaning against a wing. and inspected 1t
carefully; then. going to the DOT of the
loop structure. she walked slowly up it,
testing it at different points. picking up
a nutshell, a bit of wood, a piece of
rope, and throwing them down on the
stage.
While this was going on a super took
b wheel of the stage. M~ademoiselle
after walking through the loop and
looking up at each of the two breaks
or intervals, as If wondering If it YOU
be possible to shoot them in safety.
stood on a platform high above the
stage and made a farewell bow: then
she disappeared through a door, and
b audience waited breathlessly, every
eye fixed on a IGOR above leading on to
the loop.
The orchestra had been playing dur
ing the inspection, III ceased as soon
as mademoiselle disappeared. During
the three minutes that elapsed between
her disappearance and the opening of
the dOor leading on to the loop there
was not a word spoken In the audience.
Suddenly mademoiselle on her bicy-
Gle shot out and descended the first
incline of the loop. The audience had
expected to see her figure rounded
down to the hazardous work; but,
though she nov so rapidly that they
could not follow her distinctly, she
seemed to sit as though a thorough
abandonment to forces beyond her con-
troll was far safer than any effort on
her part.
When she lac passed the first break
In safety there was a sigh of relief in
the audience. The second break was
shorter and the radius of the loop less.
She passed it and In a ~twinkling shot
of the stage.
Then there were a terrific burst Of
applause and an encore. After a long
Interval mademoiselle came out bow
ed, disappeared and In a few minutes
again, Gated ON her wheel, burst into
view.
There was no diminution to the thrill
which had pervaded the audience at
thef first trial. Again mademoiselle sat
her wheel as If resigned to whatever
her fate might be and committing her
self to force. She safely passed b
arst loop, and with slightly diminish
ing speed came to the second. This
time the fore wheel struck against b
woodwork ON the other side of b
break m~ademoiselle, head down.
fell to the bottom of the loop.
4 thrill of horror ran through b
audience. Before the result of the &C
cident could be determined the curtain
was rung down. Women tainted, men
~shuddered, while some left the theater
Immediately. not caring to hear the