The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1906-04-12

Bailey took the first American circus
to Europe, and made of his trip
grand triumphiaI tour of five years that
made him millions.
Mr. Bailey was a modest man, who
refused positively to be interviewed.
Barnum loved to be interviewed. He
was always in the limelight. Barnum
vanity survives him in the perpetuatlon
of his name. When he sold to Bailey
a half interest in his show it was stipu-
lated in the contract that it was to be
known as the "Barnum Greatest Show
on Earth for 50 years thereafter
Wouldn't Meet the King.
In London Mr. Bailey declined to be
presented to King Edward, and pre-
tended to be away from London when
the request came.
The Snowman began his business life
working for SO a month on a farm near
Pontiac, Mich. His father had died
when he was years old, his mother
was dead, too; so he had to shift for
himself at that early age. There was
another boy upon the same farm, and
young Bailey found out that he was
getting 81 a month He asked the pro-
prietor to pay him the same. This was
refused, SO he licked the other boy and
left. He walked to Pontiac and got
job as bellboy in a hotel.
When he was IL years old the adj
vance man of the old Robinson & Lake
circus stopped with his wagon at the
to stamp dates upon circus posters, to
help mix paste and hand out bills. That
was in 1858.
He Travelled with that show for sew
eral years. One winter, during the war;
he was usher in a theater in Nashville,
Tenn. An army officer came one night
to the theater when every seat was &C
cupied. He asked the young usher to
find him a seat. Bailey got him a chair
and seated him comfortably in the
aisle The officer offered him a SIS bill
in payment. Bailey refused to take it.
This pleased the officer so that he got
Bailey job at better wages in the
suffers department of the army quar-
tiers there.
Took Show to Australia
The next spring, when Bailey was II
years old, he went out as general agent
of the Cooper & Henning circus at $45
a month He drove a wagon ahead of
the show, mixed paste, posted bills and
contracted for all things the show
would need. The next season Mr.
Cooper. because of the boys honesty
and industry, gave him the privileges"
with the shOW-that is he managed the
sideshow and had charge of the lemon
ade and peanut stands. Two years Ia
ter Mr.. Cooper sold him a half inter
est in the show, and it went out as the
Cooper & Bailey circus
Now the young man had a chance to
put his own original ideas into execu-
ton In 1876 he took the circus to Aus
tralia It was the first American cir
Gus that ever went abroad. 1t was
gone until 1879. returning by way Of
South America. When Bailey returned
to this country the great London cir
Gus was in the hands of a receiver. It
had been driven to the wall by the
superior competition and shrewd tao
tics of Barnum.
The great London circus was offered
for sale for S1500O0.
Bailey had only $1,000 in cash. He
bought the great London circus. pay
ing 5000 in cash and giving notes for
$40. 600. and went into winter quarters
in Philadelphia to get ready to fight
the Barnum show the next summer
The Baby Elephant.
In February of that year, while the
show was in winter quarters. with a
debt of 100000 against it, the first
sheer good luck in all his career came
to Bailey One of his elephants,
Babe" gave birth to the first baby
elephant ever born in captivity. The
papers were full of it, and Barnum
wired Bailey that he would pay $780,
00o cash for the baby elephant. He
knew how deeply Bailey was in debt
and he never dreamed that the young
Snowman would refuse the offer. Ball
ey answered that the baby elephant
was not for sale.
Bailey at once had printed a great