Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-06-18

sorbing enjoyment for the general pub
lie The fun will begin with the un
loading of the great special train.
about daybreak, probably before the
late riser has had his morning coffee
futtering flags will tell all within Wis
ual range of the show grounds that The
wonderful circus is here. 1t takes
twelve acres of ground to provide fol
the huge tents. There are twenty di-
visions in ALL The big canvas under
which the ring performances and stu
pendous spectacle take place has seat
ing accommodation for ten thousand
people. There are three rings. two
great stages and an enormous hippo
drome track quarter of a mile long,
Overhead is strung forest of mechan-
ica appliances for dashing and haz
ardous aerial feats. The massive and
ornate scenery employed in giving WV
Id life and magnetic interest to the
prodigious production Fighting the
Flames, represent an entire city
block The mimic buildings are of
realistic dimensions and throb with the
panoramic life of a busy city center.
The great ring spaces, enlarged stages
and huge hippodrome track are trans
ferred into picturesque and cultivated
city park. The broad hippodrome
track forms a boulevard around this
towering and fascinating center. and
is filled with movement, people and at
tractive incident. Sight seeing We
hicles, electrical commercial wagons,
automobiles, luxurious carriages,
dainty runabouts, changing street cars.
flashing bicycles and a hundred and
one other kinds of vehicular service
which characterize and give panoramic
features to metropolitan life are rep
resented In the hurrying, worrying and
fascinating street spectacle. Gossiping
nurse maids, posing policemen, sim
pering dudes. gigglng school girls,
frolicing boys. lounging patriarchs,
sauntering idlers. wretched mendicants,
family groups--in short all the sights
and sounds, joys and sorrows. gaieties
and pains, riches and poverties that
grow and flourish side by side in the
cosmopolitan life of a great city arc
depicted in this swirling vortex of
human nature and its hopes and cares
with realistic tone and emphasis Sud-
denly curl of smoke is seen to issue
from under the cornice of sky
scraping building in the very center of
the long block. Directly under this
faint futtering ribbon of suggesting
danger is a woman and child, both
pleasurably occupied in looking down
upon the mixed and alluring sights of
the street. A band of music is heard
in the distance, and quickly all the
windows in the big building fill with
people curiously interested in the APP
preaching music Suddenly shrill
alarm of fire rings out on the air.
CHEEKY faces instantly blench from
piercing fear, the multitudes in the
streets stop as if by magic and strains
anxiously toward the rising flame, that
comes and goes with fierce noise and
more terrible growth and coloring with
each flash. Men begin to shout
hoarsely to the imprisoned inmates.
who are panic stricken and choke the
numerous windows, struggling and
desperate Every second pinches the
heart of the onlooker and adds to the
confusion and terror of the trapped
women and children. Fire engines
come Gathering down the street with
the speed of lightning. Courageous
firemen unreel and connect the hose
and mount scaling ladders that are
hooked to the window stills almost be-
tween breaths. and instantly the work
of rescue begins. Women and child
rem, lying limp and helpless are
brought speedily to the ground: at
times descending thru sheets of wav-
ing, all-consuming flame. Fire nets
are spread and held taut by strong
and willing hands. Into these live-sav-
ing appliances frenzied people jump
and illustrate the awful ordeals of
devouring city conflagration. 1t
is q wonderful exhibition of the awful
dangers that beset the city firemen
called to duty, and the almost super
human heroism he displays in the face
of appalling risks. The ladders, en-
gines, hose reels, chemical extinguish-
ers, live saving devices and every
modern invention of fire fighting are
the perfection of scientific study and
genius. The smoke. steam, flame and
other pyrotecnic effects are vivid and
thrilling limitations of the natural ele-
ments, produced by mechanical and
electric apparatus which are wonder
full creations of this scientific age, and
represents years af experiment and
fortune in e&pence. The smoke is
odorless, but tangible and billowy and
the flames are dreadfully like the de-
structive element of nature, from
which all shrink with horror when it
finds an uncomfortable opportunity for
devastation. The fire fighters are
picked from among the leading fire de-
partments of the largest cities
and are men who are nationally and
internationally known for heroic deeds
and devotion to DUTY Forty of them
wear medals of honor. This mammoth
spectacle is the greatest in dramatic
interest size, novelty and thrilling in
cidents ever produced in America, and
no one should fail to see it.
GETS BIG PENSION.