The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1906-09-08

1
Sensation has followed sensation so
rapidly in the circus world that the
public is prepared to receive without
incredulity the announcement of the
most startling and seemingly tmpos-
sfble feats. : During the past five or six
years each successive season has pro-
duced something little more daring
and little more dangerous than It's
predecessor This year the acme or
reckelssness sensatfonalism has apt
parent1y been reached. An intrepid
French woman is'to thrill the Amer
lean public, and incidentally place her
life in daily jeopardy. by looping the
gap" in an automobile.
This latest thriller is known as 81
auto Bolide." It is a Paris importa-
ton. That almost goes without saw
ing. Paris is the worlds factory for
circus sensations. II an act can move
the Partisan who is prone to accept
every new sensation as matter of
course. its success elsewhere on earth
is assured. Paris crowned '1'auto
BoIide" the greatest thriller of the
century. Nothing in the exhibttional
line seen in the French capital In re-
cent years ever succeeded In creating
such genuine furore. It ran for an
entire season, and was then withdrawn
only because previous contracts COM
PEELED its presentation in other con-
tinentai cities. For many months 1t
continued to be source OF comment
and marvel OH the houlevards and In
the cafes OF Paris.
Literally translated the name 81 auto
Bolide" means the "auto meteor" In
its wild flight through the air 1t Is
said to suggest nothing SO much as
shooting star To fully comprehend
its sensational character one must
have seen all the great bicycle sen
sations of recent years. The inter.
est aroused by the original bicycle
acts, presented on the ground, was
accentuated by the first dangerous
efforts to ''loop the loop A record OF
the number Of performers Injured or
killed in attempting this daring feat
would make a startling publication.
Then came the awe-fnsnlring feat of
"looping the gap" with the upper seq
ment of the loop removed. The French
"feche humane" or human arrow
with its wild bicycle flight through
snaca. followed. Contemporaneous
with these startling acts were dozen
or more daring cycle acts OF more or.
Bolide" is the legitimate outcome OF
the bicycle sensation, but 1t Is much
more dangerous and Is presented on
such ambitious scale, as to completely
dwarf all previous effarts in this linz.
To present the act requires an Inn
mense amount of apparatus. The
framework which supports the runa
WAYS is as high as a three story build
ing. It is constructed OF the finest
steel and tubing and weighs many
tons. The general shape Of the appn-
ratus suggests the hump of butralo.
At the apex is a small platform. One
side OF the steel framework supports
an incline that curves inward at It's
lower extremity like the tail Of mon
ster letter IS" The other section OF
the framework holds curved runa.
way that begins, haIf-moon-shape,
forty feet In the air, and straightens
out into as easy incline as it approach
as the ground. Between the extreme
end of the IS" and the second incline
there is yawning chusm .of forty
feet. 1t is this awful gap that the
automobile must cross with Its daring
rider. And 1t must be Accomplished
with the machine literally upside
down.
When the time is ripe for the dip
Of death" the auto is raised to the eIe-
waited platform by means Of wire
cable. This Is done to afford the au-
dtence an opportunity to see the ma
chine and to study the construction.
When the auto has been placed on
Its elevated platform, the automobile
Iascends. Miss Isabel Butler, s"rhe
woman who dares% in the auto Bo.
gllide Is young, small Of stature. but
las beautifully formed as q model and
sI'hatIfe has ailioW9sd her with a face