Bismarck daily tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1881-1916, 1907-05-23
'TUMBL.lNG BY RULES,
Every Move Of an Acrobat Is
Carefully Calculated.
CHANCE FALLS DANGEROUS.


CHANCE FALLS DANGEROUS.
Ii Tumbler Loses HE Balance Acci-
dentaliy and Goes Down His Skill
Will Not BE a Factor In Saving Him |
From Getting Hurt.
EFF there Is one thing more than am
other that pains me, said a leading ac-
srobat, tits these stories you read some
times or hear told OF circus tumblers
and clowns who In falling accidental
" have exercised their skill to escape
unhurt
..s'You read of an acrobat falling out
of a window. but. with rare presence
OF mind, giving sort Of wriggle just |
as the, sidewalk draws neal. sanding on |
the back of his neck in precisely the |
right way and then bouncing to. his
!. feet and bowling gracefully to the star
tied spectators.
ooh. I've read lof such things time
and time again; but take my word, they
are.ali fakes pure and simple. MY ex.
perienee has been that IL a tumbler
loses his balance accidentally he Ia Just
as badly Of and viii tall just as far
and Just as hard as the man or woman
who does not even know how to turn,
soRersault speak, as / say, from
bitter experiences, and 10 doubt any
other circus or 2 vaudeville lumber
:weuld emphasize this should you
bother to ask him. rs s5ssg VS.. a;ass,ss,
The explanation Il simple enough.
e perhaps ron have not grasped II al
ready. embodying as # does the fact
that tumbling liza science and that
every move, however careless or slip
she'd It may appear 10 tie spectator 81
calculated move and that any tumble
or fell proceeds In certain definite
nugss froms start to finish as exact and
perfect Gssa problem In arfthmette.y
The act may incite roars Of laugh
ter, but wonder would the laughter
b 90 great did the spectators know
how that mirth provoking stunt had
been worked over from point point
and studied and precticed.s Well, /
suppose It's like any other business
where the glamour y all on the outside.
Speaking Of tumbling In real life,
you should have been with the Fore
paugh show one summer evening some
years back. We were doing a Sunday
lump from Topeka, / think It was, to
some little enc tent town down the
line, and the members Of the troupe
were packed In q long caboose on the
rear Of a, freight train which was
made MP partly Of orr property. cars.
s"It was raining hard that night and
black as q tent rigger's heart The ca.
boose was SO Sitting hot that two or
/ three members OF our troupe would 60
IMP insthe eaboese tower every now
and then, open the. lookout window;
/ and drink In the air. ss Il
Finally the train came to a stand
still, and there we astood TOR AT least
ten minutes. With all sorts De sitting
and humping going Oh ahead At last
/ after about fifteen minutes one Of the;
girls MP in the tower called down
that there was q hres ahead. We all
crawled up. one after the other, and;
/ tool; 4 peep. Sure enough, there was
q big blaze up fofward--a railroad.
station every one thought It was, but
Il turned ont to be two Of our forward
Ec0fS.
Mind you, the night was so black
that yon could not see three feet ahead
Eef yonr nose. The whole crowd made
/ d rush for tne caboose door. Luke
Stark was the fEst,, and Luke was the;
Finest aer1al lumber ID Che country.
He had the chance Of his life right
there for 90 he stepped on the last
step, thinking to hit the ground. ne
INT nefhing at All. The bloomin' ear
Was on q strestie ssss.ss
well, a lady elephant lumber was
Light behind Luke, and It was q race
fora thefbot Twas hext, Int as &
saw NE othetsss aappeaE. II reached
EJf Sna SAtght d run as my
afaet. danx ma It waSa mat
y tar Of hut . SECOND ~ pull up again,
| but before haA my feet fair On the
sfep Isepl)d hear ispm below q sort 90
piash and screams Of gnrgling
Il 81 ma iss laaf terms a !, u m dS9kn the
stde no &hh kesfie, lAtR9 % And two
dead NeIson Ank Instead discovs
cred Ia hert zoe lRaaeEand sin
y .seet % sthss tHa sttumb ieks and
M No. ttlahk they could not
move. we dug them out Of the mud
hauled them back to the caboose, and
after they had changed their clothes
/ We asked them how they came III
make such nice falls ont of NJ. But
II they only looked mad. OF course they
fell IKE any ordinary baby would have
faiien. ~
40 kor me; one night III the Coliseum
N Al Kansas City the heel. of mr. shoes
[lcaught Ia the end of tie platform Oh