The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-06-01
BENEATH TIE FIGURE EIGHT

huzzalng crowd on the benches, and,
bearing his tiny pink parasol aloft,
escorted the mayors embarrassed
daughter to the reserved seat section,
where the blushing young lady under
vent much chatting and banter. Then
fferi allowed the exaggerated smile
10 fade from his red-striped face, while
hs turned to look at the giddy iron
tower In the middle of the big canvas
tent. Beneath his paint-smears and
1ebra-striped toggery, Fieri, the buff
loon, had soul; and without doubt
the new Figure Eight act of Mile.
Florette Dupree was dangerous.
hair-raising thing. And Fieri and
Florette. in such condolences as life
with the Twenty Biggest Shows on
Earth allowed. admitted that they
loved.
Prof. Stradella's World Renowned
Band struck up rafting, inspiring
gallop. the canvas-haps of the dressing
room entrance we're showed back, and
Mile. Florette made dazzling, triumph
ant entry. On a snow-white, prancing
horse she came, standing airily on one
loot, In the glory OF pink tights and
hury white bal]et-skirting. The audi.
ence cheered at the very sight, and
mademoiselle acknowledged the ap-
plause with graceful mods of her pref
ty head. Fieri, the clown, foundered
over a hurdle. stole the ringmasters
whip. running halfway around the
tent with It.: then turned and watched
mademoiselle climb the dizzy iron,
stairway.
"Oh, DE careful. little Florette!" he
murmured, under his breath: and
whirled about to toss peanuts at the
ropewalking raccoons.
Mile. Florette reached the top of the
very high tower. The Stradella mu-
sicians ceased their rollicking .clamor
and began to play soft, low tremolo
stuff. The audience craned necks, and
Eteri, the clown, almost ceased being
funny. looking solemnly at the pink
lady as he see-sawed with Jocko. the
trained baboon, The Figure Eight"
was new act. having been put on
but four times. Once there had almost
been an accident. when one of the
flimsy invisible wires had broken, but
they claimed that was all right now.
Fieri knew that there were wires and
wires other than the flimsy one which
the lady held In her teeth and which
the audience believed to be her only
support; but Fieri did not feel safe
at that. So he nearly tumbled Jocko
from the other end OF the plank and
ambled nervously toward the perch
of mademoiselle.
Here, you get back over there and
do your tumbling!" the ringmaster or
dered; and Fieri grinned and shufled
back. Presently, though, he grasped
the tail of the trick donkey and gal
loped around the big tent with him
In his mad plunge with his prize
tempted country rider, and in this way
Fieri maneuvred near the iron tower.
Madamoiselle was harnessed In her
delicately balanced wire mechanism
and Stradella's musicians quickened
their tempo. The people on the
benches looked In fascinated horror
at the long wire, plunging from the
tower to the edge OF the track with
the immense Figure Eight" suspend
ed at the middle portion. Fieri de-
serted the bucking donkey and slipped
over beneath the narrowing figure. A
few feet away the famous Jacquenell
family leaped, somersanlted and whirl-
ed from a springboard upon a thick
mattress.
Stradella gave q lrenzied glare and
flourish, something began to click and
zizz. and a fluffy pink figure spuni
downward over a giddy wire. The
audience groaned,, the band played
tremolo stuff again, and Fieri, hardly
conscious of what he did. flung Clio
vanni Jacquenelli from his fat mat
tress and tugged the thing toward the
Figure Eight
The lady shot rocket-like down the
long fine-drawn wire. hit the compli-
Gated Figure Eight Tipped, revolv-
ed, circles, somersaulted through airy
space like pink catapult-thrown pro-
jectile., Then something snapped and
pink ball Of figure shot rapidly
into blank, unsupporting space. A,
shrill piercing shrek from the lady,
hundred echoes from the benches, Z
the groans OF men, and a funny little
muttered prayer from Fieri. A
straight, swift drop, a noisy impact,
a series of gradually diminishing
bounces-and the lady in pink lay
breathless, but unharmed, on the Jac-'
auenellis' well-padded mattress. Fieri
still mumbled his little prayer. 4
THANK goodness" murmured ma
demoiselle. Sand goodby to the Fig
ure Eight for me-"
We'll, | should say So" chattered
Fieri hysterically; and the reassur-
ed band commenced to play more
blithely than ever, n
4 You did 1t, Fieri," said the lady In
pink, as the frightened attendants
picked her up. I'm marry you to
morrow"
And Fieri stood forth and made
horrible grotesque face at the cheering