Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1911-06-19
The Circus Life a Hard One.
TRAVELLING WITH THE WORK


held on. in imminent fear of being
precipitated in a mass into a roadside
ditch. Just ahead of the clown bano
was big wagon full of monkeys, the
driver of which was we'll in his cups.
When particularly rough part of the
road was encountered the monkey wa
gon driver permitted the horses TO run
into a rut. AS he did so the vehicle
turned over on it's side, the body of
the wagon tearing loose from the
trucks.
You ought to have seen those mon
keys chasing FOR the nearest trees!.'
said Kennedy. Every blessed one of
them. and there must have been 70,
started up the trees that lined the
road and extended to nearby clump
of woods What happened? Why,
the owner and the manager and every
man who could be spared went in
search of the monkeys. What
chancel They hoped from tree to
tree like birds, and all the time the
drunken keeper was making out he
had been badly injured by the acct
dent, so the manager wouldn't do him
bodily harm. He sobered up in no
time. Finally seven were captured,
but the rest had to be left in the trees
and the parade started on again. Ev-
cry fellow in Elkton who had gun of
some sort went after the monkeys.
We never did learn what happened to
them. The keeper left the show that
day He couldn't do anything else
very WE'LL
According to Kennedy the worst
class of men travelling with a circus
, are the "razorbacks.' They are never
allowed to sleep in the tents with the
| canvas men and animal men. They
sleep on the fiat cars and never ride
| in the regular travelling cars. They
also eat in a separate place. They are
| tough citizens. The weather has
| great deal more to do with the life and
lirlb of a circus than most persons
think, so Kennedy says. An electric
storm plays havoc with the animals.
especially the elephants. which are
| likely to stampede at such time.
A winGstorm plays havoc with the
tents. The canvas men are expert
weather gaugers. and If they detect
storm brewing they lower the top
| of the main tent thus sometimes
meaning that some of the aerial feat
ures must be cut out,
Scarcely a week goes by that some
old circus man is not visitor at the
menagerie IN Central Park, either for
Aud Lang Syne" or to borrow a
quarter. In these days of the automo-
| bite and horseless trucks there is not
| the demand for expert drivers there
used to be, and no matter If man has
| been an expert at handling 16 horses
| in o. show parade, there is no opening
| for him as a driver. In years past
| these drivers were employed during
| the winter months driving the horse
drawn snowplows in New York. OF
| course that is now dead letter.
One of Kenaedy's feats in his palmy
clown days was turlbling or somer
saultinE over six elephants. n man
who can go over two elephants. n
| course. is paid less than one who can
gu over six. 1T would have paid to
| somesault over 12," said Kennedy
| but I never needed the money paaiy
| enough to take such a chance. New
| York Press.
What Becomes Of the Pins!
For some centuries the scientists
and curious questioners of mahkiha
have busted themselves with VAN
| guesses and vaGer speculation as 10
| what becomes of the pins?' Every
| body knows in a general way and a
very few realize fully that many hun
dreds of. thousands of tons of copper
| tin, steel, and other metals are made
| into pins every year. only to so into
use for brief period and then. like
| the fated hunters. of the "BooJum in
"The Hunting of the Shark. quietly
vanish away"
An English gentleman. who wanted
| to know, you know" has quietly ex-
perimented with pins of various kinds,
and now announces that a very brief
time elapses, not over 154 days, before
| the indispensable hairpin is resolved
into dust and blown away by the wind.
Bright pins last nearly eighteen
| months polished steel needles, two
years and a half brass pins are very
shortlived; and steel pens. even when
not exposed to acids in inks. are nearly
eaten away in year. At last the
mystery of the ages has been solved,
and we know what becomes of the
pins. Magazine.
MARRIED