The Washington herald., 1912-04-07

Tor twenty years invaded the circus grounds. In
an instant the midway was river, both cutters
overfowing into the booths, carrying away the
confetti that had Uttered the ground. The wind
howled like some living monster. Whole strings
OF electric lights went out in an instant, flashing
up and going out again. The ticket booth In front
OF the side show swept over by the wind and
and Mr. R aeaSy arensSs used upo
and crushed It fiat lest it do harm. The flower
pergola on the opposite side Of the street, into
which fifty men and women had crowded, creaked,
splntered and fell Fat, buryng twenty beneath its
weight. Instantly hundred men were lifting the
structure as II they had been placed there for that
allotted work. No one had been seriously hurt
With a loud ripping noise the side-show tent
top split from. end 10 end, and one OF the two
the stage exactly be- between s'GRRhe 2ader upOs pOG
q the tent collapsed. AT the same moment Mr..
Flggis and Mr. Ritz and Mr.. Goodbody lifted the
side Of the tent, chanting as calmly as If they
were In their own homes This way out please.
No nurryl All out this way" Dicky Ross, playing
the piano for the minstrel show when the tent fell
stuck to his seat and pounded away. minute after
the tent was down two of the black-face comedians
-, .,. amateurs : were standing beside him singing.
"IhereH be hot time in the old town to-nghtw
The wind howled. The two worlds fair tents
began swayng dangerously, insecurely guyed be-
cause, they were lashed together Kilkenny took
Mi. Fliggs by the arm.
"Git thin people out o. tn worlds fair tints~
he said. "1f thin electric wires dropped some av
thin moight git HURT"
MiBHlI lncre was ucutn IN every wire, and the
with them: Mr.. Fliggs motloned to Mr. Ritz and
Mr.. Goodbody, and they crossed the open space
as quietly as u they were walking up church
aisle on Sunday morning. The inside of the
worlds fair tents were packed mass OF humanity,
but already three or four men were pushing through
the crowd shouting All out We are going to
put the lights outl Everybody outside, please!
Plenty Of shelter in the midway booths for ALI
To these the three added their voices, This
way outl No hurry, but all outl We are going
to lower these tentsl No hurry, but all outl"
= No hurry Panief They went, out like sheep.
Or, rather, they did not 60 out like sheep. They
went out like children. going to school. Each Of
the thousand two thousand in those tents said
to his neighbor Don't hurry; be calm; don't start
a panic" They as calm as clans and went
out rapidly. The band continued playing until
the tuba player gagged the water that ran into
the bell OF his horn and the drum sounded like a
sponge.
Safe In the wooden booths the people ehatted
and laughed, unaware that death held a finger
within an inch of each of them while the hurricane
ragged. Let but the stakes the wndward Of
the big top pull out and the great canvas balloon
would turn oyer, slapping the centre, poles down
upon the frail wooden booths. swishing the tent
stakes here and there like whip iashes, with q
harvest of dead and nangled.
Kilkenny grave and keen-eyed, stood by the big
top, his. canvas-man at his right hand, SIX trough
necks" hard by to carry his orders while the rest
OF his crew were ranged around the big top, jack
knives open, ready to slash the quartcr-pole guys
when the first stakes pulled They rested with
hand the handles of their sledges. Each
post had been reinforced by another stake since
the storm had gathered
Sixty or seventy people had gathered under the
entrance marquee Of the big top and Kilkenny
and his men stood with their arms around the
poles, trying to hold the fighty striped canvas 10
earth. 1t was then, when each moment threatened
to see the whole tent hurled into the next county
that Mellicks the carter who had donated his serv-
ices in Transporting the tent, and who had been
told TO be ready to load as as the circus