The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-11-20
Have Been Unusually Sue cessful-Three Weeks Pay
 of S25,0 Distributed
GOSSIP ABOUT
 PLANS FOR WINTER
Number of New Animal Acts in Pros- pect, Including Trained Rhinoceros. Couldn't Buy Animals in Europe
 Last Year Owing to the War
By JACK BETHEA

With the performance tonight of the Hagenbeck-W Wallace shows the 1915 season will close and tonight immediately after West Baden Ind, where winter quarters have been established. That is the circus will so there, but the people will scatter to their homes in various parts of the United States from Birmingham.
 Consequently the final pay day of the year is today and approximately $25,0O0 will be distributed to the employees of the show by the management this afternoon immediately after the matinee. A portion of the performers were paid off yester- day afternoon. The $25,00o includes pay for three weeks, salary for the current week and the two weeks hold-back that is customary to insure the fulfillment of contracts.
 While the performers, the canvasmen, the cooks, hostlers and the nlyriads of other workers will leave the show here, this does not apply to the animal men. The beasts are handled by the same peo- pie the year round. Consequently crew of 20 men, headed by Emil Schweyer, the daring trainer, and John Dudac, his assistant, will accompany the carnivora and remain with them all winter.
 ONLY SHORT REST
 With the arrival in West Baden the animals will be put through their paces for two days in order to take the stiff ness of the journey out of them and then MT. Schweyer will give them a rest of probably two weeks. During this time the animals will do absolutely nothing. MT. Schweyer after his return from a visit lo1 rxrsI1 t,Jr fl1,,a it, hpy,I frnY1 then or there will be daily workouts just as if the show was on the road and the act put on before admiring thou sands.
 This is done for number of reasons. One for the exercise, but principally be- cause were the animals allowed three months idleness, when the time came to go out next spring they would refuse to go through their act MT. Schweyer, as do all good animal trainers, insists on his animals doing what they are told when they are told. No animal is allowed to slight a performance because when he misses one day he naturally expects to miss the next and is suflen and angry when forced to go through his perform ance. MT. Schweyer has sometimes spent hours forcing an animal to do what he as told him to do Consequently the sea- son when the show is not on the road is time of much harder work for MT. Schweyer than when he is in the arena twice daily.
 The months when the circus is in win ter barracks are ones of great anxiety for the animal men, as the beasts, and especially the carnivora, are never in the best of health when in menageries, as they do not get enough exercise. They have larger cakes than when on the road, it is, true, but they grow fat and lazy and will not exercise. On the road, however, there is always something do- ing and they are in constant motion.
 FINE ANIMAL ACTS
 The Hagenbeck show brides itself on the excellence of it's animal acts and those who witnessed the performance last night are agreed that no animal trainer who has appeared in Brming ham has done such daring feats as did MT. Schweyer. His lion act is especial ly good.
 The Hagenbeck show has had bad luck with two of it's animal groups this year. A group of leopards,s one of the hardest of the cat family to train, had just been worked up to perfection when two of the animals died and the act had to be abandoned. Two seals in the seal act also died and it was necessary to dis continue that act.
 The show was under a handicap this y CdI OWlHS u lIt IdCt JQdC IL was prdC- tically impossible to import animals from Europe on account of the war As is known Frank Bostock. the greatest ami nal trainer in the world, died about year ago, and last fall, c. E. Cory, gen eral manager of the Hagenbeck show, hearing that his animals were for sale, hurried to London in an effort to buy them. but arrived too late, as they had already been sold.
 T
 burg to the Hagenbeck menagerie there for the purpose of purchasing some ami mals, but found himself blocked There were plenty of the highest class animals Tor sale, but all sales were f. o. b. Ham, burg, and MT. Cory found it impossible to get the animals past the English block ade. so it was necessary to return home empty handed. It is interesting to know that the Hagenbeck- Wallace show has an option for the choicest animals in the Hagenbeck menagery in Hamberg and has extensive plans for the future. Elaborate plans in regard to animal acts are being made for next year and this winter will be busy one for MT. SchWeyer. He is at present performing With F lions and is planning to increa SC the group to 20 for next year. Should he do so his act will be surpassed only oy that of Captain Bonavita, who per- forms with 27.
 A TRAINED RHINO
 Another remarkable act which will he added to the show next year will be a rhinoceros who is harness broken and Who is driven about tha arena pulling wagon. This is something unheard of as 1t is the first known instance where these anlmals, whose stupidity is in direct proportion to their bulk have ever been trained. It has been regarded as an i'm possible feat and even the show people were incredulous at first when they heard of it.
 Mir Cory is planning another trip to Europe this fall and is practically certain to pick up a number of high-class ani- mals which will be marked addition to the show. Mr. Cory will probably leave for London the latter part of next month or early in January
 These who witnessed the parade yes terday missed what will be one of the features of the show next year. but didn't know it. so no harm is done. There is ip~the menagerie lioness who two weeks ago gave birth to three cubs. an unusual number, and they have been the especial care of the animal men ever since. Un- der no circumstance is the cage uncovered as a crowd has tendency to excite the mother and female lions when stirred up are prone to eat their cubs, which would be an almost incalculable loss to the show. The three cubs are carefully min istered to but no crowd has yet seen them. They are healthy little fellows and will be the pride of the show next year.
 There is a great atmosphere of gaiety about the circus lot today for the call Of home Is as strong to the circus folk as to any other, and they are going