The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1916-07-27
Chase the carniYals.

kenOsha IS too big Tor the carnival
shows. There may have been time
when lot Of people might have been
pleased to see a street fair and have
the lady doing the "hoocha koocha'
in the middle of Main street, when a
merry-go-round or a Ferris wheel was
a fitting setting for the main square
in the city and when the army of
grafters, who usually get mixed up with
carnival companies, were really mat
ter of interest. Now most of the Ke-
nosha people who cared to see which
one of the shells the little ball was
under have been satisfied and most of
them have found out that it is pretty
hard to get something for nothing
even in carnival show.
During the past week a carnival show
played at one of the pleasure parks.
It's manager declared that it was in
a class by itself y SO far as this sort
of amusement enterprises went that it
was the absolutely topnotcher of all
carnival shows. His probable biased
tion was more or less supported by the
signed statement of a committee of
business men at Sterling, Ill, who in
sisted that it was the first real carnival
that had ever been at Sterling. We
know nothing about the chances that
Sterling has had to see real carnivals,
but we are taking it that Sterling bust
ness men are competent to pass on the
last word in carnivals and that they
knew what they were talking about, It
is conceded that the show here last
week is the best in the business. Tt
was here with its varied array Of at
fractions and sub-tractions for full
six days and when it was all over with
it is pertinent to ask just what aood
it was to the town. Up in the Nun
cipal Court during the week two men
pleaded guilty to burglary charges.
They declared that they had come here
on account of the show 1t is not
argued that the proprietors of the
show had anything to do with these
burglars, but there seems to be con-
nection between the coming Of the car
nivals and the coming Of petty crooks.
Possibly the managers Of the carnival
can see reasons for bringing the show
to Kenosha. IF this is true they are
probably alone in their version There
men who pay taxes in Kenosha and
there seems to have been no large in
crease in trade on account of the visit
Of this travelling aggregation. People
who live in the rural districts have long
since found out that the biggest joke
in the world is carnival and about
the only place that the managers can
get away with it any more is in some
of the over grown towns.
Kenosha has paid out considerable
money to these travelling shows this
year and in other years and it seems
that the time has come to do something
to get rid Of them. Of course, the
council may pass an ordinance provd-
ing license for them, butt license is
not what is wanted. What is wanted
is prohibition. You can't license the
hangers-on with these organizations.
The only thing you can do with them
is to send them to prison if you are
sleek enough to catch them. There are
enough legitimate amusement institu-
tions in Kenosha without importing
carnivals. Kenosha has its full quota
of circuses every year and there is no
reason for any one to bemoan the fact
that the children will lose all the Joys
of childhood by not being allowed to
get under the big top.
Cities which are progressive and
which look to the protection of them
selves and to the protection of their
inhabitants have long since put the
ban on the carnival show. These cities
have either passed ordinances prohibit
ing the coming of the carnivals or they
have passed laws making the licenses
so high that the owners of the carni-
walls can not afford to pay them.
One or the other of these ways should
prove effective in keeping Kenosha free
Of such things in the future. The
council has the power to act and it is
to be hoped that it will lose no time in
passing an ordinance which will make
the action possible. A lot of money
will be saved to lot of people and a
lot Of trouble will be saved to lot
of men connected with the enforce
ment of the laws of the city.