Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1919-11-06
Sammy's
Sudden Shift
Il,
BY JOHN HAMILTON
Copyright. 1919. by the Mcclure News
paper Syndicate.)

q circus town, fell under the spell of
the sawdust. So In the autumn, when
the biggest of the four circuses came
home TO winter quarters, he struck
the menagerie superintendent for a
job. Fosdick sent him to Mcclure,
the "cat-house' boss. and after talk
Ing to Mcclure for ten minutes Sam
my climbed back into his taxi an ac-
copied member of the staff of the
Great and Only. with orders to re-
port Sunday morning.
After it was nll settled Sammy
broke the news TO Kitty Elwood-
and Kitty. without any ado whatever,
broke their engagement.
IF that's all the consideration |
get from you, Sam Edwards" Kitty
vehemently remarked, "all you get
from me after this is none at all. It's
off-all off, and off for good. Here's
your hat"
'But, Kit" exposiuIated Sammy,
''you don't get II at ul It's only for
one year. Look-it. qualify as a
full-fedged keeper in couple of
months. Before the show goes out
Tn a fancy trainer and go one trip
with an animal act-see? TIN get us
more than | could save In three years
at the old job-enough to start
rightw
Two pupshaws and q pu-piffle !"
Kitty, you see, worked in paper-box
factory. 'Do you see much green in
my eye? You're going with the circus
because you've gone nuts on it--like
every little boy In this town. You in
8 ring act, In five months You'll
be sweeping out cages the rest of your
Northumberland to smelly lot of
animated old fur sets. You've lost
out with me, Mr.. Edwards. My hus-
bands gotta have balance wheel
that can't be queered by circus char
lots. Goodbye"
There was finality about this that
sent Sammy on his way without fur
Their word. Whereupon Kitty climbed
two flights Of stairs and wept copi-
ously for an hour.
Sammy didn't spend all that winter
just chambermaiding 10 cat animals.
He got to be keeper with certain
cage Of peculiarly pernickety leopards
as his most especial care. He soon
learned, however, that he wouldn't be
In any ring act by next spring, 1t
was January before Mcclure would
let him go into the leopard's cage
without a pointed iron bar in his hand
and February before he felt the least
at home in that environment.
But when March came, Sammy had
got along so far that when he signed
up for the touring season there was a
clause in his contract giving him
forty-five dollars month extra for
riding in that cage OF spotted cats In
the daily parade-and the show fur
nished the fleshings.
Opening in the "Garden" at New
York where circus parades have long
been thing of the past, the second
booking was In the shows-and Sam
my's-home town. AS the fates would
have it, 1t rained pitchforks at the
first days stand, and there was no
parade. So that Sammy was called
on to make his debut as an animal
king" before the eyes of his own
townspeople Also his first appear
ance in tights.
Now Sammy had never ceased to be
sore in spirit over the detection OF
Kitty Elwood. Even among the sylphs
whom he had encountered during the
winter. praticing and rehearsing anil
NAL acts or careering about the ring
in the equestrian pavilion, there had
been none equal to the task of dis
placing Kitty In his heart-and some
very nice girls there were among
them, at that. Wherefore, as Sammy
climbed into his nest of feline revolu-
tionists 1t was with mingled emotions
that he assured himself that Kitty
would certainly be somewhere In the
street crowds and that she could not
fail TO see him. What would she think,
he wondered.
1t was new cage. Cat animals OF
all kinds hate new surroundings-wit-
ness Tabby at home. 1t was the first
street parade. Caliph, the head devil
of the leopard clan, detested the noise
of band music. None of the family
was overly fond Of human beings, ana
crowds of them frazzled ieopardian
nerves completely.
leopard with rasped nerves is dan
gerous. To make it worse, the cats,
thanks to delays in the costuming de-
partment, had never before seen
Sammy In pink tights. And to top 1t
all. Sammy was nervous himself
something a trainer has no earthly
business TO be, ever. And the more he
thought of Kitty being somewhere in
the crowd the more nervous he be-
came.
The parade hadn't gone two blocks
before Caliph, sensing tha unrest In his
master, began to show his independ-
ence. He sulked every time he passed
Sammy in that never ending prone
made of the cage, glared at him side
wise and snarled- getting rousing
belt on the nose with Sammy's raw
hide that didn't improve his temper.
pn4 raiinh wasn't alone in his mood