Evening star., 1923-07-20
Reiterates Cruelty Charge
Virginia W. Sargent Answers
Reply to Letter
To the Editor OF The Star;

| May I make q few points relative
| to Mr.. c. C. Davis reply in The Star
Of July 4. entitled Denial OF Cruelty
to Circus Lion" to my letter of June
| 20. entitled "Circus Act Protested"
First. l have one error OF my own to
correct: the rest are misstatements
Of Mr.. Davis
Mr.. Davis takes issue with my
| statement that Capt. Jacobs entered
"Sultan's" cage. armed with
| broom. pistol and iron bar, asserting
| that the iron bar was kept on the
| outside. / recall now that the bar,
really two-pronged fork, was kept
| on the outside, but i'll readiness for
| instant use by an attendant. The
| third weapon used inside the cage
] was the blacksnake whip instead,
although Mr.. Davis omitS altogether
mention Of the pistol. but / recall all
| too well the noise, smoke and fire of
| that weapon discharged at sultan"
! two or three times at least during
each of the two acts. My error was
! not gross one when il is considered
/ how much my mind has to register
during those two short, hair-raislng
| minutes during which the performer
entered the cage, had three kinds Of
weapons i'll constant play on the in
4
outside during the battle" and es
capped safely, without the enclosure,
/ the victor
! Mr.. Davis does not interpret cor
rectly my term broken spirited" He
! speaks foolishly of my mentioning
! the lions breathing hard. noted
| the exact moment sultan" started To
breathe hard, when the jazz band
struck up and he anticipated what
was about to take place for him.
! did not say ne ''roared IN agony" !
1 said he resented his opponent with
mighty pawsweeps and wrathful roars,
! and !. with others. deny that Hon 5
| roaring in a circus indicates Il willing
ness to perform. The roar is Of hate
/ for his enemy. The fact that IAN
average of twelve performances per
| day, or 1856 performances season,
! for. the past two years took place,
makes "SultanS' condition all the
more pitlful to any one elevated
| enough in heart and mind to think
| of himself leading the life of this
| creature, though he may go through
| the actual performance for not more
than two minutes at time. No
! doubt he knows just what is expected
| of him. He is left in his prison cage
| alone and friendless until the next
| battle. save for the necessary care
1 for his comfort, which, according to
| Mr.. Davis, is accorded acting animals
| because they are good assets. Real
| friends would not provide for his
1 welfare from commercial motive.
Since commercial gain is frankly
| confessed to be the main motive for
| this care of circus animals ii may
readily be assumed that they have
| few real friends. l wonder in what
sense sultan" has gotten used TO his
| trainer. Jacobs. and just how long
he could actually stay in his cage
! with safety without stirring him up
and without some one on the outside
! ready 10 interfere. Since sultan is
| only an animal and since his animal
! mind can not help but be full of hate
| toward the man creatures oyerpow-
! ering him with their cunning, should
| the two be left absolutely alone with
| only their natural weapons OF de-
1 Tense? ! doubt if il would be long
| before the poor beast would seek his
| revenge. But I am not SO brutal, on
the other hand, TO my human broth
er, despite his cowardice, TO wish
| him any such horrible experience.
Mr.. Davis has nothing to answer
| back TO the rest of my article, ap-
! parently, concerning the fact that
Jacobs has been arrested in more
! than one city charged with cruelty
| toward this lion. (and ! can furnish
| information upon request as to the
| places nor to the whole morally de-
| basing atmosphere Of the affair.
| a printing error in my article al
| terS entirely the sense of one SEN
J tence. making ii appear ridiculous.
Near the end of the last paragraph
| the sentence should read. "Now that
| this act is Acknowledged to be a
brutal one by persons from various
cities who are not termed senti-
mental ii is the duty, etc" The
! word mot was omitted. As an eN-
ample of the point | wished to
| bring out. though here Washington
| ians furnished the example, early on
! the morning after the first night OF
| this exhibition. two young business
! men came TO the Animal Rescue
| League to report this act as a cruel
and cowardly one and u case which
} needed the attention of humane
| prosecuting agent. My friend. the
/ director in charge at the league. di-
! rected them to the one organization
| with prosecuting power. the Humane
| Society, expressii%4 the hope that
| they would succeed in having the
! case inspected. These men We're not
/ "sentimental'' evidently. from the
| fact that they did not care TO dis
| close their names. but proved the
point that the lion act stood out con-
! spicuousIy enough to be branded as
! cruel by men of the world. though
all too MANY would not go the hu-
name s.er further TO express this to
| the pubHc. -
| VIRGINIA W. SARGENT.