The Washington times., 1936-08-27
GOODWIN TELLS
OF DI0NNE
CIRCUS
CONTINUED from Page 81


Lake Nippising, famous fishing
and resort lake. DR.. Dafoe lives
in a tiny little red brick house at
the lower end of town; you would
never notice it, so modest is the
architecture. Even the brass
plate, with "Dr. Dafoe" on it, does
not gleam through the shrubbery.
The good doctor himself every
Monday goes to Toronto and de-
livers a short talk via radio, net
ting $3.50 from a canned milk
company.
Two and a half miles further
on, along winding road which
the authorities apparently want
to widen, is the Dafoe Hospital
and the Three Hinged Circus fea-
lures of the QuinS. AS you ap-
proach the hospital someone
named j. Dionne has set up a
small stand where he sells tea
and souvenirs, offers free park
ing, sells postcards and does bus
mess under a huge sign which
tells you that his place is called
"Quintuplet View" Papa Dionne,
who runs a hot dog and post card
stand himself, says that j. Dionne
is not of the real Dionne strain;
down in the village there are
others in business under the name
Dionne, but there seems to be
some i'll feeling about it; just as
in Frederick. Md, there used to
be civic strife over the identity Of
the house from which Barbara
Fritchie waved her flag.
Hot Dogs, Post Cards
Further on is a pavilion with an
other Barnum and Bailey type OF
canvas sign, proclaiming that
the original midWiveS who greeted
the QuinS were there doing a
rushing post card and hot dog
business and showing the worn
old clothes basket in which the
quins were placed on arrival; they
sell colored pictures of the bas-
ket with five little babies therein
and the card carefully in
forms you that the pictures are
not of the Quins; just films for
the sake of the picture. Substi-
tute Quins, or stooges. No one
can take pictures of the QuinS
except the syndicate which has
contract.
Papa Dionne sellse sandwiches
and other foods; he has a corps
of north woods girls standing
behind counters selling a vast
collection of odds and ends in
the way of souvenirs; the prices
are quintupIed, too, by the way;
a postcard costing one cent in
North Bay costs three cents in
Calander and IS cents at Papa
Dionne's stand. Also Papa Dionne
will sign his name to an auto
graph book or post card for a
quarter and he seems to forget
there is anything like writer's
cramp. Hundreds of people
crowd around the Papa Dionne's
booth all day. Papa Dionne is
putting in a gasolin station.
The authorities don't like it; they
say explosions may occur. Papa
Dionne doesn't care a whoop for
the authorities; his feud with
the Ontario government for TAX
ing his children from him is
world news.
Like Going To Zoo
The children live in the Y. M.
C. A. hut style of building in the
center of a bullpen made of the
Stoutest wire; just like they have
at the Zoo; a sentry box houses
an Ontario policeman within the
pen; other policemen are outside
keeping the cars parked right
and lining up the daily mob. A
painted sign tells you the next
hour at which the children will
be shown. just like any other
paying exhibit.
On certain days no one Of the
mob sees the exhibit at all; the
movies are taking pictures that
Qay. Inc C1l11QTen play III G14e
midst of the bullpen on about an
acre of yard in which there has
been no grass, and surface about
as inviting as an asphalt street,
but lately a workman has been
sodding the place. The children
go out into the bullpen twice daily;
$50 a. m. and 1:30 p. m.
Just Like Circus
The mob presses against the
wire fence; no one must speak or
yell at the children, sort of don't
feed the animals" spirit pervades
the scene. Policemen keep the
mob moving; they can go round
and round the enclosure any num-
ber of times, but must try not to
stand still and block progress. If
it is raining, the mob can encircle
the house and look into the play
room through glass with a one
way vision. You can see through,
but the Quins can't see you.
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