Evening Republican, Volume 14, Number 179, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 29 July 1910 — Do You Remember When You Saw the First Circus? [ARTICLE]

Do You Remember When You Saw the First Circus?

Can words describe the sensation that you experienced when you beheld for the first time in your life a circus parade? Probably not. Lots of us were in arms and too young to become thoroughly interested. But a little later in life, when you were old enough to walk and could understand the names of things and could distinguish between a brass band and a . steam whistle, or a dump cart or a gold chariot—it was at that age thaf , you really saw your first parade, for that age is probably as far back as your memory can carry you. It was about this time that circus day took precedent over every holiday on your calendar. You looked forward to the Fourth of July, you looked forward to the ten weeks’ vacation from school during the summer, and Thanksgiving and Christmas were on your list, but the circus lead the procession and trotted in a class all by itself. You recall how the first advertising car arrived in town, then the pictures on the billboards; then another advance car with the pretty lithographs in the windows of the store. From this time on everything went by the board in anticipation of the circus. You began to save your money. You were good to your mother. You ran errands without complaint and begged to be asked to run more. You never cried; you were never cross; you went to bed early for weeks without registering the semblance of a kick. And how you did buckle into the woodpile. But those are all memories of the past. The days of days has dawned when the circus arrived. When you were very young you rose at three A. M„ after a sleepless night, and with a big brother or father, wended your way to the place of unloading. A little later in life you did not go to bed, but sat up all night and convinced yourself that the night bfefore circus day was the longest night of the year.

After the first number on the day’s program—the unloading o£ the show—came a short intermission. Then the parade. You stood on the sidewalk, the- curbstone or in the doorway; or perhaps you were perched on a tree or on a lamp post. How you did streteh the cords of your neck looking for the first chariot with the band. And how you imagine every few minutes that you hear the band and would look again in the direction from which the parade was to come. First the big looking-glass chariot, with the band on top. Then some more gold chariots, drawn by four, six, eight and ten horses. Then some cages with animals, and more wagons and more cages. Then some riders on horseback and jnore cages and another band. Finally the lumbering elephants, preceeded by the men on horseback who shout “hold your horses.”

Well, that was your first circus parade. That was the first real circus thrill that tingled the blood in your veins. From that time on you had the fever, and circus day became the star day of the year on ypur engagement hook. Circuses have changed since those days, and parades have changed. Year by year they have become better, larger and more stupendous and more gorgeous. Year by year have been added feats of great daring, acts of greater merit, artists of greater ability. The Carl Hageabeck and Groat Wallace shows combined present UJs year a super excellent

pageant that is superbly stupendous. Not only in this way do they excell all previous efforts, but the performance itself is given by the greatest aggregation of artistic talent that money can hire. The wonderful trained wild animal exhibition that bears the name of Hagenbeck is considered the most exciting and most novel of all circus exhibits. They will be in Rensselaer Saturday, July 30th.