Rensselaer Republican, Volume 23, Number 7, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 16 October 1890 — A LION KING'S SECRET. [ARTICLE]

A LION KING'S SECRET.

:New York Clipper. 1 • ‘When I was young I was quite prominent in the ring, and I Was one of the best riders of my day. f “Forty years in the ring,, from a boy up, and in every part of the world. Languages? Oh, yes, J speak several; French, German, Spanish, Italian and a bit of Hindostanee. 1 made a tour around the world with Chiarini. There was a ‘globe trotter’ for you! • ‘You would like to hear a little of my experience? Pshaw, I wouldn’t ;know where to begin, except at the beginning, and then the yarn would be jtoo long for your patience. I have passed through the several stages of a circus actor’s life, and now I have decended to a performer of trick dogs, and go In with a whip to keep a horse for one of the riders. “First and last, I have, done about everything in the business. As a boy I was an apprentice and became a good bareback rider and accomplished, accrobat, for we had accrobats in those days, and I was as good as the best of them. -—“There wasn’t much aerial business going in my prime; perhaps it’s lucky for me that there was not, for I was a •daring ehap and might have broken my neck. When I found that I was becoming less limber and agile I trained a trick horse and took to clownI had a voice and could sing then. “When they got to putting a dozen performing horses into the ring at one time I took a back seat, and it was no use to clown any longer when they covered a whole common with canvass and performed in thiSSe rings and on a hippodrome track. “I don’t think that they’d have even those dogs but for one of them, Revolver; he is a wonderful animal; ho turns somersaults, and I want .you to see that he gets a good notice. For I tell you that when that dog fails to get me an engagement I will have to go to work on canvass or driving a cage, ; “Lion kings? Well, they ain’t of muoh account to-day, but there was a time when Van Amburgh and Herr Driesbacn drew thousands to see them put their heads in the jaws of a wild beast. “The people are hard, to satisfy nowadays, and if a feature was made of the man entering the lion’s den they would want to see a keeper eaten alive at every performance. “There, was a fellow once that I saw on the Continent. He was a big German, who had been in the employ of one of the great animal importing Arms. He had saved up money enough to own his own den and animals, and very fine specimens of the lion kind they were, too. We were traveling with the same show, and as there is quite a romantic Btory connected with him, I will tell it to you, if you care to wait and listen :

“The lion man, as we always called him, was a great feature in our show, and he received, as I was told, a good round salary. Mendn his line were scarce, and he took advantage of it. He earned a good deal of money, was what we Yankees called close, and he held on to the coin with a grip that was never released, except from necessity. “At the same time we had with U 6 an equestrienne. She was-- either Spanish or Italian, which' I never knew, as she spoke both languages; but she was dark, very beautiful and a most magnificent best in all Europe. “My lady also got a big figure for her services, and divided the honors with the lion man, and the rider was just as miserly as the subduer of wild beasts. “The woman’s beauty, as well as her salary, tempted more than one of the bOys to shine up to her. Ha, ha! Yes, I plead guilty, I was one of the would-be suitors. But my suit didn’t suit any better than any of the rest. “If anyone gained favor in her eyes, it was the King of the Lions, and it got to be a habit of hers to remain to the finish of the performances and witness his entry into the iron bound den. “It was a thrilling spectacle, let me tell you, and the people used to both shudder and shout at his entry and exit. That fellow did have nerve! “Every mother’s son of us, and the daughters, too. were jealous of the pair. The men envied the lion man, and the women—well they were in a state of mind. “They were in love! Well, I can’t say that they were moved by the tender passion, as you will learn as I progress, for I do not propose to anticipate in my relation. They were mercenary; you comprehend that, and I will go on with the yarn. * ‘Each knew that the other had a goodly sum of money Accumulated, and cupidity, if not Cupid, played a part in the drama. Thetr Intimacy grew as time flew, and one day the lion man betrayed to the object of his adoration a secret, his great secret—the hiding place of all hie wealth! * 'He lifted up a trap door in the centre of the lion den, and showed the equiestrienne his store of gold, all his gains of years. ‘Thiß,’ he said, ‘is my bank,’ and patting the great beasts on their {heads, exclaimed, as he laughed sardonically: ‘And these are my Watchmen,’ and then he added, ■and you can share this with me if you will.’ “The woman coquettishly dodged the issue,, but the lion man felt sure that the gold had tipped the scales in his favor. “From that instant the woman had but one purpose, and that was to possess the gold of the man who had, as were, put the money at her feet. jShe smiled upon hint; she was radiant; he was happy, Would he teach her to enter the den? At firsthe refused; then she pouted prettily, with assumed

displeasure, and called him ‘a greak trig beast,’ and'told him that he eared! more for his lions than he did for his! lady. “Then he weakened, perhaps convinced by her cajoling that there might bo a commercial side to the argument, and when she actually kissed him and said so pleasingly: ‘Please* and affected to weep, he consented, and she clapped her hands in glee and cried: ‘They shall not only see a! Lion Bang In the den, but your Queen!’ ‘ ‘For prudential reasons her entrance into the lions’ den was in private. That woman must have nerves of steel, for she faced the dangers without a quiver. “The lion man now felt that his suit was well won, for he had the field entirely to himself. Each day the beautiful rider smiled more Bweetly upon him, and each day she became more familiar with and on better terms with 1 the monster lions, the giant guardian# of his fortune. “There was never a day in the life; of the lion trainer that he did not peep into his strange treasure chest. One morning he came as usnal, when the circus was untenanted, and to his horror and amazement found the gold gone and its hiding place empty. “Gone, all gone! Not a coin left! He had been duped. The truth flashed.' upon him instantly. She was the despoiler. H 6 rushed with a brain afire to his lodgings. The equestrienne was gone, and the evidences left behind., indicated a hasty departure. “He flew to the police, but to no avail. The authorities made a careful memorandum of the facts, and the sei eret police smiled at his relation and his simplicity. < “He acknowledged that he was penniless, ruined; and a man in mis.fortuhe without money does not excite much sympathy in this world. The distracted fellow was in a frenzy ol doubt. He cursed, he swore, he wept. “The thought of suicide, tempted him to destruction. At the sight of a, stream of water he ran away for fear that he might end his life by drowning. “Fool! fool?” he screamed in his rage, as he thought of the lost treasure and the fair thief who was now miles away and safe from the pursuit of the indifferent and apathetic authorities. “The news of the robbery was quickly told about the town, and a< the hour of performance the exhibi-i tion place was packed and all the vicinity of the circus crowded, with many more unable to gain admission. The theft had awakened a new interest in the Lion King, and the managers looked upon the occurrence as an advertisment that made good for the loss of their principal rider. “The lion man’s performance wa9 always the last number of the show, and when it came time to send the big den in the Lion King had not yet made his appearance. Neither had his den been opened, as was usually tbe ca^e. • ‘The thought that he might disappoint had not occurred to the management. The music cue had already been given, the announcement was being made, and avaa a hurrying and'a scurrying behind the curtains. It! was but the work of a moment to throw up the top doors and take down the bottom ones. “Not a manor woman spoke; not a soul had the powers of speech. “The Lion King and the beasts lay dead upon the bottom of the cage—all poisoned!”