Show ask y y r 3 e 3 ji j i s ie I 1 iE az 77 RA D BEAUTIFUL worn A j HI an in midair rou on the kes 1 I flying s trap trapeze ezi how ever expert la Is not p ia so much of a nov yi elty y or sensational attraction as when I 1 was actively en SK Sis tn in vaudeville management the hlll theaters and circuses if not the woods are full of them now but then the appearance of EL female in such a hazardous performance was indeed a drawing lard card and drawing cards that actually bring money to the box office are not so plentiful as aa some imagine for instance pretentious tent ious artists with salaries far in excess of their merits folsom had written enthusiastically about the wonderful woman from london stating that she had set paris crazy deraps she had but I 1 noted no report of if an insurrection in that gay capital my foreign agent besides being an excellent judge ot of the commercial mercial value of an act was an enthusiast st and would go to no end of travel or expense in his bis endeavor to secure the startling it the treasury survived his demands folsom could be relied upon to outdo all rivals it was fortunate that the agents announcement no of the engagement of za rena at such an enormous figure arrived at a time when I 1 was turning iway away people and making money hand over fist otherwise I 1 dont know what the effect would have been I 1 have remarked that folsom was an enthusiast and I 1 made some allowance tor for his ardor when he be wrote that the charming and daring lady was a star gazer a regular beamut 11 I 1 smiled at folsome Fol glowing description of his prize aerial kt and then I 1 smiled at the name aarena evidently one of those made to order professional cognomens omens then as now so popular why I 1 know a whole tribe of really great Z artists from to zuila it was not until the approach of za renas date that I 1 looked over the billing matter and then I 1 learned tor for the first time that the sensation of the century had a male partner who did a good part of the work while the lady fair gathered in the greatest part of the gain and all the glory aarena arrived on time and she was the Frenc hiest of the french and more beautiful even than mr folsome Pol Fol most flattering pen picture and was altogether entrancing and engaging but as she explained she had one little trouble whatever that little trouble was it to sit lightly on her head tor for she laughed as she explained A male partner for her act was necessary and the man had to do a good share of the act but the great feature of the performance the flight for lif s from the topmost gallery to the hands 4 I 1 A 9 I 1 I 1 1 i j I 1 I 1 11 I 1 I 1 I 1 SUE STORMED AND RAVED or of the man hanging head down on the trapeze was hers hem all of which statement and explanation was wound up with the announcement 1 I want a man but where is the gentleman with whom you have been performing I 1 asked it occurring to me that the anty and the success of the act if not the safety might be imperiled by the change the pretty artist became very red in the face hesitated and then with the accompaniment of a ringing laugh exclaimed fool he make too much love and I 1 dismiss him I 1 laughed too fully comprehending the situation further explained pla ined any american man what do aerial bet do just as well with few practice S see and I 1 no like li to do act with man in lore man in love lore not in his right brains let me tall fall and break my neck you comprehend I 1 comprehended and nodded then the tittle little frenchwoman who was all bustness business informed Wormed me in her best english anath and that at was no not t very good that she wanted me to prepare an advertisement tor or an expert aerial artist the advertisement was prepared inserted and accomplished the desired result and the pert and pretty aarena reported that her practice with the new man was highly satisfactory that was their affair and I 1 knew little about their progress until up to the very day odthe of the first amt public appe appearance arnce in america I 1 of the dashing and daring french then we came in contact and animated discussion the auditorium of the theater was a lociy one the seats occupy occupying lug a parquet and fout four circles and I 1 great part of the act aa was a to be performed way up binder fhe frescoed ceiling cel ling where I 1 I 1 th performers pe kf 0 would look like k a cp couple je ot of files and all the dm I 1 giju d extin h d feats were I 1 to he performed without ill 0 dmn W easa ia re byzet biet against such ur li ardT d y I 1 il t protested Vio tested I 1 bruedt CRU edt I 1 I 1 w A ih adi i altig on o i k 1 i M ai baldi I 1 I 1 aaa 74 is given above IT 11 the 06 5 7 fr 27 r F 1 I rv then t jound out dut that my beautiful queen air had awall a will of her own lown heavens heave As how she s stormed ormed and raged to ln french and when she reached the height of the the tempest she let out a good round north american damn then being out of breath or greatly relieved she subsided for a moment and then renewed her excitement and made known her state of mind by asserting sert illg that she would leave for parts paris the very next day if she had to swim rather than to have the pretty spitfire drown I 1 let her have her way and her w way ay came near costing her her if life by the time for barenas Za renas appearance I 1 had become so nervous and overwrought through anxiety and excitement that I 1 could have wished the french minx and all the rest of the aerial female Z as s in the deep of the ocean mean burled buried how many times in the course of his career does a manager solemnly vow that he will never admit another dan ger defying aerial act to his theater and then go and put the most dangerous one he can find in his pro gramme at the first opportunity everything was at sixes and sevens anyway in front of the house that night because the frenchwoman had drawn to an overflow and there were too many people in the house tor for comfort the doorkeepers seemed to have lost their heads and were snappish and uncivil and the ushers were anything but polite and obliging on the whole I 1 guess I 1 was rattled myself here she comes aint she a daisy called an irrepressible small boy in the top gallery the frenchwoman came out and I 1 went out from my office den I 1 could hear the cheering reception to the lady from france then came a crash from the orchestra and the great midair perils begun I 1 want to see them but I 1 keep away and I 1 felt rather surprised at myself when I 1 became a part of the audience and was craning my neck to catch a glimpse of the tiny figures as they appeared evo at a giddy height aloft it made me feel quite dizzy to look at them and I 1 turned away to note the averted gaze of others I 1 started to return to the office mentally vowing this is the last at the office door I 1 turned back again to view the dangerous performances A great hush was upon the audience I 1 believe that I 1 could hear heart beat mine was thumping at a fearful rate out of the stillness I 1 heard a hissing command from the lips of the man the frenchwoman answered in an excitable undertone there was a quick quia passage of words the tennor of which no one could catch were they q quarreling up there over the heads of the audience I 1 words more words and fierce words I 1 was in a frenzy if they were not suddenly the woman made a dash dov the elaborate rigging suspended from the act to me it appeared as if she was attempting to escape the man her pursuer who was close upon her the au audience diance took the movement for a part of the performance and applauded but intuition told me that something was occurring not down on the bills evi evidently dently fear lent celerity to the womans comans movements I 1 took it that she was fleeing from him the pursuer shrieked a horrible oath and was upon the little frenchwoman just as she reached the bar of a suspended trapeze i help help my god the man is mad macl at her agonizing cry many of the audience sprang to their feet just as many others swooned who was to help and from whence was war the aid to come the lunatic was already attempting to unloose the womans comans hold on the trapeze part pan of what next occurred I 1 did not see I 1 heard the voice of a man in an upper circle cry in french hold I 1 come the next instant the figure of a man clinging to a rope required for the finish fillish of the flight for life shot across the space with unerring aim and a powerful arm wrested the woman from her perilous position and then the tools fools of auditors thinking that what they had seen was a part of the show made tho th theater ring with cheers As that act thank the lord was the lat lao number on the bill such of the audience as were not ove overcome come found way out and the others were sent home when they were sufficiently recovered the shock to the frenchwoman was a teril terrible ble one but she came out of it thankful for her narrow escape and grate grateful fur vo co her former discarded partner who had devotedly followed her fro from 2 paris and been the means of saving I 1 her life in a all I the hubbub the lunatic had 1 walked off in his tights and such att attire t in the street being unusual he had promptly fallen into the hands of the police and in due time was placed in such keeping as to insure safety both to himself and others upon after investigation t on it was wa s le learned arned that th the e unfortunate aerialist aeri aliat had suffered a se vere tall fall during the previous season resulting in at an injury to his head which unfitted uhn him from following his ca bailing for the retna remainder luder of the engagement I 1 I 1 the ans now accepted admirer appeared in iii their astounding aerial iia act ey returned to ila ris I 1 I 1 ndue inthe la the cerp perpetual visa bliss 1 T grevet linds place pa in two loving hearts 1 V |