Circus Parade (8 page)

“ ‘Well the first night I knew you were leavin' Liverpool I dreamt it was awful stormy and your little low black boat was rockin' about as if it would be washed under any minute.

“ ‘I was dreadfully frightened and hurried to your state-room. I got half way in before I saw a man sleepin' in the other bed. I stopped in the middle of the floor and gathered my courage together and went over and tucked you in and kissed you goodnight. The man was so strange lookin' that I was scared of him and hurried out.'

“ ‘What did he look like?” her husband asked.

“An' the acrobat's wife described the guy in the state-room she had never seen only in a dream. She'd never seen the boat either for that matter and she had it down pat too.”

Jock paused and looked at Whiteface. His eyes were larger than usual. The smile had been routed by a more serious expression.

“Lawdy! Lawdy! dat suah am spooky. What kinda licker dem folks drinkin' nohow?”

Jock laughed. “No kind at all, Whiteface. The brain's a funny thing. Just think how them three people saw the same thing at the same time. I'll say the brain's funny.”

“My brain ain't dat funny, Misteh Jock. An' what's some moah I woan habe no brain 'tall if eveh I heahs many moah tales like dat one.”

“You're sure right, Whiteface. I think we'd all better hit the hay on that yarn,” laughed Goosey.

“When'll we strike?” I asked.

“About eight in the morning. We'll parade before noon. Everybody ought to be feelin' fine for the long rest—except old Cameron and the Baby Buzzard. They'll surely jerk in the nickels tomorrow,” laughed Jock, “so I'll pound my ear and you fellows can do what you like.”

We slept while our weird caravan rattled over the ties.

 

W
E arrived in ———, Arkansas, completely rested and in high spirits.

Cameron walked about the lot after the tent was up and rubbed his hands gleefully. Slug Finnerty, his one eye now open, prepared his blue ticket wagon early. Rosebud and the other musicians practiced in their tent. The Strong Woman sang
Die Wacht am Rhein
, while a few stray “rubes” stood outside her little tent and listened.

Goosey had his three elephants ready for parade early. One of his helpers, a boy like myself, had deserted the circus. Some one always rode each elephant in parade. Cameron ordered me to ride in the boy's place. Goosey rigged me out in an Arab costume.

“Arabs don't ride elephants, Goosey, do they?” I asked.

“They do wit' this circus, kid,” he answered. “That's the only outfit we got left.”

The ragged roustabouts with the circus would immediately feel all-important once they donned the vari-colored uniforms for parade. But the lice bit viciously beneath their gaudy apparel, and often, though clad in sumptuous regalia, our minds were on lesser things.

News of our hey rube battle had not reached this section. The lot was crowded with people.

As I stood near the elephant with Goosey, who was ready to place me on its back, Cameron approached.

“We'll clean up a lotta money today, Goosey,” he smiled, and walked on.

“He means he'll clean up the money, the old bum. All I'll do is clean up after the elephants. The old cuss is just castrated wit' joy when he makes a lotta money.” And Goosey frowned as he put his animals in line for parade.

We made a triumphant tour of the town. We returned to the lot where a huge crowd awaited us. The midway was crowded.

Our “world's champion” high diver had just hurled himself from an eighty foot ladder into a small tank of water. He came out dripping and shivering. A lithe-limbed boy stood on his hands atop a red wagon. His body formed a curve. The crowd applauded. Climbing down he saw the flag on the cook-tent and hurried away to his dinner.

The snake-charmer waved a rock python about while the spieler clanged on an iron triangle to draw the crowd. His place was quickly taken by a swarthy fellow who pounded a huge drum with his hand. He was joined by a darker chap who played a terrifying tune on a weird clarinet. Then Socrates Whipper, the spieler, appeared again.

He beamed the benevolence of a country minister. He looked like a man who had a world to save. A black string tie was crooked on his “come to Jesus” collar. A ring made out of a horseshoe nail was on the third finger of his left hand. He held the thumb of it in his vest. A large Elk tooth, colored green, hung from a heavy gold chain stretched across his vest. There was a look of sadness about his eyes. Strangely enough, they danced with humor when he smiled. His lower jaw was longer than daylight, and moved swiftly. His words were as smooth as an egg in wine. He was saying:

“Lefita, the favorite dancer of the Sultan, who escaped the horrors of a Turkish harem and was brought to this country by the generous owners of this circus to present for you the secret dances of Egypt. She knows the lure of the dances of the world. She it was who danced for the kings of impotent glory. E-v-e-r-y mu-s-cl-e-e-v-e-ry-fib-er in this little la-dees ana-tom-ee quiver-s and shakes like an aspen leaf in a gale of wind-or like a bowl of jell-ee, gentlemen-on a cold and frost-ee morning. She makes the old feel young and the young feel gay, the blind to see and cripples to throw their crutches away.”

Lefita appeared behind the benevolent-looking spieler and gave a body quiver that started at her feet and rolled upward. Her copper-colored form was fascinating. It moved with the poetry of motion as she walked away.

“The little lady will retire. The show will start immediately. All will be out and over before the big show commences. There are three ticket boxes—tickets a quarter, twenty-five cents. You will see the little people, the pygmies, the Bearded Lady, and Amy. The wonderful Amy weighs seven hundred and ninety pounds, and yet is as dainty as any of her sisters. You will see the sword swallower, the glass blowers from Bohemia, and many dangerous reptiles in a glass-enclosed den. All for twenty-five cents.”

As the din died away the listeners filed inside. Shadows danced across the trampled grass within. Green flies buzzed about mournfully.

The Moss-Haired Girl, the Strong Woman and other freaks, having just returned from the cook-tent, were mounting their stands and arranging photographs, which they sold. The sword-swallower wiped her nickle-plated weapon with a soft cloth. The snake-charmer confided to Bosco, the wild man, her worry about a sinuous pet.

“He's got a canker in his mouth and I've touched it with caustic and washed it with bismuth but it just don't seem to do no good. He's due to eat next month and I'm worried as all hell. I hope it'll be well by then.”

She looked concerned toward the wild man, who advised:

“Lemme tell you. Jest clean it out a weeny teeny bit and put a midgie piece o' saltpeter on it. That'll fix it up. I did that with a big anaconda for Millie Delay when I was a spieler for the Sparks show.”

The benevolent-looking spieler followed the crowd inside and went from one platform to another until he came to the far end where stood the charming Lefita. He beamed beside her.

A crowd of men stood in front of them. Of all ages, with expressions of sex-wonder in their eyes, gazing curiously as men will who cannot solve a mystery that populates graveyards and through the ages has sent poets, popes, kings and fools to the junk-heap.

The drum throbbed. The clarinet shrieked. Lefita shivered languidly. The music became more violent and Lefita's body kept in tune. It moved like something boneless but sensuous.

The movement ended in a gyration that seemed to leave her exhausted. It was a short dance. The onlookers stood curious and expectant. The spieler then called them closer and said blandly, “I recognize some real sports amongst you, gentlemen, with good red blood coursing through your corpuscles. But would you like it, gentlemen, if this little lady would put on a special show for you? She just told me inside that she had never seen so many handsome men—and the young lady sees a great many.”

The center of the young lady's body moved sensuously.

“Sure! Sure! Sure!!” yelled a chorus of shillabers. (A shillaber is a herder of suckers.) They were noisy in eagerness.

“Go easy, gentlemen,” admonished the spieler, “we mustn't overstep the bounds of the conventions. The young lady is very temperamental and loud demonstrations interfere with her body movements.”

The shillabers were still insistent.

“No, wait a moment, gentlemen,” said the spieler as he stopped to plead with Lefita, who hung her head, pouting, her splendid body moving the while as she shook her head coyly and disappeared. The shillabers made another demonstration in which the other onlookers joined.

“Of course, gentlemen, there will be an extra charge for this—just a thin silver dollar apiece—and of course all that we collect will go to the little lady herself. The little girl will be glad to give the special engagement for you. Move closer boys, move closer.” He made a motion with his hand. “Listen, if you boys ever had that funny feeling—
you know
—she'll give it to you as you've never had it before. You know the Sultan of Turkey and the King of England's each got a lot of wives and seeing women is of course no preponderant mystery to them, but they got a rise out of Lefita.…”

The shillabers pushed forward, carrying the crowd with them.

“Don't crowd, folks. Remember always that you are American gentlemen,” said the spieler.

Then a shillaber's voice boomed:

“I say, Professor, I wonder if she'll give that doniker dance she put on over in Emoryville the other night.”

The spieler rubbed his hands, puzzled.

“Oh you mean that special show we put on at the Elks' lodge?”

“Yep, that's it,” answered the shillaber.

“Well, you boys are hot sports all right. I'll go in and ask her if she will. But of course, in all fairness, it should cost fifty cents more apiece.”

The men eagerly awaited the return of the spieler. While he was gone the shillaber who had asked for the doniker dance described in a loud voice the dance he had seen at the Elks' blow out.

The spieler returned with a cautious expression.

“There are no police amongst you, is there?”

Many voices answered in unison:

“No!”

“Well,” he went on, “the little lady said she'd do it all right. It's very trying, you know, you never saw such a movement. Lord, what passion! But, as I say, it will cost fifty cents extra, a small dollar and a half. A show the like of which you'll never see this side of heaven again.”

Another shillaber clapped his hands loudly.

“What do you say, gentlemen, if we all chip in another half dollar and give it to the lady. Two little silver dollars ain't much and look what a show we'll see. We may as well be real sports. We don't see things like this every day, and I'm for helpin' the little girl. We've all got sisters and mothers and they've got to git along. And if we gentlemen don't help them, who will?” Two other shillabers cried, “Here's my two dollars.”

One after another several dozen race perpetuators handed the spieler the required amount. After he had collected from the last one, he pulled aside a flap of canvas and let the men pass into what seemed to be an adjoining tent.

There was a platform inside upon which Lefita did not stand. Fearful music was made upon the drum and clarinet.

“Say, Professor,” spoke up a shillaber when the music ceased, “now that we're in here
you
be a good sport. What's the matter with having the little lady do the dance—
without—you know!
”

The spieler looked concerned and cautious at the same time. He held up a long smooth hand. “Why, boys, I can't ask her to do that. Gracious, gentlemen, this is too much. You should have told me before I let you in here that you wanted the whole show. Why she got five dollars apiece from the Elks last week for putting that on. Sometimes the Shriners give her even ten dollars apiece.” He looked about, then spoke softly. “But wait, I'll ask her.”

He was gone for a moment.

“Gosh, I wish she'd do it
without
. Boy, O boy—she's got a knockout form. Anna Held's a blue jay compared to her. Zowie, she'd make Julius Seezar a bum over night. I never saw nothin' like her over to the Elks,” said a shillaber.

The dazed members of the stronger sex looked at the speaker as the spieler returned.

“She doesn't want to do it for that price, boys, and you can't much blame her. She's a modest young lady and it's a very trying dance. Just think, as lovely as young Eve in the Garden. Think of it, gentlemen, and be lenient. As I say, she got five dollars last week over at the Elks.”

“Oh well, come on,” said a shillaber impatiently. “Let's all give another dollar and have the whole works.”

The men trembled in anticipation as the speiler raised his hand and said:

“Yes, gentlemen, I'll be fair. One dollar more each and I'll see that she gives the whole show—the Egyptian dance, the doniker dance, and the wonderful dance
without
. Think of it, gentlemen, the soul-stirring—the voluptuous—the sensuous—the wonderful—the maddening dance
without
.” They all rushed forward with another dollar.

“Thank you, thank you, thank you, gentlemen,” said the spieler as Lefita came through a side wall and climbed upon the platform. She danced indifferently, her body moving slowly. In a short time she disappeared.

“That was just the introduction, gentlemen, merely a warming up of her lovely body. In a few minutes she will do the dance without.” He held his long smooth hand up again. “Will all you gentlemen please remove your hats?” he said.

They did as they were told.

Lefita appeared and danced again in the same apparel.

A shillaber sneered as Lefita bowed. “
Without what?
” he yelled gruffly.

“Without your hats on,” came the bland voice of the spieler.

Suddenly the side-walls dropped and the astonished spectators found themselves standing in the open air.

They looked at each other sheepishly and melted into the crowd.

The clarinet and the drum again played fearful music.

Lefita rested. The show closed for twenty minutes until other rubes had gathered. Finnerty's voice could be heard.

“Here you are, ladees and gentlemen. Tickets for the great and only—the great and only—I say the great and only Cameron's great combined shows just returned from tours of China and Japan and other points in the Far West. Be very, very careful, gentlemen. We try to run a respectful show, but beware of pickpockets. Guard your purses.”

Socrates Whipple again appeared before Lefita's tent.

“She is the favorite dancer of the Sultan, ladies and gentlemen. She escaped the horrors of his harem and was brought to this country by the generous owners of this circus for your edification in the secret dances of Egypt.”

And thus the farce was renewed.

By using every device possible through Arkansas, Cameron and his band soon recouped their losses.

Plundering and stealing, cheating and lying, laboring, fighting and loving; taking all we could and returning little, we went our careless and irresponsible ways, with laughter in our hearts and sneers on our lips—as anti-social as the hyenas who howled at the changes in the weather.