Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Here is a circus romance red' olent of the fresh sawdust oj the ring, vibrant With the inces sant cl(inif>r of Ihe band, pano ramie in its ever moving display of clowns, acrobats, horses und captive wild animals. Vo:i will read of Polly, tins daughter <>/ the circus, and of Bingo, on whose broad hack she rode ; of the "leup of death" girl; oj "Muvver Jim," Ihe boss canvas man, and Toby, Ihe clown, who loved t/ic circus orphan and cared for her like father and mother; of Deacon Strong, who haled a circus, and of Rev. John Douglas, who grew to love a cir cus girl. You will read of gos sip that threatened to divide a pastor and his Jlock, of Ruth and Naomi, of a show girl's re- j nundation and of Polly's Jirst and last ride on Barbarian, the circus liorse. ClfAI'TKU i. T"~^ hi: hand of ilie "iIreut American i Irons" was playing noisily. | Tin' p< rf< nuance was in full: l ies hie a shabby hunk In Die wo* men's dressing leu I sal a young, wist ful fa i (1 girl, chin In haiul, unheeding I ho chatter of the women ahout her . r I ho i itui'-ipie <U -array of (he ijui rounding object;*. Her eyes Had boon, so long accustomed (<? tlic gllltor rtiid tinsel of clrctiH llnerlos Hull she saw nothing UnU! mil In a picture thai udghl have held n palitler spellbound, Circling ii<- Inside ijf Ihe lent and forming a double lino down tin- center were paitially unpacked trunks belch ing fdrth Itupud' nl masses Of statins, laces, urtllh I ii hair, paper flowers nud paste Jewels. The kcouI of moist earth mingled oddly with the perfumed odors of Hie garments heaped on the crass. Here and there high circles of lights threw a strong, steady glare upon ihe half elnd figure of a robust acrobal > r (he thin, drooping shoulders if a loss stalwart slslor. Temporary ropes strotoln d from one polo t<> an other were lud n with bright colored blockings, gaudy, spangled gowns or dusty street clothes discarded by I ho performers hofi r.? slipping into their circus nttlre There wi re no nails or hooks, f?b bats and veils wer.- pinned in t ho i niiViis walls. The furuliuro was limited t-> One camp oliiilr Iii front of erieii true);, the till of wlihdi served as a iriiy for Iho paint-, piuil. r. nud oilier essentials i f mal? up. A pail of water Stood by the side of each ehnlr, f ? that the performers might wash ihe delicately shaded lights, hntidkoi'i iileffl ttnd other; small nrtlcles uoi t-> bo Intrusted lo tho slow, careless process <f the village laundry, fitolne of these hud been washed tonight and hung to dry on tho linos between the dusly street par fnohttt. Women whoso 'Turns" came Info sal about, half clothed, feuding, crochet luft or suwhig, tVhllO 01 Inis added pen* died eyebrow:?, i- y ? v ur rouge to Hieb already oxngi < rated makeup i, Hero nud there a child WftS putting her sawdust baby i ? sloi p hi the till of hot' trunk before beginning her part in the evening's cnieitnlnnioiit, Von:,.: and old went nb >ul Iholr dutlc ? with a systematic, buslnossll! o air. ipid even the llttlo Unol of oxcltcd women nea; Poll;'- I: Boomed Hint <>ne of til hat! iiju elr< us tradition -kept a sharp lookout for 111 ? -11- turns. ??What ?1?. you think ubout it. Polly?" asked a handsome brunette us sbo sur Vcycd herself In tbc costume of a I toman chui lotoer. "About what?" asked Polly vacantly. "I.ouve I'oll alone! She's In one of her trances!" called a motherly, pood natured woman whose trunk stood next ?<? Polly's abd whose business was t<? support a son ami three daugh ters upon stalwart shoulders, both Og Ul'Utlvely and literally. "Well, I ain't In any trance," answer id the dark girl, "and I think it's pret ty tough for him to take up with a rank outsider and export us to warm up to her as though lio'd married one of our own folks." She tossed her head, the pride of class distinction Welling hie!, In her ample bOSOIU. "Ho ain't nskill' US t<> warm up to her.'' contradicted Mile. P.l?>isc. a pale, light haired sprite, who had arrived late and was making Undignified ef forts to get out <>f her clothes by way of her head. She was Polly's under study and next In line for the star phico In the bill. "Well, Barker has put her Into the 'hap of death' StUUt, ain't hoV" con tinued the brunette. "Course that ain't a regular circus act," she added, s .Yiicwhnt mollified, "and so far she's had to dress with the freaks, but the next thing we know Uo'll be ringln' her In on a regular stunt and be put tin" her in to dress with us." "No danger of that," sneered the blond. "Parker Is t-..i old a stager to mis u;> bis sheep nnd his goats." Polly bad a:..(in lest the thread of I he conversation. Her mied had gone roving to the night when tlio fright ened girl about whom they were laik lug had made her first appearanco In tlx- ?Ileus h>t. clinging timidly to the hand of the man who hid just made l>r his wife. Her eyes had met Pol ly's with a I",ok of appeal that hid gone straight to the child's simple heart. A few nights later the newcomer had allowed herself to he strapped into the cumbersome "leap of death" mnchluo which hurled Itself through space at each performance ami Hung Itself down with force enough to break the tuck ef any unskilled rider. Cour age and steady nerve were the requi sites for tl;>' jop, so t!i" manager had s i!d. I nt any physician would h ive told him that only a trained acrobat could long endure tlio nervous strain, (he muscniai tension nnd the physical rack ef such nil ? ideal. What mit'er? Tho few dollars earned in this way would menu a great deal to the mother whom tin girl's marriage had lefi dosokUe. Polly had looked on hungrily the nlghf thai the mother had Iii ken Hie daughter In her arms to say farewell in (ho Iii'!?' country town where tin < Irons had played hefi re her mnrrlnge. She could reihehilier no womnn's arms nbout hci', for It whs fourteen years since tender hands had carried her nioth.r from ihe performers' tent Into the moonlit lot to die. The baby was so um d to seeing "inumslo" throw her self Wearily on the mound after com lllg ? at of the "big top" exhausted thai she crept to the woman's side, as usual, that night and gazed laughingly Into the sightless eye??, gurgling ami prattling ami stroking Ihe Ulll'Cspon sivo face. There wen? tears from lie e who watched, but no word was spoken, Clown Toby and the big "Poss can vasman" .lllll bad always taken turns mousing and gunrdlng little Polly while her mother rode In the fing. So Toby now carried tin* babe lo hnotlier side of the lot, and .lim bore I lie life less body of the mother to tho distant tiei,et wagon, now el >sed for (honight, rid in Id it upon the seller's cot. "IPs nlius like thfs hi (ho ?ltet**' he ! iiir nun l ns in- drew a plo<.f eriii \ i ; over Ihe white face and (iifncd away to give orders to the men who were 1 egluulng I" load tin- "props" used earlier In the performance, Wheii the show moved oh that nlghl ? the mitt) of a Polly Close lo his fdlll v.art heart and climbed with her to the high steal on the head wugoit, Pu ch Toiiy wh Intrusted with the brown Brti hei In v. hl b ihe mother bad nl v.ay carried Polly's scanty wardrobe. It seemed I.? these two itldll that Ihe eye . of the we.uan were fixed steadily Upon them. Itarkef, the malinger; a large, noisy, gm d nalured fellow, at first mumbled something about till kid being "excess bnggago," but bis objections were only half hearted, for, like the olhors, he was already under (he hypnotic spell ?.f (he baby's round, confiding eyes, und be eventually contented himself with an ocew lonnl reprimand to Toby, who was I10W sometimes late on his CU?H. Polly wondered at tin so limes w hy (ho "Id man's Stories were so sud denly < til BllOl'l Just :i i sho was so "Comfy" In I ho s..f I gm*S at-Ids feet. The boys win used t<? look sharp i,d mi ? ?.f their boss nt loading time now learned that they might loiter so long at "Muvver .Ilm'' \vn ; "blkin" It fotl d for the kid." It WO? Polly who htld (lllbbcd big} .Ilm "Muwer." nod the sohrhjm i had slin k to him lu sj.iie I Of his six foot two and shoulders that Hii athlete might have envied. I.idle by little Toby grew more stooped, and flinnll lines of anxiety crept Into the brownish circlet) beneath Jim's eyes, the Hps that had ?.me shut so Ql'tnty been mo tender and tremulous, but nei ther of the men would willingly have gone back to the <<Ul emptiness. it was a red letter day in the cir cus when Polly lirst managed to climb t:p on the polo of an unhitched wagon and from there to the back of a friend "I always Aald she'd do It!" cried Barker, who now took upon himself the credit of Tolly's triumph. Aad what a triumph It was! Polly darned as serenely on Bingo's baCK as she might have? done on the concert hoards. She swayed grace fully with the music. Her tiny san dals twinkled as she stood first upon one foot and then upon the other. Uncle Toby forgot to use many of his tricks that night, and Jim left the loading of the WUgOUS to take care of l nl I.Y DASCElt SRHK.XELY OS niXCIO'S HACK. Jy Shell;:ml pony. Jim itml Toby had hern "neglect in" her eddlentloil," Iboy declared, and from that time on the blood of Polly's ancestors was given fnil encourugemeut. Llurker was quick to grasp the ad vantage of adding the kid to the daily parade, she made lier first appear nuco in the streets upon something very liko a Newfoundland d >g, guard ed from the rear by Jim and from the fore by a white faced clown who was thought to he all the fuunici because he ivTlsted his neck so mucli. Prom the street parade to Polly's first appearance in tho big t >p had s'-emed a short while to Jim and Toby. They wer.- proud to 800 her CP'clIllg tin; lint,' In bright colors and to bear the Cheers of the people, but a sense of loss was upon tla.ni. itself while he hovered near the en trance, noxious and breathless. The pet formers crowded arouud the girl with outstretched bands and cougrat ulutious as she came out of the ring to cheers and applause. But "Big Jim" stood apart, lie was thinking of the buttons that hi, clum sy lingers used to force Into the stiff, starchy holes too small foi them ami of the pigtails SO Stubborn lit the ends, and Toby was remembering tho little shoes that had once needed to be laced in the cold, dark mornings and the strings that were always snapping. Something bad gone. They were not philosophers to rea son, like Kniorson, that for everything we lose we gain something. They wore simple souls, these two; 11 >y could only feel. To lie Contlu 1. I'oiTctl Into L\ile. Wm. I'jichurch, of Glen Oak, Okla.. was tin exile from homo, .Mountain air. hip thought, would cure a fright ful lung-racking cough thai had do lled all remedies foi two years. Af. (<?;? six months returned, death dogging his stops, " Then I began to USA Dr. King's New Discovery,'" ho write.-,, ?hind after tailing six bottles I am as well as ever."' It saves thousands yearly from desperate long diseases. Infallible for Coughs and Cohl-. it dispels Hoarseness and Sore Throat, cures Crip. Bronchitis, Hem orrhages, Asthma. Croup. Whooping Cough. fiOC and $1.00, trial bottle free; guaranteed by Laurons Drug Co.. almetto Drug Co. Edibles for the Spring Taste Post 'fonstic:, Corn Mukca ;t::d (>at Meal, Choice Caniied Oooils of all A choice I nie of fresh gaf? den products always oil hand. Swifts Premium Hauls, Brenk fust Strips, ffesh Kggs find Butter. Photic us your orders* Ottick I irliwrv. I - Whooping Cough. Tliis is a nioro dangerous disease lhan is generally presumed, it will lio a surprise to many to I earn that more deaths result from it than from scnrlci fever. Pneumonia often re sults from it. Chamberlain's Cough Remedy lias been used in many eph demies of whooping cough, anil it al ways with the best I'eSUltS. Delbert MoKolg of Harlan. Iowa, says of it: "My boy took whooping cough when nine months old. He had it in the winter. I gol a bottle of Chamber lain's Cough Remedy which proved good. I cannol recommend it loo highly." l or sale by the l.aurens Drug Company. More homes than WO know of are broken up by folks trying to live bet ter than their means will permit. 4? Fresh Test tau, IN st l< inslics ('.raja- nuts, ()at flakes in air light tin can, Kigs, Seed It ? s Rnisitis, and (blcftncn Currai.ts, CaJifionia I.uihui cUllg nttd yellow free stone. peaCiIOS, Canned Peas, Canned Tomatoes, Fresh and domestic Sardines, Cheese, Hulk and Bottled Pickles Snow l'iake and Pack age Crackers, Fresh Vegetables from the Coast and all the sea sonable dainties, quril* ity and prices right, Laurent, S. C. i 1 * * i The 15 Year Old Boy of today, will, in ten years, be a business man. If von have .1 SOU, it is your duly to train him in business methods, to give him the benefit of your business experience. \ See that lie has a bank account while he is growing up. There is no other one thing that will give him a more proper insight and conception of business than of having his own bank account. i 1 1 1 THE BANK'S^ LAURELS LAURENSi S,C, / The Bank for Your Savings. ft Go to the McCorcl Studio for Fine Photos and High Grade Portraits. The very best material is used and the latest de signs in Folders, HangersNandJ Cards are supplied. The prices are as low as is consistent with good work. Come to see us, your patronage is appreciated. Respectfully TKe McCord Studio ? I? I Linene for Skirting | ?I :? ,oc - ^ hive numbers in India Linen, every number a bargain. * k*T _. ?P The most durable cloth for this purpose at the price, y a special^article offered here at vSee the <}o inch White Persian at r A nice line of .Sheer White Dimity Checks fr< am ......vv wuim, viivim uOllI I 0C UP 2 A The manufacturers have taken patriotic pride naming their Long Cloth, "Old Cilor/" claiming it has ?3 ^2 stood the test of time while (bther brands have fallen into disuse.. We offer a limited quantity of this cloth at ioc tlie \ aid A Tlu- demand lor Linen goods for waisling and skirting ^3 ^ is steadily on the increase, the 'klaxon fibre stands the ' wear and tear of the Inimrlrv lw>fl*r llwtii >i,i- 1,,*..,,.. <fb * wear mid tear of the laundry better than any other, hence ^ the economy selecting it at IW. G. WILSON & COMPANY | g J. X. Leak, Ties. J. J.\ Donoll, Sce'v. We hope to merit the business of the public at large ?S and solicit .same. Apply to us for terms Southern Co-operative Collection Agency dray Court. 5. C. )?? Busincs placed with this f?* nin win r< ceive piomj t & attention, ft ? 5? 2? & & & & & ggggj^^ ^ w w & OOQOOOOO?***^^ Coal ? Q o Buy now and ge\ tire best, $5.00, per ton. \ I A ffood supply of Com and heavy ?to? !?) 1 ? cerlcs, best prices. g Laufens Wholesale Grocery Co. g Q R. Coke Gray, Mauag?r. Q ?OOOOOOOO:^Si**oS-*?f*000000000