WILD WEST IN THE RAIN.
Creditable Exhibition in Spite of J.
Pluvius's Interruption.
Buffalo Bill's Wild West and Pawnee Bill's Far East, combined, gave an exhibition before a large and appreciative crowd at the circus grounds, 17th and Indiana avenue, yesterday afternoon. It has been nearly a decade since Buffalo Bill has been seen in Kansas city, and the return of the most picturesque of the few remaining frontiersmen was signaled by an outpouring of those who have personal recollections of the old-time scout, and those to whom he has seemed more a figment of fancy than a reality.
It was a good show that the two Bills brought to Kansas City yesterday. The meeting of the East and the West with their varied manners, customs and contrasts, on a field of daring, afforded opportunity for speculative reflection by the studious, and was an interesting spectacle for the less serious minded. An act not catalogued was the appearance of J. Pluvius, monoplaning above the arena with his large-sized sprinkling pot spouting unpleasant reminders to a greater portion of the crowd of umbrellas left at home. From the grand review, with which the show opens, to the final salute of the assembled company, every act is well worth seeing. The rough riders of all nations, the pony express, the emigrant train, were all interesting features of the show. "A Dream of the Orient" was presented in spectacular form by Arabs, Japanese, Singhalese, Cossacks, Dahomeans, Hindues and Australian boomerang throwers.
"The Battle of Summit Springs," in which were shown scouts, soldiers, plainsmen and Sioux and Cheyenne Indians, was of a hair-curling variety. The attack of the Indians was as spectacular as could be desired. Other interesting features on the program were Devlin's Zouaves, fancy shooting by Buffalo Bill, a game of football on horseback, a great train holdup, shooting by Johnny Baker, U. S. Cavalry drill, cowboy fun and Russian Cossacks.
The worst punishment of last night's performance fell upon the acrobats. The feature of their act is that they tumble on the ground without the use of mats or rugs. As they lined up twenty strong towards the north end of the rectangle the audience did not at first realize how much more difficult their evolutions would be in a foot of mud and in drenching rain. They were dressed in red tights with blue doublets, the colors showing up brighter because of the drenching.
After the preliminary stunts were over and their uniforms were still unsullied, the crowd began to believe there would be no mishap. Then the fun began. Someone's foot slipped in an aerial flip flop. Instantly he was immersed and the crowd laughed. Other and similar accidents followed as the teams increased the complexity of their work.
"This crowd is a revelation in the circus business," said Hugh Thomas, head of the police department of the show last night. "It is a great big good natured bunch that doesn't care for the weather or anything else. That's the English as well as the American spirit, though. The idea that predominates in an Anglo-Saxon aggregation is that it does not matter so much how well you do, as how well you do under the circumstances."
