THE BIG SUBORN INTERVIEWED.

Press, Volume XLVI, Issue 7411, 10 September 1889, Page 2

THE BIG SUBORN INTERVIEWED.

Some of the readers of the Press have seen the Stlbons, and will be glad to hear that they are to come this way aeain. The Silbon family consists of Cornelius Silbon, his sister, his daughter and his brother, Walter Silbon, the double somereaulter.CorneHus.orashe Is generally called, the Big Silbon, was lately interviewed in Melbourne. He began by scouting the idea that he was anything but an Englishman. So far from being a German, as his interviewer had been told- he waa born at Hull. Aa a child he was crazy on gymnastics. " I so loved them,** he said, " that myself, brothers and sisters used to go in for it in a little washhouse in_the back yard. Originally I was a painter "and grainer, Dut when sixteen years old I ran away from home with a brother and sister, and finally secured an engagement at Leeds. Oh, yes I I've had my share of the ups and downs, the bright and dark side of life, but, you see, I'd made-up cay mind to begin at the bottom rung, and so moons step br step the ladder ot gymnastic fame. We had a couple of years of it in England, and were the first artists of any note in our business who crossed over from England to France at the conclusion of the German War, and we hod the pleasurev or otherwise, of being in Paris . when the place, was partly in rams." " Yes, well, and after tbatf

" Oh, after that we put iv three years bu-zhig about Spain, and had more thana fair share of war. You see, we made a point of going from one town where the Carltst soldier*, were to another where the Republican Army were, and so on. - - - "Business good? Rather, and we had all sorts of travelling, by rail, pa donkeys backs, &c. We went through Portugal and back t» France- ... "Any in-dente of note* ye* ask, Any amount, sir; but I have no desire to waste your precious time recounting them. There ut one* however, I may mention,, for Til never forget it to the longest day of my life. It happened during the Paris Exhibition of 1878. We were all engaged to appear at the big Hippodrome there. Well, the any before oar opening my little baby became very ill. I begged and prayed of our manager to postpone the opening. This he refused to do, stating by way of explanation that having

engaged us, and as we were the big feature, the thing was out of the question. We appeared, and were an i<Bm™£*&_ cess; a_d7in fact, I think we made the biggest hit of our life that night, f a *dwhe£ we came home we found our little one The night after the foregoing took place was a command night, Marshal MacMahon, the President of the Republic, and a host of other notabilities being present, and we were congratulated on all aides by the managers. " Have we had many accidents ? yott " Well, fortunately only one of any consequence, when a brother of mine, Alfred, fell some fifty feet, owing to the cariessness of one of our employes who, while under the Influence of liquor,\busied himself with one of the ropes, and as a result my brother broke both ankles. I was up pn the trapeze at the time, but was so alarmed that I threw myself into the net beneath, and was at his side in an instant. I thought he was killed, but on our picking him up he quietly exclaimed. 'Oh I I'm all right.' Poor fellow, he was two years laid up. " No, he is not travelling with our show now. He has one of his own, and Is doing remarkably well in Germany. We have been right through the latter place. I forgot to mention that -whilst in Spain we had the honour of appearing before King Alfonso, at Barcelona. Denmark, Copenhagen ; in short, sir, there are very few places -where we haven't been. In the United States we had seven years with Adam Forebaugh, Barnum, Cole, and others. . __. „ "You ask what about salary? Well, we never did get le3s than one hundred Eounds a week; that is, the four of us. lone a deal of travelling? Rather; we have got over thirteen thousand miles In six months, which is not so bad, what with two shows a day. What turned our thoughts to Australia? Well, when at the Orpheum, 'Frisco,! met Gaylord, who offered mc terms to bring over a good crowd. Td heard a lot of the colonies, for Australia ls looked upon as the home of the athlete, and, owing to my long experience in the business, and knowing Just where to clap my hands on the right people, I made up my mind to bring over a company that would astonish your S.ople. Our representative agreed (with on. that he'd done so, for the SllbonStirk combination, as it now stands, would be hard to equal, let alone better, in any part of the globe. On winding up their present season in Melbourne the Silbons start out on their own hook, beginning at Adelaide. The I provinces will follow; then New Zealand, the combination leaving us for South America in November. " Yes, our exes, are big, the salary list I alone, being about three hundred pounds a week. The country'people will get exactly the same show as that now being given in Melbourne; aye, even to the one-night towns visited. Two agents and a manager accompany the concern. " Certainly; the Stirks are with us right through to the finish. As constituted now we have what were originally three distinct shows * and, look here," smilingly exclaimed Silbdn, "I don't think you newspaper men, even if you felt that way inclined, could find a flaw in the show."