A GIGANTIC CIRCUS COMPANY.

Oamaru Mail, Volume I, Issue 220, 5 January 1877, Page 2

A GIGANTIC CIRCUS COMPANY.

The following particulars concerning Messrs. Cooper and Bailey's circus and menagerie are from the Sydney MommyHerald of November 7 :—" The Pacific M.S.S. City of Sydney, which arrived yesterday morning from San Francisco, has brought over from America the largest combination circus and menagerie that has yet visited this Colnny. To give an idea of the strength of the company it may be stated that the troupe numbers about sixty, comprising Mr. Robinson, the reputed champion rider of the world, the Satsuma Royal Troupe of Japanese and several ladies and gentlemen of great skill in tho various parts of the entertainment in which they perform. There are also fifteen horses, six elephants, five dromedaries, one camel, two lions, one lioness, and three cubs about six weeks old, a i air of tigers, a gazelle, two wart hogs, two sea lions, a young hippopotamus, a cinnamon-brown bear from the Rocky Mountains, one sacred bull of India, one camelopard, standing Rift, in height, ar.d a col.my of about twenty monkeys, including a pig-tailed ape and a dogfaced baboon. There are a few other animals. " The proprietary were obliged, when shipping the animals, to leave one elephant in America, as there was not room for it to stand 'tween decks on board the steamer, it being 1 Sit. din. in height. Tile largest elepaiu brought over stands about ll'ft. Due regard was had i>> the comfort of the animals during their ocean Voyage, an 1 we are glad to learn that no serious loss has been incurred, iii"ie than the death of a couple of monkeys anil a |">:iy. The lions ami tigers i.ave teen trained by Professor (',. \V. Thompson, who has taught them a number ni' tricks. The hippop"ianius is a voiing animal, being only about fifteen iiionl!:s old. its original habitat being t'lif Nd •. It 1> some five and a half feet in k ugih. and about two feet six incites in height. The barrel-organ 'finders will iio-.v me: t with serious opposition from Messrs. Co.,per and Bailey's steam piano, which is both a novelty ami a curiosity. Prom a ha.->ty glance it v.otiid appear to he C"!i.->tructed upon the following prin-ciple:-At one end of a long box is a toiler in which s:e:nn is generated, and on either side of the box is a parallel row of w! i-itle-, similar t > used on stanibo.its and i.'ilwy i iigi!i'"S each <:t\e b.'.ug a linle larger than its companion, and raiigiii: fr in a \.his.!e ab .u. two and a half ;■> three inches in height to one apparently about twelve inches in height. Aiiix-'d to th ■ 1 o;ioin of each of these v.- h=.- ties is a m tal wife conuceiing with a keyboard similar t> a pianoforte keyboard, and as the whi.-th-s are tuned to a certain pitch, it is obvious that the pressure of tiie keys produces tile music'