t although this man is so reckless of
his own life, I must insist that he get a permit from the mayor,
relieving us from all responsibility, before we allow him to be torn
limb from limb. Return to-morrow at two o'clock, and if this man's
courage still keeps up, you will see before your shuddering eyes an
encounter which will make the historical gladiatorial combats of ancient
Rome pale into insignificance.' I could sling a few language myself,
those days, and the mayor was a friend of mine--or I thought he was--so
I figured we could catch the suckers for an admission and then call it
off, because he would refuse a permit.

[Illustration: _"Blank cartridges fired in his face."_]

"But he was onto the game and he was one of those blame fools who
thought he had a sense of humor, so he gives him a document with a big
red seal on it which looks like a doctor's diploma, which says that
Thomas Jefferson is allowed to go in and win our five hundred, and the
next day the coon shows up smiling and ready, and I knew we had to make
good somehow. I passed the word to Merritt to delay the game and make a
last grand effort to throw a scare into the coon, and he put up a spiel
to beat the band.

"'This terrible Fuzzy Wuzzy has none of the attributes of a human
being,' says he. 'He lives upon raw meat and would prefer human flesh if
he could get it. Observe the expression of ghoulish glee in his eyes as
he regards the foolhardy man who will soon furnish him such a meal as he
formerly enjoyed in his native jungle. He sleeps at night suspended from
the top bars of his cage by his claw-like hands and feet, which will
soon be tearing the flesh of this man who stands before you now, a
picture of perfect health and strength. He speaks no intelligible
language, but he utters howls and yells, which will be more horrible
than ever before when he is sucking the warm heart's be-lud of the
figure which you see before you for the last time in human shape.' Just
then the super gives Fuzzy a prod and he howls like Balaam's ass, but
the coon stands there smiling and not feazed a bit.

"'It's a sad sight,' continues Merritt, 'to see a fine man in the prime
of life, like our colored brother here, crushed into an unrecognizable
mass by the terrible hinder limbs of this man-eating cannibal and then
torn to shreds by his horrible fangs. The management of this highly
moral and intellectual show will provide a funeral for the remains, if
there are any, a