FIFTY YEARS OF A SHOWMAN'S LIFE 



royalties, including our Heir-apparent and his 

 Princess, who visited the show a day or two later, 

 was, from a spectacular point of view, completely 

 outshone by the civic turn-out. On behalf of 

 all concerned, I conveyed to all three dignitaries 

 our deep sense of the honour they had conferred 

 upon the Society by their visit. But it had not 

 occurred to me to express our obligations to the 

 magnificently-attired individuals who shed lustre 

 upon the proceedings as coachmen and footmen. 

 My remissness in this respect met with its rebuke, 

 for a few days afterwards I received an epistolary 

 communication from one of these civic attendants 

 reminding me that it was customary always on 

 such occasions for the persons visited to present 

 each coachman and footman with a fee of 10s., 

 and requesting that it might be forwarded. 

 On inquiry at headquarters, I ascertained that 

 such an acknowledgment was customary, but 

 it was suggested, as a compromise, that I might 

 cut it down to 5s. or 3s. 6d. per head. I felt, 

 however, I could not possibly offer such splendidly- 

 attired personages anything less than gold without 

 giving serious affront. At the same time, as the 

 functionaries in question had done nothing for 

 the show beyond either driving or strap-hanging 

 on to their masters' vehicles, I did not feel called 

 upon to help pay their wages. So I held my 

 hand, instead of putting it into my pocket, and 

 no County Court was troubled with any action 

 compelling me to disburse. I thought it was 

 one of those ancient customs more honoured in 

 the breach than the observance. I felt, too, 

 that, if anyone was entitled to be paid for coming 



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