p. 170

47.
vring several tacks" and a view of Third and
Market streets.

The English pieces brought out for the first
time during the season were Cumberland's
comedy of "The Jew." "The Farm House"
a three act comedy. "Fontainville Forest" a
tragedy. "Poor Vulcan" a burletta ; and
"The Heiress" by Burgoyne. "Know Your
Own Mind" by Arthur Murphy "Auld Robin
Gray" a pastoral opera music by Reinagle.
"The Child of Nature." "A Sicilian Romance"
a farce. "Set a Beggar on Horseback" a farce.
"The Noble Peasant" an opera. "The Bro-
thers" by Cumberland. "The Wedding-Day."
"The Prisoner" a musical drama. "Next Door
Neighbors." "The Mayor of Garrett." "Bet-
ter Late Than Never." "The Humorous Ped-
dler or The Sheep-Shearing." "The Rage" by
Coleman. "The Irish Widow." "The Irishman
in London."

The season closed July 4th with "Next Door
Neighbors" and "The Irishman in London."

CHAPTER XXV.
A chapter on circuses--Tight rope performances in 1724--
Faulks the first equestrian 1771--Bates in 1772--Pool.
the first American equestrian 1785--The first circus in
Philadelphia in Market street west of Broad--Bates in
1787--John B. Ricketts 1792--His first circus corner of
Twelfth and Market streets--His first and second seasons
1793 and 1794--Ricketts' amphitheatre corner of Sixth
and Chesnut streets--Description of the house--The mem-
bers of the company--The feats performed--"T" other side
of the gutter"--Ambroise & Co.'s amphitheatre Arch
street between Eighth and Ninth.

We have hitherto kept rather closely to the
narrative of dramatic matters in Philadelphia.
It is necessary for a proper understanding of
the state of theatrical affairs in 1795 to say
something in regard to other exhibitions which
in every country have flourished side by side
with the drama and which have at times seri-
ously interfered with the prosperity of the the-
atres. We have preferred to pass over this
subject until the present. We have in our
sketches arrived at a point of time when eques-
trianism begins to assert an equal place with
thespianism. It will be necessary for the read-
er to go back with us a little and trace the
history of circus and tight rope performances
in our city in order to better understand the
rise and progress of entertainments which often
were striving to acquire public favor in common
with dramatic representations. We have hith-
erto stated that the first exhibition of tight rope
performances took place in Philadelphia on
Society Hill in the year 1724. A booth was
erected and the show continued in that location
for a few days. The performers were a woman
and a boy whose names are not given in the
programmes. The exhibition was not of a high
order of merit. The boy "capered on the tight
roap." The woman danced on the same elastic
cord with baskets tied to her feet and she
walked upon the same unsubstantial path trun-
dling a wheelbarrow before her.

The first equestrian performer who visited
the American colonies was one Faulks who
in 171 pitched his tent in the neighborhood
of Centre square. He had no equestrian help
and executed all the feats which were exhibited.
An idea of the nature of his exercises may be
gathered from the following programme which
described the closing exhibition :

Mr. Faulks intends presenting his feats in horseman-
ship for the benefit of the Prisoner confined in the gaol
of the city.
1. He mounts a sigle horse standing on the saddle
and rides him playing the French horn.
2. He mounts two horses one foot in each horse's stir-
rup putting them into full speed and ounts out of them
into the top of the saddle ad at the same pace.
3. He mounts two horses upon the saddles and will in
full speed throw himself upon his back managing them
in the same manner as if he had the advantage of a com-
mon seat and rises again all on the same spot.
4. He mounts three horses in the saddle and rides them
in full speed vaulting from one to the other.
5. He concludes his performance by riding on a single
horse at full speed dismounting and mounting many
times and will in that stretch dismount freely with both
feet on the ground vault clear over the horse back again
and mount on the near side.

In 1772 Mr. Bates another equestrian came
to the city and also gave exhibitions at the
Centre Square with much success. He closed
his season with a benefit for the poor. His
prices of admission were "five shillings for the
first place" and "two shillings and sixpence for
the second place."

The Centre Square was the chosen place for
the city races and here under the uspices of
"the Jockey Club" the hih-mettled racers of
other days contended for the mastery. The
Revolution however put an end to the eques-
trian uses of the spot and it was not until 1785
that equestrianism endeavored to re-establish
itself in this city.

In August 1785 Mr. Pool who claimed the
distinction of being "the first American who ever
exhibited feats of equestrianism on the conti-
nent" erected the first circus and menage built
in Philadelphia on Market street near the
Centre House. His performances were more
diversified than those of Faulks or Bates and
he surpassed the dexerity of the former by
firing off pistols and drinking glasses of wine
whilst driving two horses at full speed. He also
had three trick horses which feigned to be sick
and dead one of which had acquired sufficient
gentility "to make his manners to the ladies"
and another of which was trined "to set up
like a lady's lap dog."

In 1787 Mr. Bates returned to the city and
opened a riding school in the circus building
which had been erected by Pool.

In the year 1792 Mr. John B. Ricketts arrived
in this city from Scotland and erected a circus
at the southwest corner of Twelfth and Market
streets. It opened on the 22d of October and
was at first designed as a riding school and Mr.
Ricketts sought for pupils to be instructed in
the accomplishment. The establishment was
conducted for this purpose during the ensuing
fall and winter but Mr. Ricketts determined to
erect a better building for public exhibitions.
The new establishment was fitted up on the
same spot with accomodations for about
eight hundredpersons. The doors opened at
three o'clock in the afternoon and the ex-
hibitions were given by daylight. In his an-
nouncement the manger said "Mr. Ricketts
will not pretend to give any description of his
performance sed vide et crede."

Mr. Ricketts was a pupil of the great hughes
manager and proprietor of the circus near Black-
friars Bridge London. He was the best of this
class of performers that had come to this coun-
try. He opened on Wednesday April 3d, 1793.
His performances were given in the afternoons
three times a week. He was accompanied by a

brother Master Francis Ricketts who was after-
wards an excellent rider and tumbler. He was
soon joined by Signor Spinacuta a tight rope
dancer and pyrotechnist which strengthened
his performances. He trained a boy by the
name of Strobache to ride on his shoulders as a
flying Mercury. Mr. McDonald who was the
comic man of the company made his first ap-
pearance the 9th of May.

People of all classes thronged to the circus.
From six to seven hundred persons filled the
seats on every day of Ricketts' performances.
General Washington attended the exhibition on
Saturday April 22d and gave the benefit of his
presence as a guarantee of its respectability.

The riding school of Mr. Ricketts was patro-
nized by the most fashionable of our citizens.
Robert Morris the great but unfortunate finan-
cier was a liberal patron of the gentlemanly and
sprightly equestrian. A very beautiful bay
charger that he procured here and broke as a
trick horse and for leaping bars Mr. Ricketts
called "Cornplanter" after a celebrated Indian
chief of the Six Nations who was then on a
visit to Government and who was greatly ad-
mired for his symmetry of person and warrior-
like deportment. Ricketts gained deserved
popularity by his liberal donations or rather by
appropriating on several occasions the receipts
of his exhibitions to charitable purposes. An
appropriation was made in 1794 by the city
authorities to a fuel fund for the distressed poor
and Ricketts gave a benefit to its aid which
yielded a handsome sum and was paid over to
the City Councils. Before he closed his season
Mr. Ricketts gave a benefit for the assistance of
those unfortuante emigrants who flew from the
massacres of Hispaniola by the negroes. This
exhibition took place July 22d, 1794 and closed
the season.

Hallam and Henry who were then playing at
the old Southwark theatre with their company
postponed their performance on the evening of
the day that Ricketts gave to the benefit of the
refugees from St. Domingo and subsequently
they appropriated a night for a similar purpose.

During the time that the Chesnut street com-
pany was performing in 1794 Mr. Ricketts was
exhibiting in New York. He returned in Sep.
tember and interfered materially with the pro-
fits of the old American company at the South
street theatre. His company at the opening
only consisted of himself Master F. Ricketts
and Mr. McDonald ; but in order to give an ad-
ditional eclat to the performances it was an-
nounced that "a grand band of music" had
been secured ; leader Mr. Young. This season
was not distinguished by any extraordinary
event but it demonstrated to Mr. Ricketts that
with a larger establishment in a better posi-
tion and with a stronger company he could
run through a successful course.

Negotiations for a lot were entered into and
one was secured at the southwest corner of
Sixth and Chesnut streets directly opposite the
new theatre. It was announced in February
1795 that this building would be forthwith
commenced and that it would be ready "for
candlelight performances" before August. It