A FAMOUS SHOWMAN

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LIV, Issue 179, 27 January 1912, Page 10

A FAMOUS SHOWMAN

HIS BRUTAL MURDER. The brutal murder of "Lord" George Sanger some weeks ago closed the career of a showman whose fame was second only to that of the inimitable Barnum and Buffalo Bill." "Lord" George was not a scion of the nobility, but the son of a sailor who fought in the Victory at Trafalgar. After the sailor had been pensioned by a grateful country he joined his brother, who was an itinerant showman, and George Sanger, thanks to his genius for training wild creatures, became an important part of the "outfit." Before he was twenty-one years of age he established a show of his own on°a pitch at Stepney Green, and later turned it into a "iit-up" theatre, at which he produced a pantomime in 1856. Four years later he became a circus proprietor, the features of his entertainments being fortune-telling by a pony, tricks accomplished by a learned pig, and riding and acrobatic feats. Sanger's circus toured Great Britain for fifty years and delighted millions of children of all ages. After conquering the country, "Lord"' George settled" in London and produced a succession of "thrilling spectacles," which established his fame for ever. In one day the show earned £2OOO, an amazing feat, fifty years ago. Queen Victoria enjoyed many "command" performances of the circus, and King Edward, as Prince of Wales, was a frequent visitor. On one occasion, it is related, his Royal Highness asked permission to make a private inspection of a special feature in Mr. Sanger's dispuay, a white elephant. The examination resulted in the showman confessing to the Prince that the animal owed something of its rarity to the adventitious aid of a whitewash brush. Mr. Sanger was a wonderful stage manager and organised many Lord Mayor's shows. His skill in dealing with performers an animals was exemplified on one famous occasion, when he had 700 people on the stage, together with 60 horses, 13 elephants and some emus and kangaroos.