The Circus
by C. J. Dennis,
(1876–1938)
Hey, there! Hoop-la! the circus is in town!
Have you seen the elephant? Have you seen the clown?
Have you seen the dappled horse gallop round the ring?
Have you seen the acrobats on the dizzy swing?
Have you seen the tumbling men tumble up and down?
Hoop-la! Hoop-la! the circus is in town!
Hey, there! Hoop-la! Here’s the circus troupe!
Here’s the educated dog, jumping through the hoop.
See the lady Blondin with the parasol and fan,
The lad upon the ladder and the india-rubber man.
See the joyful juggler and the boy who loops the loop.
Hey! Hey! Hey! Hey! Here’s the circus troupe!
This clown band and its educated bull terrier
were not identified on this small 4"x3" snapshot photo.
They stand outside the doorway of a crude shack
which has a damaged foundation
that tilts down alarmingly on one side.
It gives the photo an absurd quality
that matches the fantastic faces of the clown troupe.
Their clown uniforms are, needless to say, not any standard to make a judgement of when or where the photo was taken. My best guess is roughly 1910-1930, somewhere in the United States. These six zany musicians could be a group of amateurs like the Zanesville Rube Band, but I think they look too professional, especially their shoes. Check out the shoe size of the cymbal player in the doorway, and the stray boot behind the snare drummer. Those are the footwear of professional fools.
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| Clarence Michael James Stanislaus (C.J.) Dennis (1876–1938) Source: Wikimedia Commons |
This poem was written by C. J. Dennis,
(1876–1938), a prolific Australian poet celebrated for his humorous
poetry, often in dialect verse. His full name was Clarence Michael James
Stanislaus Dennis, and he was born in Auburn, South Australia. He
published his first poem at age 19 while employed as a solicitor's
clerk. He moved on to work at numerous literary publications and
newspapers. His second book of poetry, The Songs of a Sentimental Bloke,
published in 1916, sold 65,000 copies in its 1st year, and by 1917 he
had become the most successful poet in Australian history. During his lifetime C. J. Dennis produced over 12 collections of poetry. This poem, The Circus, appeared in A Book for Kids, published in 1921.
Dennis died in 1938 in Melbourne at age 61. Joseph Lyons, then Prime Minister of Australia,
said of him: "I am sure that I speak for all Australians in expressing
deep regret at the death of C. J. Dennis. He was the Robert Burns of
Australia. He created characters which have become immortal and he
captured the true Australian spirit. Already his work is world-famous,
and future generations will treasure it."
This is my contribution to Sepia Saturday
where ice cream is on special offer all weekend.
