by Eva Conrad
Myron and the Circus Girl
The little boy whose life was saved by Anthony Yowell and his “angelic voices” grew tall and strong. His name was Myron Musselwhite, and though his parents were substantial and his prospects good, he was not the sharpest tool in Uriel and Hettie Musslewhite’s shed, having hit his head when he fell into the town well. He was, without a doubt, the best-looking young man in town, and the nicest, by far.
One day the circus came to town. Myron went to see it the first day—and every day—for a week. When his father asked what he liked so much about the circus he said: “I like the elephants. And, Papa, I’m in love with Lady Persephone. She likes me lots. And she eats fire and swords and never gets hurt. I think she’s the prettiest girl there ever was. Papa, I’m gonna marry that girl.”
Uriel wanted to put a stop to this right away, but he had to find out what he was up against. Myron was good-natured but resolute; if he made a declaration he meant to follow through. So Uriel decided to go to the circus with his dull-headed boy.
They bought candy and played games. Pretty soon, Uriel had forgotten why he had come. He felt like a kid again. The father and son sat down in the tent to watch the show. There were majestic lions and tigers and, of course, the elephants, who seemed so gentle despite their immense size. There were acrobats, and, finally, Lady Persephone, the fire-eater.
“Oh, my, she is a pretty woman!” exclaimed Uriel before he could catch himself. She was, and so graceful, her movements forming a dance as if she had trained as a ballerina. Her golden hair shone in the dim light.
“I’m going to propose to her, Papa. I am!” yelled Myron for everyone to hear.
“Poor dumb boy,” whispered Uriel, shaking his head.
The next morning Myron Musselwhite walked down to the general store. Mr. Bayless, the storekeeper, welcomed him.
“I need a ring, sir,” said Myron. “I need a ring for a girl.”
“Oh, Myron, you must be sweet on someone, then?”
“Yes, sir. I’m gonna ask Lady Persephone to marry me. You know who she is, don’t you? She’s the girl who eats fire and swallows swords with the circus. I have to ask her to marry me before the circus leaves town!”
“Son, have you spoken with your father about that?”
“Yes, sir, and I told him all about it."
Mr. Musselwhite had always told Mr. Bayless that Myron could buy whatever he wanted on the Musselwhite account. Mr. Bayless remembered what he’d been told, shrugged, and nodded at Myron.
"Then let us have a look in my little safe-box here. Do you think she'd like a ruby? Here's a nice ruby."
“That’s just right, Mr. Bayless!” Myron purchased the ring on his father’s account then proceeded straight to the circus tents and looked for Lady Persephone. He found her without any trouble. She was busy applying powder and rouge at a makeshift vanity.
“Lady Persephone, I aim to make you my bride!” cried Myron as he burst into the tent, hat in hand.
The woman shrunk back, shrieking in fear. Two of the clowns came in and grabbed Myron.
“Naw, I don’t mean any harm! I was just gonna propose to the Lady!” he shouted.
”Oh, really? You having fun at the Lady’s expense are you?” sputtered one of the clowns. “Where’s the ring?”
The clown meant to make a fool of Myron, but Myron fished the ring box from his pocket and opened it: and there it was, a genuine ruby set in gold.
Lady Persephone was so moved that she began to weep as Myron Musselwhite knelt down on one knee. “Lady Persephone, you are the most beautiful, sweet-eyed woman I have ever laid my eyes on. Will you marry me?”
“Yes!” she squealed.
“Really? Then let’s fetch the minister, shall we?” suggested one of the clowns.
“I’ll stay here and make sure that the groom doesn’t run away,” said the other.
Within three minutes the Methodist minister had been located and brought to the tent. Vows were spoken. Myron and his bride went home to the Musselwhite manse and both were cast out before suppertime. Myron was, in addition, told that he was now officially disowned.
But Lady Persephone was, herself, used to living in a tent and she knew just what to do. The circus people immediately took a liking to Myron, because they realized now that he had been sincere all along. They determined that the couple should come along with the circus. And that’s just what they did. Myron became the strong man who performed feats of strength and nightly lifted his wife with one hand to the astonishment of many audiences.
Despite being cast out by his parents, Myron always wrote home. He was as good a man as he had been as a boy, faithful, gentle and loyal. His parents did not write back. But some of the townspeople wrote him letters, and he wrote them back. It seemed that the entire town quickly grew to miss Myron’s kindnesses, his common sense, and especially his help with heavy lifting.
