History
The Long and Short of Mattress Making
Ask a traveling man and he will tell you, first, about the various eating places in town and, next, in what hotel the most comfortable beds are to be found. For one thing, the whole human race has in common is the desire for a succulent meal and a good night's sleep when tired and weary.
But even the most long-suffering traveling man has an easy time in finding a comfortable bed in comparison to Jack "Sky High" Earl of Texas, star of the Ringling Bros.–Barnum & Bailey Circus.
Mr. Earl is a mere 8 feet 6 inches (2.5908 meters) tall, and the average hotel bed or Pullman (train) berth requires that he double up like a jackknife and stick his head out the window, because an ordinary mattress measures just 6 feet 2 inches (1.8796 meters) long and 4 feet 6 inches (1.3716 meters) wide.
In about the same boat, are the midgets to whom the usual bed is almost the same as sleeping on a fair-sized island. Midgets have a habit of getting lost among the covers of the regular-sized beds and need a compass to find their way out.
Therefore, it was good news for Mr. Earl and the midgets with the circus when Don’s Mattress Service of Boston, Massachusetts, was given the job of supplying some special mattresses. The one for Mr. Earl measured 9 feet (2.7432 meters) in length and 3 feet 3 inches (0.9906 meters) wide. For the midgets, the mattresses were 3 feet (0.9144 meters) long and 20 inches (0.508 meters) wide.
So long as Mr. Earl and the midgets carried those mattresses around with them as mascots, they can be assured of a comfortable eight hours in the arms of Morpheus.
(Morpheus was known as the Greek god of dreams.)
Perhaps it was only a coincident, but Everett B. McAlevy of Don’s Mattress Service is sure it was a good omen, that these particular orders came in just after he had installed a new Style 51200 B Union Special seamer, and they were the first jobs to be handled on this machine. Style 51200 B is the improved machine that has superseded the old familiar 6400 for making bound seams on mattress ticks and similar articles. It offers increased speed, complete enclosure of working parts, and remarkable smoothness in operation.
Jack "Sky High" Earl holding Major Mite and Tiny Earles.
All are featured performers in the new Ringling Bros.–Barnum & Bailey Circus.
