In this way, the talkative bill-poster set the town on the _qui vive_ to see the "monster combination." Meantime, laying aside the old clothes, Ben appeared in a striking costume, which he had prepared expressly for the occasion. It consisted of a low-crowned, broad-brimmed silk hat, a short cut-away coat, a pair of very tight trowsers, and a flaming neckerchief. Thus arrayed, he made his appearance at the hotel and in the streets. Wherever he went somebody was sure to turn around and ask: "Who is that?" A friend of Ben's, who professed not to know him, was on hand every time to answer. "That," he would say, "that is Ben Hogan. Greatest boxer in the country--strongest man in the world. If you want a big thing you'll go to his show to-night!" The result of all this was that when evening came the house was packed. It is perhaps unnecessary to say that the "monster combination" was composed entirely of Hogan. The bills announced first a "daring act upon the trapeze," which Ben, dressed in tights, and with enough chalk and paint upon his face to disguise him, undertook to perform. The undertaking was not altogether a success. In the midst of one of his most thrilling feats, he lost his balance and fell to the stage. If there had been any walnuts or things under him, he would have certainly cracked them into fine pieces, for he came down with force enough to shake the building. The audience was stricken with horror, but the trapeze performer managed to get off of the stage and the show went on. The next feature, according to the programme, was a tumbling act by one of the "Whitney Brothers." Ben again appeared, with more chalk and paint on his face, and did the act to the entire satisfaction of the spectators. Then the other Whitney brother, in the person of Ben, was seen upon the horizontal bar. And finally, Hogan himself came bowing on to the stage, and was greeted with tremendous applause, nobody in the house suspecting that he had been seen before. Ben did several feats, including the breaking of a stone upon his breast, and the entertainment wound up with a boxing contest between Hogan and one of the local celebrities. Altogether the show was a big success, and the audience went home perfectly satisfied. Ben made some excuse for the non-appearance of the "Whitney Brothers" at the hotel, and as the show yielded three hundred dollars, it is safe to assume that the "brothers" got their salaries in full. CHAPTER III. A Southern Trip--Experiences in New Orleans and Mobile--Three Men put under the Sod by Ben's Bullets. Shortly after the Oswego venture, Ben drifted once more to the West, and after a series of exciting adventures, which space prevents me from narrating, he brought up in the city of New Orleans.