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John Breen juggled the six clubs on the stage and also threw them over both shoulders. He was the only one I've ever heard of that juggled seven clubs. He practiced a lot with the seven and could do them about five times around and finish with them. Five times around would be about 35 throws from the right hand. Another trick he accomplished that no other juggler has done is a five club routine ending with a five club shower, and he also balanced one club on his forehead and juggled five. He died in Brussels, Belgium, on Nov. 30, 1912, at the age of 21.

Harry and Joe Barrett were the first to do a six club shower. They saw the Tennis Trio pass six clubs, throwing every second ' club, and after copying it they asked the other act over to see them do it. Both acts were amazed as they were throwing every club instead of every second one.

Mistakes often make new tricks. One man catching all the clubs thrown by his partners was created by Alburtus who would always make mistakes on counting. If they were to throw six clubs Alburtus would stop on five or throw seven so he decided to catch all the clubs to finish without a drop. Alburtus also created the backhand catch that all jugglers use when catching shoulder throws.

Years ago club swinging and sliding and spinning was very popular and Rawson was the only juggler that did an act of this kind, and I don't believe it has ever been duplicated. Derenda and Breen was the first act to do comedy with clubs, and back in 1897 everyone tried to tell them that club juggling was too pretty to get any comedy out of them. But McIntyre & Heath saw the possibilities and made them do the comedy and gave them many gags that jugglers are still using today.

This act (Derenda and Breen) was also the first act to throw fast shoulder throws with clubs (most acts call them "slap-overs" now). Breen claimed he saw a European act called the Juggling Johnstons that did a restaurant act and they threw oranges over their shoulders very fast, so he tried it with clubs.

During a trip to Australia in 1902, they introduced Basket Ball in that country. They put it on the Tivoli in Melbourne and called it Net Ball and it was a sensational hit. Another first that could be credited to this act is that they were among the first to do talking while juggling. They were the first double act to talk, but they gave Jim Harrigan the credit for being the first talking juggler. They did a talking act until they worked the Dewey Theatre in New York and one night while they were talking, Leo Derenda, the straight man, laughed and his false teeth fell out on the stage and he would never talk on the stage after that.

Jim Harrigan was also the first man to do the tramp juggler style that W.C. Fields later brought to great popularity. They both used practically the same props - cigar boxes and balls.

Ben Mowatt senior should be credited with doing more than any one else for club juggling. His main worry was getting a light club for his son to juggle, and his search helped not only his boy but every club juggler since. If he only had the clubs in those days that Harry Lind is putting out he would have been more than satisfied. Remember, in those days a 22-ounce club was light. Old Ben Mowatt was also the first man to figure out tricks for a three and four people act. The tricks that troupe acts are doing today are the same tricks that Mowatt created for his three-act back in 1895-6 when he worked with his son and John Whitfield. Mowatt, Whitfield, and Ben Jr. were figuring-out a four-people act when Whitfield left them. John Whitfield then put on the first four-act called the Juggling Johnsons. He also put on the first five-act. So the Three Mowatts were the first three-act, and Johnsons were the first four and five act.

Whitfield later tried to put on an eight people act but did not use all jugglers. He had singers and comedians in the act but ended by doing the five-act. Jean Bedini put out 11-person juggling act called the Juggling Jays but it did not last long enough for many to remember it.