NALLA PLAYS PRANKS.
The weather was glorious. By day the sun poured down his golden warmth
from an almost unclouded sky, and by night the harvest moon at her full
rode high in the heavens. The four children forgot all their sorrows
and cares for the time. Thanks to their success at Morainville, and
the good hopes they cherished of profitable patronage at Beaulieu,
they felt no concern about finances. It was a case with them of
eat--drink--sleep, sufficient for the day are the blessings thereof;
to-morrow can take care of itself.
Nadine was the only one who pretended to do any work, excepting of
course that Cæsar looked after the feeding of Nalla, old Steady being
able to look after himself as the grass was abundant in their vicinity.
Nadine, being the little housewife, in addition to having the daily
meals upon her mind, found much necessary sewing to keep her clever
fingers busy, and it was only when Cæsar would snatch the garment away
from her, crying:
"Come, let that alone for a while, sister. You work quite too hard. You
must play with us a little," would she laughingly obey orders, and go
off with the others for a romp or a ramble.
Of course their presence aroused the curiosity of the people in the
neighborhood, and they had many visitors, who for the most part behaved
very well, some indeed bringing them welcome presents of fruit and milk
and butter, which were keenly appreciated.
As might be expected, they begged for a performance, and in view of
their kind treatment, Nadine thought they could not very well refuse;
so she promised that they would give one on the evening before their
departure.
The happy restful days slipped by all too quickly, and the end of their
short holiday was at hand.
"Oh dear!" sighed Cæsar. "This is our last day. We must be on the
road again to-morrow if we would reach Beaulieu in time to get a good
position. I do wish we could stay another week."
"So do I," chirped little Abel. "Why can't we? It's so nice here, and
we needn't be in such a hurry, surely."
"But we do need," responded Nadine, patting the little fellow
affectionately on the head. "It is important that we should get to the
fair before the best places are taken, for we must make all the money
there that we possibly can. The winter will soon be coming on, when we
can't earn anything, you know."
Abel made a rueful grimace, but did not continue the argument. Nadine
was right of course. She always was. Nobody could be wiser than Nadine.
Yet there were times when it went against the grain to do everything
just as she wished.
However, there was still a whole day left, so let them make the most
of it. In the evening they would give their performance and the next
morning they would resume their journey.
In the course of his roaming about the country, Cæsar had found a large
deep pool not far down the stream from their camping-place, in which he
had enjoyed sundry refreshing baths. It now occurred to him that it was
just the place for another purpose.
"Look here, Nadine," said he, "old Nalla hasn't had a good bath for a
long time, and I'm sure it would do him good. Suppose we take him down
to the pool I've been bathing in, and let him have a dip in it. I'm
sure he'd enjoy it immensely, and it would be good for him, too."
"I believe you're right, Cæsar," replied Nadine. "We will take him down
there after dinner, and then he'll be in fine trim for the performance
this evening."
Accordingly, right after dinner the whole family, accompanied by
Vigilant, left Steady to his browsing, and went off down stream
escorting Nalla, who trumpeted cheerfully in evident expectation of
some sort of a treat.
When they reached the pool Cæsar, pointing to it, said:
"There, Nalla, is a splendid place for you to have a bath, such as you
haven't had for a long time. In you go, old fellow, and enjoy yourself."
The elephant needed no urging. The day was hot, the flies troublesome,
the water cool and inviting. With a blast of delight through his trunk,
and a flapping of his great ears, he strode into the pool, and did
not stop until the water had almost reached the top of his back. Then
he gave himself up to the enjoyment of his bath with the most amusing
abandon. He wallowed in the cool clear water without heed to the
stirring up of the mud. He sank down in it, leaving only the tip of his
trunk above the surface. He filled his trunk with the water, and blew
it out again, sending the muddy spray to a considerable distance--in
fact, no schoolboy in a "swimming-hole" on a broiling midsummer day
could have enjoyed himself more thoroughly.
The Tambys, seated in the shade on the bank, watched his antics with
lively appreciation. Nothing was too good for Nalla in their opinion.
They had no better friend than the faithful, docile elephant, and they
loved him as deeply as an animal could be loved.
The time slipped by, and Nalla showed no signs of growing weary of his
fun. He would come out into the shallower part of the pool at intervals
and squirt the muddy water over his back and sides, and then he would
plunge in again, going almost out of sight.
Presently Cæsar considered that he had enough of it, and that he ought
to come out in order to be made ready for the parade through the
village street, which would precede the performance. So he went to the
edge of the pool, and said:
"Now, Nalla, you've had a grand time, and you'd better come out and get
dried off, so come along, old fellow."
Nalla looked at him with his absurdly small eyes, in which there surely
lurked a mischievous twinkle, but made no move.
"Hurry up, you lazy chap!" called Cæsar laughingly. "Don't be so slow.
We have to prepare for the parade."
Nalla manifestly understood what was wanted of him, but, instead of
obeying, retreated further into the pool.
This angered Cæsar, whose temper was of the quickest, anyway, and he
stamped his foot as he shouted:
"Here, now, no nonsense! You must come out, and that right away. Do you
hear?"
Nalla, with admirably simulated reluctance, moved slowly shoreward,
until he was within a few yards of Cæsar, and then, pointing his trunk
at him, he squirted from it a quantity of muddy water that drenched and
dirtied the boy from head to foot, and nearly knocked him over.
Almost blinded, and wholly enraged, Cæsar picked up a stick and threw
it at the elephant with all his might. But he might as well have thrown
it at the side of a house for all the effect it had on Nalla's massive
head. The cute little eyes only twinkled the more merrily, and their
owner backed away again, as if he had changed his mind about coming
ashore.
Cæsar was in a towering passion. The elephant had certainly added
injury to insult, and had it been in the boy's power to punish him
severely, he would have delighted in doing it.
Nadine now felt it time to intervene.
"Let me try what I can do with Nalla," she said gently to Cæsar. "While
you go back to the van and change your clothes. I am sure I can manage
him."
Cæsar was very loath to confess himself beaten, and Nadine had to
do some coaxing before she could get him to follow her suggestions.
But at last, after another effort to make Nalla stir by abusing him
vigorously, he gave up in despair, and went off to the van to put on
dry clothes.
As soon as he had gone Nadine tried her hand. She went to the water's
edge, for she felt sure Nalla would not treat her as he had done Cæsar,
and stretching out her hand which contained a slice of bread left over
from their lunch, said in her most winning tone:
"Come here, Nalla. I have a bit of bread for you, and I want you to
leave the water. You've been in it quite long enough."
Nalla gave her a look that said plainly:
"I understand you perfectly, and of course you're right, so I suppose,
now that I have had my fun, I may as well do what you wish."
So, slowly moving his vast bulk, he came towards her, picked up the
bread with his trunk, passed it into his cavernous mouth, and continued
his way out of the water, until he stood on the grass, a very muddy,
but very contented creature.
"You dear old thing!" cried Nadine, patting the end of his trunk
affectionately. "I knew you'd obey me. You just love me, don't you? and
I love you."
Nalla returned the caress after his own fashion, and then, without
another word, proceeded back to the van, his whole gait and manner
expressing the utmost good-humor. He had had his fun, and he was now
ready to return to duty.
By the time they had all returned to the camping-place, Cæsar had
quite recovered his equanimity, and joined heartily in the laughter at
Nalla's impertinence.
"He got the best of me that time, and no mistake," he said; "but I'll
be even with him yet, see if I'm not!"
They made haste to deck themselves out for the parade, and spent
an hour marching up and down the village street, while Cæsar from
the howdah on Nalla's back, called out the place and time of the
performance.
Then back to the van for supper, and after supper a general move into
the village where they found a capital location, in a small square
beside the town-hall.
"We shall no doubt have a good crowd," Nadine remarked thoughtfully,
when the simple preparations had been completed, "for the people have
certainly taken a lot of interest in us, and have been very kind too,
but perhaps they may not have much money to spare. They don't seem to
be rich around here."
"It won't be another Morainville, that's certain," said Cæsar, shaking
his head dolefully. "Such luck as we had there doesn't come often.
But," he added, straightening himself up, and looking more cheerful,
"we'll give them the best performance we can, and hope that they will
give us all the money they can, eh?"
The villagers began to gather early, and by the time the performance
opened every seat was filled with women and girls, while a crowd of men
and boys stood up behind, or squatted upon the ground wherever a clear
view of the stage could be obtained.
One after another the different acts were given, and warmly received.
A more appreciative gathering could hardly have been desired. Cæsar's
juggling, Nadine's singing, the animals' acting, and Lydia's dancing
were all enthusiastically encored. But when the little bowl appeared
a marked change came over the spirit of the spectators. They not only
grew indifferent very suddenly, but actually seemed anxious to slip
away.
This was not a new experience for the Tambys, and hitherto they had
been content to take it silently, but this time Cæsar's blood was
stirred. He had not counted upon any such meanness, and the indignation
it aroused gave him courage to do what he had never done before.
Springing upon the stage he called for attention with an emphatic
gesture, and, when all eyes were turned upon him, he began an address
to the assemblage.
"My friends," he said, "you have done us the honor to attend our simple
performance, and you have shown by your applause that it has pleased
you. Now you must know that we do not give these performances for our
own amusement, but to gain our daily bread. We are by no means well-off
even if we do possess an elephant and a horse. We need every sou that
we can earn to pay for the food of our animals and ourselves, and to
meet our other needs. If you have enjoyed our performance so much we
would like you to show it not only by applauding, but by putting into
the bowl which my little sister is about to pass around, what you can
spare us. We do not expect silver from everybody, you know," he added
with a humorous twinkle of his eyes. "We are glad to get copper--if
there is only enough of it."
This clever little speech, delivered in a clear voice, and without the
slightest suggestion of presumption, touched the listeners in the right
way. It opened both their hearts and their pockets, and when Lydia went
her rounds amongst them they responded in a most creditable manner, so
that the receipts were enough to cover a whole week's expenses.
Nadine was particularly pleased at this, because it enabled them
to push right on to Beaulieu without halting to give performances
_en route_. Their holiday therefore was an unalloyed success, and,
thoroughly refreshed by it, they kept on day after day until at last
they reached Beaulieu, a whole day before the opening of the fair, and
in ample time to secure an excellent position for their van, where
it could not fail to attract attention, and so insure no lack of
spectators when they gave their performances.