COLLECTING THE ANIMALS
It was quite a task to extract the porcupine quills from Mr. Stubbs's
brother, because the operation was painful, and he danced about in a way
that seriously interfered with the work.
But the last one was out after a time, and the monkey was marched along
between Joe and Toby, looking very repentant now that he was in his
master's power again.
"I tell you what it is," said Joe, sagely, after he had walked awhile in
silence as if studying some matter, "we'd better get about six big
chains an' fasten Mr. Stubbs's brother to the tent; 'cause if we keep on
tryin' to train him, he'll keep on gettin' loose, an' before he gets
through with it, we sha'n't have any show left."
"I think that's the best thing we can do," panted Leander; "'cause if
all hands of us has to start out many times like this, some of the boys
will come up while we're off, an' pull the tent down."
"We can tie him in the tent, and have him for a wild man of Borneo,"
suggested Joe.
"I guess we won't train him," replied Toby, rather sorry to deprive his
pet of the pleasure of being one of the performers, and yet fearing the
trouble he would cause if they should try to make anything more than an
ordinary monkey out of him.
The pursuit had led the boys farther from home than they had imagined,
and it was noon when, weary and hungry, they arrived at the tent, where
they found the other party, who had given up the search some time
before. They had travelled through the woods without hearing or seeing
anything of the runaway, and had returned in the hope that the others
had been more successful.
Leaving Mr. Stubbs's brother in charge of the partners, who, it was
safe to say, would now take very good care to prevent his escape, Toby
hurried into the house to see Abner.
The sick boy was no better, Aunt Olive said, neither did he appear to be
any worse--he was sleeping then; and, after eating some of his dinner at
the table, and taking the remainder in his hands, Toby went out to the
tent again.
He found his partners indulging in an animated discussion as to when the
performance should be given.
Reddy was in favor of having it within two or three days at furthest;
Bob thought that, as Mr. Stubbs's brother was not to be one of the
performers, there was no reason for delay.
All the others were of the same opinion, but Toby urged them to wait
until Abner could take part in it.
To this Bob had a very reasonable objection: in two weeks more school
would begin, and then, of course, the circus would be out of the
question. If their first exhibition should be a success, as it
undoubtedly would be, they could give a second performance when Abner
should get well enough to attend it; and that would be quite as pleasing
to him as for all the talent to remain idle while waiting for his
recovery.
Toby felt that his partners asked him to do only that which was fair;
the circus scheme had already done Abner more harm than good, and, as he
did not seem to be dangerously sick, it would be unkind to the others to
insist on waiting.
"I'd rather Abner was with us when we had the first show," said Toby;
"but I s'pose it'll be just as well to go ahead with it, an' then give
another after he can come out."
"Then we'll have it Saturday afternoon; an' while Reddy's fixin' up the
tickets, Ben an' I'll get the animals up here, so's to see how they'll
look, an' to let 'em get kinder used to the tent."
Reddy was a boy who did not believe in wasting any time after a matter
was decided upon, and almost as soon as Toby consented to go on with the
show, he went for materials with which to make posters and tickets.
His activity aroused the others, and all started out to bring in the
animals, leaving Toby to guard Mr. Stubbs's brother and the tent. The
canvas would take care of itself, so long as it was unmolested, but the
other portion of Toby's charge was not so easily managed. After much
thought, however, he settled the monkey question by tying Mr. Stubbs's
brother to the end pole, with a rope long enough to allow him to climb
nearly to the top, but short enough to keep him at a safe distance from
the canvas.
By the time this was done, Ben arrived with the first instalment of
curiosities. His crowing hen he had under his arm, and Mrs. Simpson's
three-legged cat and four kittens he brought in a basket.
"Joe's got a cage 'most built for the hen, an' I'll fix one for the cat
this afternoon," he said, as he seated himself on the basket, and held
the hen in his lap.
"You can't fix it if you've got to hold her," said Toby, as he brought
from the barn a bushel-basket, which was converted into a coop by
turning it bottom side up, and putting the hen underneath it.
Ben was about to make a search of the barn for the purpose of finding
some materials with which to build the cat's cage, when a great noise
was heard outside, and the two partners left the tent hurriedly.
"It's Bob an' his calf," said Ben, who had got out first, and then he
started towards the newcomers at full speed.
It was Bob and his calf; but the animal should have been mentioned
first, for it seemed very much as if he were bringing his master,
instead of being brought by him. In order to carry his cage of mice and
lead the calf at the same time, Bob had tied the rope that held this
representative of a grizzly bear around his waist, and had taken the
cage under his arm. This plan had worked well enough until just as they
were entering the field that led to the tent, when Bob tripped and fell,
scaring the calf so that he started at full speed for the barn, of
course dragging the unfortunate Bob with him.
Sometimes on his face, sometimes on his back, screaming for help
whenever his mouth was uppermost, and clinging firmly to the cage of
mice, Bob was dragged almost to the door of the tent, where the
frightened animal was finally secured.
"Well, I've got him here, an' I hain't lost a single mouse," said Bob,
as he counted his treasures before even scraping the dirt from his face.
Ben and Toby led the calf into the tent after some difficulty, owing to
the attempts of Mr. Stubbs's brother to frighten him, and then they did
their best to separate the dirt from their partner.
In this good work they had but partially succeeded, when Reddy arrived
with a large package of brown paper, and his cat without a tail. This
startling curiosity he carried in a bag slung over his shoulder, and
from the expression on his face when he came up it seemed almost certain
that the cat's claws had passed through the bag and into her master's
flesh.
"There," he exclaimed, with a sigh of relief, as he threw his live
burden at the foot of the post to which Mr. Stubbs's brother was tied,
"I've kept shiftin' that cat from one shoulder to the other ever since I
started, an' I tell you she can scratch as well as if she had a tail as
long as the monkey's."
It surely seemed as if the work of building the cages had been too long
neglected, for here were a number of curiosities without anything in
which they could be exhibited, and the audience might be dissatisfied
if asked to pay to see a cat in a bag, or a hen under a bushel-basket.
Toby spoke of this, and Bob assured him that it could easily be arranged
as soon as all the partners should arrive.
"You see, we've got to carry Mrs. Simpson's cat an' kittens home every
night, 'cause she says the rats are so thick she can spare her only
day-times, an' we don't need a cage for her till the show comes off,"
said Bob, as he bustled around again to find materials.
Mr. Stubbs's brother demanded his master's attention about this time,
owing to his attempts to make friends with the calf. From the time that
this peaceful animal, who was to be transformed into a grizzly bear, had
been brought into the tent, the monkey had tried in every possible way
to get at him, and the calf had shown unmistakable signs of a desire to
butt the monkey; but the ropes which held them both had prevented the
meeting. Now, however, Bob detected Mr. Stubbs's brother in trying to
bite his rope in two, and it was considered necessary to set a guard
over him.
Reddy was already busily engaged in painting the posters, despite the
confusion that reigned, and, as his work would keep him inside the tent,
he was chosen to have general care of the animals, a task which he,
without a thought of possible consequences, accepted cheerfully.
Leander and Joe came together, the first bringing his accordion, and
four rabbits in a cage, and the last carrying five striped squirrels in
a paste-board box.
Leander was the only one who had been thoughtful enough to have his
animals ready for exhibition, and the cage in which the long-eared pets
were confined bore the inscription, done in a very fanciful way with
blue and red crayons, "Wolves. Keep off!"
This cage was placed in the corner near the band-stand, where the
musician could attend to his musical work and have a watchful eye on his
pets at the same time.
Reddy had been busily engaged in painting a notice to be hung up over
the calf; and, as he fastened it to the barn just over the spot where
the animal was to be kept, Bob read, with no small degree of pride in
the thought that he was the fortunate possessor of such a prize,
GRIzsLee BARE
FROM THE ROCKY MOunTAINS
Then the artist went back to his task of painting posters, while the
others set to work, full of determination to build the necessary number
of cages if there was wood enough in Uncle Daniel's barn.
They found timber enough and to spare; but, as it was not exactly the
kind they wanted, Toby proposed that they should all go over to the
house, explain the matter to Aunt Olive, and ask her to give them as
many empty boxes as she could afford to part with.
As has been said before, Aunt Olive looked upon the circus scheme with
favor, and when she was called upon to aid in the way of furnishing
cages for wild animals, she gave the boys full permission to take all
the boxes they could find in the shed. They found so many that they were
able to select those best suited to the different species of animals,
and yet have quite a stock to fall back upon in case they should make
additions to their menagerie.
Now that the boys had found cages ready made, and needing only some bars
or slats across the front, they did not think it necessary to hurry.
They stayed for some time to talk of Abner, and to test some doughnuts
Aunt Olive was frying. It is very likely that they would have remained
even longer than they did, if the doughnut-frying had not been
completed, and the tempting dainties placed upon a high shelf beyond
their reach, as a gentle intimation that they had had about as many as
they would get that afternoon.
After leaving the house, they walked leisurely towards the barn, little
dreaming what a state of confusion their property was in--until Reddy
rushed out of the tent, his jacket torn, his face bleeding, and his
general appearance that of a boy who had been having rather a hard time
of it.