ELEPHANTS
The golden autumn turned to white winter. Christmas came, with frosty
snow, and holly, and Santa Claus, and a party. The holidays ended, and
Miss Prince came back.
Then came spring, with little green shoots on the hedges, and catkins,
and the first celandines, and all the things that are so thrilling to
find again after the long months without them. And the Cubs cut down
lots of silver willow-palm to decorate the house on Palm Sunday. Then
came May Day. The village children had a maypole. It was a very pretty
sight when the little girls danced round it; but there was an awful
tragedy when the twins collected all the coloured ribbons into two
bunches and played “giant strides” on it, when no one was about! Of
course all the ribbons broke, and the twins were not allowed to wear
their Cub uniform for a fortnight.
And all this while what had happened to the mysterious tramp? No one
knew. He had gone away that autumn morning, and no one had heard of him
since.
It was one lovely warm evening in June that Nipper and Bobby Brown
suddenly rushed up to where Miss Prince and the twins were weeding the
garden, and cried:
“_Elephants! Elephants!_”
“What on earth do you mean?” said David.
“There’s _elephants_--lots of ’em--coming up the road!” shrieked Nipper.
“Nipper,” said Bill sternly, “how can you tell lies like that? Have you
forgotten you’re a Cub?”
Nipper flushed with indignation.
“There _are_ elephants! There _are_ elephants,” he said.
“And camels,” added Bobby, “and--and things called unicorns, I think,
or is it crocodiles?”
“What _do_ they mean?” said the twins. Just then Danny came on the
scene. “I’ve two bits of news to tell you,” he cried. “You’ll never
guess what! First, the mysterious tramp has come back. He’s working for
Farmer Higgins, getting in the hay. He is sleeping in one of the barns
there.”
The Cubs cheered and turned somersaults in their delight.
“The second thing,” said Danny, “is that a circus is coming up the
road. Caravans, tents, boat-swings, elephants, and all sorts.”
“There,” cried Nipper, “_am_ I a liar?” But Nipper and Bobby were
forgotten in the excitement. Everyone rushed down to the road to see
the circus pass, on its way to the village green, where the great tent
was to be pitched.
The elephants, led by tiny gipsy boys, with very white teeth and gold
rings in their ears, stopped and snuffed at the Cubs with their great,
moist trunks. The Cubs gave them bits of bread. And there were camels
and dromedaries (not unicorns), and a lion in a cage, and lots and lots
of caravans.
“There is going to be a Grand Performance to-morrow afternoon,” said
Danny. “Buffalo Bill, tight-rope walkers, the lion-taming lady,
bare-back riding, and all sorts of good things.”
The Cubs’ eyes danced with delight. They had never seen a circus in all
their lives.
“Oh, Miss Prince!” they cried, and looked at her expectantly.
She laughed. “Yes,” she said, “a half-holiday--_I_ know. Well, be very
good boys to-morrow morning and earn one. Then we’ll all go to the
circus in the afternoon.”
They showed their gratitude by pummelling her till she cried for mercy.
Just then a strange figure came by in the procession--a huge man, with
a bushy black beard and thick black eyebrows. He was mounted on a great
black horse.
“That’s Black Bill,” said Danny, “the boss of the show. I’ve often
heard of him. Everyone in the circus is awfully afraid of him--even the
lion-taming lady!”
The Cubs shrank back as Black Bill passed, for he gave them a stern
look. Danny met his eyes, and something seemed to say within him,
“You’ll see more of Black Bill before you’ve done.”
“Oh, I wish to-morrow would hurry up and come!” said the twins. And all
that night they dreamt of the circus.