Mr Galliano's Circus

  The circus came to an end all too soon. All the circus folk came running into the ring, shouting, bowing, jumping, and everyone clapped them and shouted too. “Best circus that’s ever come to this town!” said a big man next to Jimmy. “Fine show. I shall come and see it next week too. That little girl on horseback was very good—one of the best!”

  Jimmy saved that up to tell Lotta. He would see her tomorrow. There was no circus on Sunday. The circus folk had a rest that day, and Lotta had said that Jimmy could spend the day with her.

  “I must run straight home now,” thought Jimmy to himself. “Mother will be waiting for me. What a lot I shall have to tell her!”

  So he ran home, though he would dearly have loved to find the fairy-like Lotta with her silvery wings and talked to her.

  A SHOCK FOR MR. GALLIANO

  It was Sunday. Jimmy remembered that he was to spend the whole day with Lotta. What fun it would be to wander about amongst the circus folk and see old Jumbo, and pet Jemima the clever little monkey, and have his hands licked by all the jolly little terrier dogs! Jimmy sang loudly as he got up.

  He was soon in the circus field. The sun shone down. It was going to be a lovely day. But as he made his way between the caravans and the tents Jimmy saw that everyone looked gloomy.

  “I wonder what the matter is?” thought Jimmy to himself. He passed the clown’s caravan, and saw Sticky Stanley eating a breakfast of bacon and eggs. Stanley looked miserable. It was strange to see the clown looking like that.

  He saw Jimmy and called out to him: “Hey, Jimmy, don’t you let Mr. Galliano see you this morning! He’s forbidden any outsiders to come into the circus field.”

  “Why?” asked Jimmy, in astonishment. “He was very nice to me yesterday. He gave me a ticket. What’s the matter?”

  “Listen to that, then!” said the clown, pointing with his fork towards the big blue caravan in which Mr. Galliano lived with his wife. “Just listen to that!”

  Jimmy listened. It sounded as if about six cows were bellowing in Galliano’s caravan—but it was only Mr. Galliano being very angry indeed, and shouting at the top of his very big voice. Jimmy stared in the direction of the blue caravan—and as he stared, Mr. Galliano came down the steps at the back.

  “He’s got his hat on quite straight up,” said Jimmy, at once. “He’s always had it on one side before.”

  “Yes, that means bad news, all right,” said the clown. “Hop off, Jimmy. Don’t let him see you.”

  Jimmy hopped off. He ran round the clown’s caravan and came to the red-and-white one in which Lotta lived with Lal and Laddo, her mother and father. Lotta was sitting on the steps outside, polishing her circus shoes.

  “Hallo, Jimmy,” she said. “Come up here.”

  “Lotta, what’s the matter with everyone this morning?” asked Jimmy. “You all look so gloomy, and I just heard Mr. Galliano in a bad temper.”

  “There’s matter enough,” said Lotta, dropping her voice. “You know Harry, our odd-job man—the carpenter who puts up the benches, does most of the packing and unpacking and all the little mending and making jobs a circus always has? Well—he ran away last night, taking nearly all the money with him that the circus took last week!”

  “Oh, I say, how dreadful!” said Jimmy, shocked. “Won’t you get any money, then?”

  “Not a penny,” said Lotta. “And that’s very hard, you know, because we none of us save anything. The worst of it is, Harry was so useful—we don’t really know how we are going to do without him.”

  “Perhaps he will be caught,” said Jimmy.

  “I don’t think so,” said Lotta. “He had a good start, because he took the money when we were all asleep last night and went off about two o’clock in the morning. He may be anywhere now. I do hope we have a good week now, Jimmy—if we don’t, it will be very bad for us all.”

  “I hope you do too,” said Jimmy. “I wish I could help, Lotta.”

  “I suppose you don’t know a good handy carpenter in your town who could come along for a week and help us, do you?” said Lal, Lotta’s mother, coming to the door of the caravan. “There are a lot of jobs that must be done before tomorrow night. Oona’s ladder must be made stronger, he says. And there’s a bar loose in the dogs’ big cage.”

  “What about my father?” said Jimmy eagerly. “He’s a carpenter, you know! He could do anything you wanted!”

  “Yes, but what about his work?” said Lal. “He can’t leave that to come to us.”

  “He’s out of work,” said Jimmy. “He would be glad to come. Oh, Lotta—will you come to tea with me at home today and we could find out if my father will come? I do, do hope he can.”

  “We’d better tell Mr. Galliano first,” said Lal. She called to her husband at the back of the caravan: “Laddo, will you go and tell Galliano about his father being a carpenter?”

  “Right,” said Laddo. He put down his newspaper and ran down the caravan steps with Jimmy. “Come on, son,” he said.

  Mr. Galliano, who was with his horses, heard Jimmy and Laddo coming and he turned to meet them.

  “What do you want?” he said, not at all pleased to see Jimmy.

  “Mr. Galliano, sir, this boy says his father is a carpenter and could take Harry’s place for the week,” said Laddo.

  “Tell him to come and see me this evening, yes,” said Mr. Galliano shortly, and he turned back to his horses and talked gently to them.

  No matter how bad a temper he sometimes flew into, he never was anything but gentle with his beloved horses. No one had ever seen him sharp or unkind with any animal. All his horses loved him and would do anything for him.

  Laddo and Jimmy went out. Jimmy felt excited. Just suppose his father got the job to help the circus—and just suppose they kept him on! Oh, wouldn’t that be wonderful!

  He ran back to Lotta. “Let’s go for a walk with the dogs,” said Jimmy. “It’s such a lovely day—and everyone is so gloomy here this morning. We can get back here to dinner.”

  “All right,” said Lotta, and the two ran to get the excited terriers. Soon Lotta had five of the dogs on her big lead, and Jimmy had the other five. Lotta was a little bit jealous because all the dogs seemed to want to go with Jimmy.

  “I never saw anyone so good with animals as you, Jimmy,” she said. “At least, that’s not counting Mr. Galliano—he can tame a wild tiger and make it purr like a cat in two days!”

  The two children set off over the countryside. In a little while Lotta forgot about Harry and how he had run off with everyone’s money. Soon the two were having great fun, racing with their dogs and joining in the barking with laughs and shrieks.

  “Shall we let them loose for a real good run?” asked Jimmy, when they were well out in the country. “They would love it so!” So they let all the dogs loose, and with excited yaps the neat little terriers tore off to go rabbiting. Jimmy and Lotta sat under a tree.

  “I did love the circus last night, Lotta,” said Jimmy. “And I did think you were clever—riding on a horse standing up and never falling off!”

  “Pooh,” said Lotta, making a face at him. “That’s easy. You could do it yourself.”

  “I couldn’t,” said Jimmy. “I can’t even walk on my hands yet, and it does look so easy when you all do it! I wish you’d teach me, Lotta.”

  “All right,” said Lotta. “But not now. I’m too hot. I wish you belonged to the circus, Jimmy. I shall be lost without you. It’s nice to have someone to make faces at when I feel like it.”

  “I can’t think why you want to do that,” said Jimmy, surprised. “All the same—I’d like to go with you when you go off again. But I wouldn’t like to leave my mother and father.”

  “Where are those dogs?” said Lotta suddenly. “We mustn’t lose any, you know, Jimmy. My word, we should get into trouble if we did! Hie, Judy, Darky, Nigger, Spot!”

  Some of the dogs came running up and flung themselves on the two children. Jimmy counted them. “Eight,” he said. “Where ar
e the others?”

  They quickly put the eight dogs on the leads. Lotta looked worried. “Whistle, Jimmy,” she said. So Jimmy whistled.

  “There comes Punch!” said Lotta, and sure enough one of the missing dogs came loping over the field towards them. Jimmy whistled again and again—but the tenth dog was nowhere to be seen!

  “We shall have to go,” said Lotta, looking scared. “Whatever will Lal and Laddo say when we turn up without Darky? Come on—it’s getting late. Perhaps Darky will come after us when he’s finished hunting.”

  They went back to the circus. No Darky came after them. Lotta was very silent. Jimmy was miserable too. What a horrid day this was after all!”

  “We’ll put the dogs into the cage, and then we’ll go and tell Lal we’ve lost Darky,” said Lotta. She was crying now. Lotta loved all the dogs and she couldn’t help wondering if Darky had been caught in a trap. Also she knew that her mother would be very angry with her.

  Jimmy opened the door of the great cage. As he did so a little dark dog crept out from under the cage itself. Jimmy gave a yell.

  “Lotta! Darky’s here! He must have run all the way home before us and hidden under his cage. Look!”

  Lotta gave a shriek of delight and hugged Darky. “You silly animal!” she said. “You did give me a fright! Oh, Jimmy—I’m so happy now!”

  Jimmy was glad. He squeezed Lotta’s hand as they ran to the caravan for dinner. Lotta squeezed his hand back—but she was so strong that she made Jimmy yell out in pain. You never knew what that little monkey of a Lotta was going to do next! Jimmy dropped her hand in a hurry and felt half-cross with her. But when he smelt the smell of frying sausages he forgot everything except that he was dreadfully hungry.

  They all had their dinner sitting outside the caravan. The sausages were lovely and so were the potatoes cooked in their jackets and eaten with butter and salt. Jimmy thought he had never had such a lovely dinner in his life. Afterwards there were oranges and chocolate to eat.

  Jimmy took Lotta home to tea with him. He ran indoors with the little girl and found his mother making toast for tea. They always had toast on Sundays. It smelt good.

  “Mother, this is Lotta. I’ve brought her home to tea because I want to ask Dad something. Where is he?”

  “Out in the garden, mending the old shed,” said Mother. “Hallo, Lotta! How’s the circus going?”

  “All right, thank you,” said Lotta shyly. She looked at Jimmy’s mother and thought she was lovely. She was so neat and her face was so kind. Lotta had not often been inside a house, and she looked round curiously. It seemed just as strange to her to be inside a house as it was to Jimmy to be inside a caravan.

  “Dad! Dad!” shouted Jimmy, running into the back garden. “Harry, the odd-job man at the circus, has run off with the circus money—and Mr. Galliano wants a new carpenter. He says will you go and see him tonight.”

  “That’s the first bit of luck I’ve had for a long time,” said Jimmy’s father, delighted. “Yes, I'll go up and see if I can get the work after tea. A week’s work is better than nothing. Well, that’s given me an appetite for my tea! Is the toast ready, Mother?”

  Soon Lotta, Jimmy, and the two grown-ups were sitting round the tea-table. Lotta was on her very best behaviour. She didn’t make a single face. She liked Jimmy’s mother much too much to shock her!

  After tea, Jimmy, Lotta, and Jimmy’s father set off to the circus field. “If only I can get that job!” said Jimmy’s father.

  “I do hope you do, Dad!” said Jimmy.

  AN EXCITING NIGHT

  Jimmy, Lotta, and Jimmy’s father soon got to the circus field. “There’s Mr. Galliano, over there,” said Lotta, as they went through the gate.

  “Right,” said Mr. Brown. “I’ll go over and see him now.” He left the two children and walked over to where Mr. Galliano was talking to Oona the acrobat.

  “What do you want?” said Mr. Galliano, seeing that Mr. Brown was a stranger.

  “I’m Jimmy Brown’s father,” said Mr. Brown. “I’m a carpenter, sir, and I can turn my hand to anything. I’d like you to give me a chance, if you will. I’d work well for you.”

  Mr. Galliano looked Mr. Brown up and down. He liked what he saw—a strong, kindly-faced man, with bright eager eyes just like Jimmy’s.

  “Come tomorrow morning,” said Mr. Galliano. “There will be plenty for you to do, yes!”

  “Thank you, sir,” said Mr. Brown, and he walked off, pleased. It would be fine to work at last! The two children ran to meet him. How glad Jimmy was to know that his father would belong to the circus for at least a week! What would the boys at school say when they knew that his father was with the circus all day? They would think that was fine!

  Jimmy’s father worked well. Mr. Galliano was delighted with him. He could, as he said, turn his hand to anything. He mended five of the circus benches. He put a new wheel on to Mr. Galliano’s caravan. He made Oona’s ladder stronger than it had ever been before. He put in two new bars where the dogs had pushed them loose in their cage.

  And he won Lilliput’s heart by making him a proper little house for Jemima the monkey to live in—it even had a little door!

  Jimmy was delighted to hear everyone praising his father. He had always loved his father and thought him the finest man in the world—and it was nice to hear people saying he was ten times better than Harry!

  “His laugh is worth ten shillings a week!” said Lal. “My, when old Brownie starts laughing, you’ve got to hold your sides!”

  Jimmy thought it was funny to hear his father called Brownie. But the circus folk hardly ever called anyone by their right name. Brownie was the name they gave to Mr. Brown, and Brownie he always was, after that!

  The circus did well again that week. Mr. Galliano began to wear his hat on the side of his head once more. Everyone cheered up. If Galliano was merry and bright, then the circus folk were happy.

  Jimmy was happy too that week. He had to go to school, but every spare minute he had he was in the circus field, helping. He was always ready to give a hand to anyone. When the circus show began each night, Jimmy stood near the curtains through which the performers had to pass, and pulled or shut the curtains properly each time. He got Oona’s ladder and tight-rope ready for him. He took care of the dogs whilst they were waiting for their turn. He got Jumbo out of his tent too, for Mr. Tonks, and took him back again when the show was over. Jumbo loved Jimmy. He blew gently down the little boy’s neck to show him how much he liked him. Jimmy thought that was very funny!

  When Saturday came, Mr. Galliano whistled to Mr. Brown—or Brownie, as he was now called—and Brownie went to him.

  “Here’s your week’s money,” said Mr. Galliano, paying him. “Now look here—you’ve done well—what about you coming along with us, yes? We can do with a man like you—always cheerful, and able to do anything that turns up.”

  Mr. Brown went red with pleasure. It was a long time since anyone had praised him.

  “Thank you, sir,” he said. “I’ll have to talk it over with my wife. You see—I think she would be upset if I left her and Jimmy. I might not see them again for a long time.”

  “Well, think over it,” said Mr. Galliano. “If you come, you can live with Stanley, the clown. He’s got room in his caravan. We go off tomorrow—so let me know quickly, yes?”

  Mr. Brown hurried home to dinner. He told Jimmy and Jimmy’s mother all that Mr. Galliano had said.

  “I think I’ll have to take the job,” he said. “It’s hard to leave you both, though.”

  Jimmy’s mother didn’t know what to say. She couldn’t help the tears coming into her eyes.

  “Oh, Tom,” said his mother, “I shall miss you so. Don’t go. I can’t bear to be without you—and Jimmy will miss you so much too. We shall never know where you are, travelling about the country—and goodness knows when we shall see you again!”

  “Well, we needn’t tell Mr. Galliano till tomorrow,” said Mr. Brown. “We’ll talk
about it tonight.”

  Jimmy thought and thought about it. He badly wanted his father to belong to the circus—but not if he and his mother had to be left behind! No—that would never do at all! And yet they couldn’t go with him. There wasn’t room for them. And if his father said no to Mr. Galliano then he might be out of work again for a long long time—just as he had found a job that he could do so well. It was a puzzle to know what to do. Jimmy felt that he really, really, couldn’t bear it if his father had to leave home. His mother would be so sad.

  The circus gave its last show that night. It did very well, and once again there was not an empty seat in the big tent, for people came from all the towns round to see it. Somebody gave Lotta a big box of chocolates and she was very pleased. She showed them to Jimmy. “We’ll share them,” she said, emptying out half the box into a bag. “They’re lovely.”

  That was just like Lotta. She was the most generous little girl that Jimmy had ever known. But Jimmy could not smile very much at her. The circus was going off the next day to a far away town. He would have to say Goodbye. He felt as if he had known the circus folk all his life, and he was sad to part with them.

  “I’ll come and see you tomorrow morning, Lotta,” he said.

  “Come early,” said Lotta. “We’ll be packing up to go, and that is a busy time. We shall start off about twelve o’clock. We’ve got to get to Edgingham by night.”

  “Goodnight then,” said Jimmy, looking at Lotta hard, so as to remember for always just how she looked—she had on her fluffy circus frock, her long silver wings, her little silver crown, and her silvery stockings. As he looked at her she made one of her dreadful faces!

  “Don’t!” said Jimmy. “I was just thinking how nice you looked.”

  “You’d better hurry home,” said Lotta. “It looks as if a storm is coming up. Hark! That’s thunder!”