CHAPTER XVI
Trotman's Circus
One morning, towards the end of March, as the day girls were walkinghome from school, they came across a bill-sticker pasting a flaming redposter upon a hoarding. Naturally they stopped to look. Theadvertisement was headed:
"Trotman's Circus & Menagerie", and set forth that on Monday next thefamous show would visit Durracombe for one day only, and would give twoperformances, at 3 p.m. and 8 p.m., introducing the latest novelties andsensational displays. Here was an excitement for the sleepy little town.It was years since any travelling circus had come that way, and very fewof the children had seen elephants, performing sea-lions, trick-horses,gymnasts, North American Indian riders, or any of the marvels set downin the programme. Of course all the juvenile population was a-thrill atthe prospect. The day girls at The Moorings carried the news to theboarders, and the arrival of the wonderful show at once became the mostimportant date in the school calendar. Trotman's Circus had rather a badreputation for missing its appointments, and, as it had once beforeadvertised its advent but had failed to turn up, people declared theywould not believe in it until they actually saw the procession marchinginto the town.
"You'll take us if it really comes, won't you?" begged the boarders atThe Moorings.
Miss Pollard would not commit herself.
"I must hear something about it first," she said guardedly. "Thesetravelling shows aren't always very select."
"It's a wonderful programme," urged Iva, who had seen the posters.
"That doesn't guarantee it from being extremely vulgar," returned MissPollard.
On Sunday afternoon, just as the scholars were pouring out ofSunday-schools, there came the rumble of wheels along the road, andpresently down the High Street passed a remarkable procession of gildedcaravans, horses, and elephants. The men who led them, and the women whopeeped from the little curtained windows, were a tired-looking crew whodeserved a Sunday's rest; but directly they had crossed the bridge, andarrived in the meadows at the opposite side of the river, they began towork hard at erecting tents, stabling their horses, and setting theirtemporary camp in order. Nearly all the children in Durracombe stood onthe bridge and watched them. It is not every day you can see elephantsor a camel or a troupe of tiny piebald ponies. To most of the small folkit was the opportunity of their lives.
Mavis and Merle, from the vantage-ground of the terraced walk by theriver, had a splendid view of the settlement. They were almost too near,indeed, for they were much disturbed during the night by weird noises,the roaring of lions in cages and the trumpeting of elephants. Theydressed next morning, feeling as if they had slept in a jungle or in anAfrican forest. They found all the girls at school in a state of flamingexcitement. Miss Pollard had not yet decided whether the circus was asufficiently refined entertainment to justify her in taking herboarders. She was old-fashioned in her notions, and very particularabout what was suitable and proper for children. She hesitated andvacillated, and even wrote a note to the vicar to ask for his opinion,and was more embarrassed still when she found he had gone out on hismotor-cycle, and might not be back until the evening. She and Miss Fannyhad discussed the matter threadbare in private, but could not make uptheir minds in the least. Meantime a whole school full of flutteringgirls centred the circus as the one event of the term.
"Of course we're to have a half-holiday this afternoon," began Opal.
"There's no 'of course' about it," returned Miss Pollard, eyeing hergod-daughter gravely. She did not like Opal's tone, which was bothuncompromising and truculent.
"Oh, but we've simply _got_ to have a holiday! We can't miss thiscircus. All of us day girls have been promised at home that we may go,and we _shall_."
Miss Pollard was long-suffering where her pet pupil was concerned, butit is possible for even a prime favourite to go too far.
"That's not the way to speak to me," she rebuked. "Your parents may makeany arrangements they wish for taking you to the evening performance,but you will all attend school this afternoon. Do you thoroughlyunderstand me, girls? I give _no_ half-holiday, and I expect you all tobe present here as usual at 2.30. You may take that message home withyou."
Miss Pollard, very much on her dignity, glared first at Opal, and thenround the entire room. She did not intend to be dictated to or forced togive her consent against her better judgment. She was Principal of TheMoorings, and as such meant to maintain discipline over her pupils.
Her announcement caused them all to look very sulky, and produced muchgrousing during 'break', but nobody thought of disputing it. The daygirls consoled themselves by hopes of attending the evening performance.The less fortunate boarders said it was just like their luck. Everybodywas more or less in a bad temper, but resigned. Mavis and Merle, walkingback from Bridge House about 2.15, passed the corner of the Earnshaws'garden, and saw Opal's face peeping over the paling.
"Hello! Going to school like two good little girls," she jeered.
"Why! Aren't you?"
"I! Rather not! I call it the limit! I say, will you give a message forme to Miss Pollard?"
"What do you want us to say?"
"Tell her I've got a fearful headache, and I'm going to lie down."
"We'll do nothing of the sort," snapped Merle.
"You ought to be ashamed of yourself," said Mavis.
Opal only grinned.
"What nice good little girls," she repeated mockingly. "You'll give methe trouble of sending a note, that's all."
"What does your mother say?"
"She's gone to Port Sennen to-day, so I can't ask her. Look here, peopleare saying in the town that there's not going to be any eveningperformance. Trotmans want to pack up the show and start early, so as totravel at night. They've had a bother with the police about those vansblocking the roads in daytime. They held up a whole row of motors inBlagden, and no one could pass them for half an hour. Do you think I'mgoing to miss that circus and toddle up to school to write exercises andhave a music lesson? Hardly! If you'll take my advice you'll scoot backhome and do the same. I shouldn't be surprised to find an epidemic ofheadaches this afternoon."
"If I stopped away, at least I wouldn't tell fibs about it," said Merle.
Both the Ramsays agreed that it was very unsporting of Miss Pollard torefuse the holiday, and decided to get up a sort of eleventh-hourpetition amongst the girls to ask her to grant it. They hurried on toschool, therefore, not without hopes, though a little trembling as tohow she would receive the appeal. They arrived at The Moorings to findthe hive in a delighted ferment. The Vicar, Mr. Carey, had returned hometo lunch, and had read Miss Pollard's note, and had sent a reply by hisdaughters to the effect that in his opinion the circus was a mostharmless and innocent form of entertainment, and that it would be a pityfor the girls to miss it. He suggested, indeed, that the whole schoolshould visit the show _en bloc_. The Misses Pollard, being themselvesdaughters of the late clergyman, set a high value on clerical sanction.The Vicar's letter settled the matter.
"If Mr. Carey approves, it must be perfectly right," fluttered MissFanny.
"I'm so glad to know what he thinks about it," agreed her sister.
The poor ladies were really anxious to give their boarders a treat, andas the day girls were already assembled, and time was flying, theydecided to adopt the suggestion, and march the whole school in anorderly crocodile to the tent. Just before they started, a small villageboy came running up the lane and delivered a note. Miss Pollard tore itopen hastily.
"Dear me! How unfortunate," she exclaimed. "Opal ill with a badheadache. The child was perfectly all right this morning. Thank you,there's no answer. Now, girls, take your partners and form into doubleline. Quietly, quietly! Not so much talking! Iva and Nesta first.Where's Mademoiselle? Has Mamie brought her scarf? Those tents aresometimes very draughty. Betty, if you can't behave you'll be leftbehind! Are you ready? Then quick march!"
It was very exciting indeed to file along the High Street and acrossthe bridge on to the meadow, and
more thrillsome still to enter the bigcircular tent with its green canvas roof flapping in the breeze. Theseats were only wooden planks covered with red baize, and swayed aboutwhen people sat upon them, but Durracombe audiences were not accustomedto luxuries, and the juvenile portion would have cheerfully sat anywhereto watch the show. A caravan drawn up by the entrance acted as pay desk,and a big, fat gipsy-looking woman took the money and said, 'Thank youvery much' to those who bought the more expensive tickets. The schoolsecured a block of reserved seats all to itself, and the girls settledthemselves with little ones in front, and big ones behind. In the middleof the tent was a large circle strewn with sawdust, and the spectatorswere ranged round this as in a Roman amphitheatre. Through the open dooropposite might be caught a glimpse of horses standing outside. A verylarge part of the audience was composed of children. Most of them hadbeen waiting in a queue for a long while before entering, and they wereover-excited and tired. They were all impatience for the performance tobegin, and the hum of their little voices sounded like the buzzing ofbees. Through the gaps between the walls and the roof of the tent longshafts of sunlight streamed like Jacob's ladders over the heads of thechildren, and into the sawdust circle. One almost expected elves andfairies to slide down them and perform on the magic ring. One tiny boy,tired of waiting, strayed from his place, and stood a moment under oneof these shafts of light like a fair-haired cherub. The spectatorscheered him as if he were part of the programme.
The contingent from The Moorings were sitting close to the mainentrance, and as their united glances strayed round the tent theypresently began to nudge each other and focus their gaze in oneparticular direction. Miss Pollard, aware of the undercurrent, lookedalso. What she saw caused her to take out her lorgnettes and stareamazedly through them to satisfy herself that failing eyesight had notproduced an illusion. On the other side of the tent, exactly opposite totheir party, sitting on a red-baize-covered reserved seat, wasOpal--Opal who was supposed to be lying on her bed prostrate withheadache, and whom she had pitied for missing the treat. Miss Fanny hadalso just made the same discovery. The sisters glanced at one another,and drew their own conclusions. If Opal had turned rather white at theentrance of the school party, she had apparently recovered from theshock, and was bluffing the matter out. She was sitting with somefriends, girls much older than herself, and was laughing and chatting asif in thorough enjoyment.
And now at last, after much tiresome delay and waiting, the show began.Through the far door was seen a vision of men in gay costumes, and thestrains of a band were heard.
"O-o-o-oh!" came from the children all round, as the procession streamedinto the tent. It was headed by the band, then followed piebald horseswith riders in gorgeous velvet costumes or spangled dresses; there wereRoman chariots, and a drove of tiny ponies, and an Eastern lady on acamel, and several funny men who bounced about like india-rubber balls,and three stately elephants, and some wild-looking Red Indians inwar-paint and feathers. These all paraded round the ring to allow theaudience to have a good view of them, then went off again, so that theprogramme might proceed in its separate items.
It really was a capital show. There was no mistake about that. Firstentered the gymnasts, wonderful people who jumped easily on to oneanother's shoulders, and swung head downwards from trapezes, and madethemselves into a human pyramid, and performed other amazing andmarvellous feats. Then came the horses, which ambled round the circle inpairs, with riders who stood astride two of them, one foot on each,marvels of equilibrium, and ladies in gauzy dresses who jumped lightlyfrom horse to horse as if on wings. When these had cantered off thescenes appeared "Queenie", a beautiful Arabian trick horse with herplayfellow "Pixie", a tiny piebald pony. The manager, a gorgeousindividual in evening dress, stood in the centre cracking a whip, whileQueenie and Pixie ran in contrary circles, reared, knelt, and lay downto music, and finally did a dying scene together, with Pixie's headresting sentimentally on Queenie's back.
"I want that 'ickle pony," called out a small voice from the audience,at which remark even the manager smiled.
Then it was the turn of the clown, a funny man in baggy white pants anda red patch on each of his cheeks. He kicked up six hats in succession,and caught them all, one on the top of the other, on his head in apyramid, and had a comical fight with somebody who was dressed up as alion and tried to pounce upon him.
"Here we are again. No harm done this time," he kept saying, aftersomersaults and jumps that made some of the audience tremble for hissafety.
Next a tight-rope was fixed, and two lady gymnasts in spangled garmentsand holding parasols walked across it, and even danced upon it, shakingbells on their ankles as they moved. The funny man pretended to beenvious and begged to be allowed to try; so he climbed up too and atfirst made the tight-rope wobble in the most alarming fashion, butfinally performed a jig upon it, holding aloft a big black umbrella.
"No harm done this time," he proclaimed laughingly.
An Eastern lady, who arrived veiled on a camel, did a marvellous turnwith Queenie, the trick horse. Slow music was played, and when the ladydanced Queenie moved her fore-feet as if dancing also. Then the ladyskipped, and the horse also skipped over a rope held by the manager andthe clown, a performance which called forth cheer after cheer from thespectators. When Queenie ran out of the ring two elephants took herplace. They saluted by trumpeting, a form of greeting which ratherscared most of the children, and even brought squeals from some of them.The elephants with their slow heavy gait were favourites, however, andquite captured the house when one of them acted nurse to a rag baby,placed it inside a cradle, and rocked it gently to sleep.
The Red Indians, with their wild, spirited horses, performed mostdaring feats, careered round the ring clinging to the tails of theirsteeds, jumped from one horse to another when in full gallop, and had amost exciting battle in which a little girl was bound to a stake by oneparty and rescued by another. Then one of the elephants came in again,and played skittles with the clown, who kept calling out "Cheat fair,old girl," though he always let her win in the end, and rewarded her bydrinks from a bottle which he produced out of his big hat. The funny manwas indeed the very heart and soul of the circus and worked hard to keepthe audience amused. When the elephant had finished her tricks hebrought in a pair of seals who flapped into the ring on their fins,roaring and snorting as they came. Their feats were, if anything, evenmore clever than those of the elephants: they balanced cups on theirnoses, played football with the clown, and flapped their fins or roaredin answer to his questions. They played a game of hide-and-seek, andfinally posed on either side of their human friend apparently whisperinginto his ear.
A Roman chariot race followed, as a variety, and afterwards some trickriding by ladies accompanied by a jazz band to which the elephant playedthe drum. It was all clever and amusing, yet everybody smiled when thefunny man, after a short interval for rest, made his reappearance in thecircle. He seemed indefatigable, and his limbs might have been made ofindia-rubber by the way he jumped and bounced and pranced about. Thistime he was to give a performance on the trapeze, and he ran up theladder as easily as a monkey, cracking out many jokes. He swung on thetrapeze, and turned somersaults, and hung by his heels and did otherhair-raising experiments, always ending with his usual "no harm donethis time".
Then he commenced to swing himself backwards and forwards for anenormous leap on to another trapeze. He accomplished it safely, andturned to make the bound back again. But either the rope was faulty, orfor once his nerve deserted him, or he miscalculated his distance, for,instead of landing lightly upon the pole, he missed it, and fell down,down on to the edge of the net, and off again on to the ground below.
For an instant the audience thought it was part of the performance, andthat he would bounce up with one of his merry jokes. But this time therewas harm done. Instead of springing to his feet he lay limp and quietamong the sawdust in the ring. There was a buzz of horror from thespectators as two of the gymnasts ran in with a stretcher and hastilyrem
oved him. Many could not bear to look at any more and left the tent,though the manager made a short speech and begged people to remain forthe rest of the programme, bringing on the ponies, and causing them torun and jump round the circle.
Miss Pollard and her girls felt they had seen enough, and withdrewquietly, very much upset at the horrible accident. Mavis and Merle,running home with the news, found Dr. Tremayne just starting for thecottage hospital, whither the unfortunate clown had been carried fromthe circus. Jessop was helping to hunt out splints, bandages, &c., andhastily packing them into the car.
"Here's a pretty business," said Uncle David. "I hear the poor chap'sbadly hurt. I've an urgent call to Bragdon--man in an epileptic fit--buthe'll have to wait till I've attended to this case first. It's a mercy Ihadn't started. Jessop, where's the chloroform bottle? Put it here in mybag, please! If I want anything else I'll send someone over with amessage. You know where the other splints are? Good! Telephone to Mrs.Goodwin that I can't possibly see her till to-morrow, but she must go ontaking the medicine, and if Johnson's boy comes with a message, keep himtill I get back."
And Dr. Tremayne, having collected all the various things he consideredhe was likely to need, jumped into his car, and departed to the cottagehospital on his errand of help, a very real angel of mercy though cladin twentieth-century garments.
"Will the poor fellow die?" the girls asked with awestruck faces.
Jessop shook her head enigmatically.
"It depends how much damage is done. You never can tell in a case likethis till the Doctor has seen him. You may be sure your uncle will dothe best that human skill can."
"That goes without saying," said Mavis as she and Merle went gravelyupstairs to wash their hands for tea.