CHAPTER II
THE BIG SHOW
"William! William!" shouted Mr. Martin to his small son. "Come back!Look out for the elephant!"
But what with the excited cries of those in the crowd, anxious to getout of the way of the animal, with the calls of the beast's driver,perched on the elephant's head, and with the noise of the steam calliope(which was coming along) it was impossible to make Trouble hear.
There he stood, almost by himself now, for the crowd had rushed awayfrom him in fear of the elephant. But Trouble was not afraid. There hestood, holding out his bag of peanuts. In fact, it was this that hadcaused the elephant to get out of line with the others in the herd, andmake a dash for the sidewalk. The huge beast either saw or smelledTrouble's peanuts.
The animal now seemed beyond the control of his driver, for though theman on the big head of the elephant shouted and jabbed him with thesharp ankus, or hook, the beast would not obey. On he swung towardTrouble, and Mr. Martin was not close enough to catch up his little sonin time, it seemed, to prevent his being trampled on.
But just when it appeared that one of the immense feet would be set downon William, there darted out of the crowd an elderly gentleman with verywhite hair. He had been standing on the edge of the crowd, with anelderly, sweet-faced woman.
"Oh, Harry! Be careful!" cried this woman, as her husband made a dashfor William.
"I'll be careful; but I must save that little boy!" the white-haired mansaid.
A moment later he had snatched Trouble up out of the path of theelephant, and there was a sigh of relief from the crowd. So quickly didthe elderly gentleman grab up the little boy that Trouble's bag ofpeanuts was shaken from his hand and fell to the ground.
The elephant saw this, and, with a squeal of delight, picked the nuts upin his trunk, and thrust them into his small mouth. For an elephant'smouth is very small, compared to so large a beast--nothing like as largeas the mouth of a hippopotamus.
"Oh, William! William! why did you do that?" cried his father, as hereached the side of the elderly gentleman, who held the little fellow."Why did you go down off the stoop?"
"'Cause I wanted to give peanuts to a nellifunt."
"Well, the elephant nearly gave you something you didn't want--a hardbump, my little man!" exclaimed the elderly gentleman. "You should bemore careful."
"Indeed he should," declared Mr. Martin. "I am greatly obliged to you,my dear sir," he added. "You probably saved William's life."
"Oh, I guess it wouldn't have been as bad as that," said thewhite-haired rescuer, with a smile. "These circus elephants aregenerally very gentle and well trained. I never heard of an elephantstepping on a person unless in a rage, and this elephant doesn't seemmad. I think he was just anxious to get the little fellow's peanuts, andso rushed out of line."
That is how it had happened. And now, having gotten the treat, the biganimal allowed his driver to guide him back into the parade line again.
The crowd, once the scare had passed, surged back toward the curb again,to view the remainder of the procession. The elderly gentleman just hadtime to pass Trouble into his father's arms when they were almost sweptoff their feet by the surge of the throng. Mr. Martin was anxious to getback to Mr. Harrison's house, from the vantage point of which his wifeand the Curlytops had seen the rescue. But before he went he wanted toknow the name of the old gentleman who had snatched Trouble from underthe elephant's big feet.
"Won't you tell me where you live, so I may call and thank you moreformally?" asked Mr. Martin, as he took a firmer hold of his little son.
"Oh, it wasn't much of anything--I mean on my part," said thewhite-haired man, as he made his way toward his sweet-faced wife. "Iam----"
But just as he was telling his name there came another rush on the partof the crowd, and he was swept away from Mr. Martin before theCurlytops' father could hear what was said.
"I can't see good down here! I want to see the nellifunts and theparade!" cried William, for the crowd was closing in around him and hecould not peer over the heads of the people.
"Trouble, you were a bad little boy to go down there all by yourself,"said his father, as he struggled to make a path through the throng toget back to the stoop. "You must never do it again."
"No, sir, I won't," the little fellow promised, and then he thought ofnothing more except the parade, which again he could view as his fathermounted the steps.
"Oh, what a fright I had!" murmured Mrs. Martin, as she took Williamfrom his father's arms and stood him on the stool once more. "Trouble,why did you do it?"
"I wanted to give peanuts to the nellifunt," was all he said, neverturning his head, for his gaze was fixed on a cage load of monkeys whichcame along just then.
"Who was the old gentleman who snatched Trouble from the elephant,Richard?" asked Mrs. Martin.
"I don't know, my dear."
"You don't know?" Mrs. Martin was much surprised.
"No. Just as he was trying to tell me his name and where he lived, so Icould take more time to thank him, the crowd surged in and he was sweptaway. I'll try to locate him later and tell him how much obliged weare."
"I hope you can. But it will be very hard to locate him in this crowd."
"I'm afraid so," murmured Mr. Martin. "But I would like to find that managain."
The Curlytops were looking with delight at the wonders of the parade.William shared their joy, not worrying much about what had so nearlyhappened to him.
While the procession is wending its way along I shall take just a fewmoments to let my new readers know something about the Curlytops and theadventures they have had in the books that come before this one.
Teddy and Janet Martin lived with their father and mother and William inthe Eastern town of Cresco. Mr. Martin kept a general store and had agood business. Ted and Janet were always glad when they were allowed togo to their father's store, for there was much to see and do there.
But they had more exciting adventures than this. In the first book ofthe series, called "The Curlytops at Cherry Farm," I told some of thethings that happened when they spent their vacation in the country.After that, as related in other books of this series, the Curlytops wentto Star Island, they were snowed in, they visited Uncle Frank's ranch,they went to Silver Lake, they had much fun with their pets--the animalsUncle Toby collected. During the holidays the Curlytops had fun withtheir playmates, and after that they went to visit a lumber camp in thewoods.
There, too, they had many good times and some strange adventureshappened to them. They had been home some little time when this storyopens.
Teddy, as I have told you, was about a year older than Janet, andTrouble, or William, was aged about four. I have already given you thereason why Ted and Janet were called "Curlytops," so now, I think, youare well enough acquainted with the children, and I may go on with thestory.
"Well, I think this is the last of the procession," said Mr. Martinwhen, finally, the calliope, or "steam piano," as the children calledit, tooted its way along the street.
"Isn't there any more?" asked Janet, with a sigh.
"No more," her father answered.
"Circus parades can't last forever," said Mrs. Martin, with a smile.
"I wish they could," remarked Teddy. "But, anyhow, we're going to seethe big show this afternoon, aren't we, Daddy?" he cried.
"Well, perhaps, maybe, I guess so," teased the father of the Curlytops.
"Oh, aren't we going? Haven't you got the tickets for the seats? Yousaid you'd get reserved seats!" cried Ted and Janet in chorus.
"Maybe I have lost the tickets," went on Mr. Martin, pretending tosearch through several pockets, as the crowds in the street slowlyfiltered away.
"Oh, if you have!" sighed Janet.
"Don't tease them, Richard," urged Mrs. Martin. "Of course you are goingto see the circus," she said. "Daddy is only fooling."
"The nellifunt--he eats peanuts!" observed Trouble.
&
nbsp; "Yes, and he nearly ate _you_!" cried Janet, giving her little brother aloving hug.
"I never was so frightened in all my life!" murmured Mrs. Martin. "Oh, Ithought you would never get down there to him, Dick," and she looked ather husband.
"I never would have gotten there in time to take him away from theelephant," said Mr. Martin. "If it hadn't been for that oldgentleman----"
"We simply must find him and thank him!" interrupted Mrs. Martin. "Lookand see if you can locate him, Dick," she urged her husband.
Mr. Martin tried, but it would have been hard to locate even a friend inthat moving crowd, to say nothing of trying to pick out a stranger seenonly once. The white-haired man and his gentle wife seemed to havedisappeared.
"It's too bad you didn't tell him your name, so he could find us," saidMrs. Martin.
"I never thought of that," her husband answered. "But maybe I'll see himagain, though he looked like a stranger in town." Mr. Martin knew agreat many persons in Cresco because so many of them traded at hisstore. He was certain he had never before seen this old man.
However, nothing more could be done. Pausing to thank Mr. Harrison forthe use of his stoop in viewing the parade, Mr. and Mrs. Martin slowlymade their way through the now clearing streets to their home. NorahJones and Patrick, the man-of-all-work, had just arrived.
"Wasn't it a grand parade, children?" cried jolly Norah. "It was elegantentirely, wasn't it?"
"Dandy!" declared Teddy.
"And Trouble 'most got stepped on by an elephant!" exclaimed Janet.
"No! Never! Did he?" gasped Norah.
"Yes," affirmed Janet. "And----"
"A nice old man pulled him out from under the elephant's foot," broke inTeddy, making certain Janet should not tell all the exciting news.
"Oh, fancy that now! Did you ever hear the like?" murmured Norah. "I'mglad I didn't see it! I'd never sleep a wink all night. Oh, the poorlittle dear--to be stepped on by one of the big beasts!"
"But he didn't step on me!" announced Trouble. "An' he took mypeanuts--the nellifunt did, an' I'm going to give more peanuts to morenellifunts this afternoon at the big show, I am," he declared.
"Well, be careful, darling," begged Norah, who was very fond of babyWilliam. "And have you no idea who the old gentleman was who saved him?"the girl asked Mrs. Martin.
"Not the slightest; no. Just as Mr. Martin was going to find out, thecrowd swept him away. Well, it can't be helped, I suppose."
The Curlytops, and Trouble also, were so excited about the prospect ofgoing to see the big circus that they hardly ate any lunch. However, bykeeping at them, their mother made them take enough to keep them frombeing hungry very soon again.
Impatiently the children waited for the time to arrive when they couldstart for the circus grounds. As it was a little distance off, Mr.Martin decided to take the whole party in his car, since down near thecircus lots there would be room to park and police on hand to look afterthe automobiles.
So then, behold, a little later, the Curlytops and their friends on theway to the big show. It was soon reached, and when the car had beensafely parked, Mr. Martin led his party (including Norah and Patrick)toward the main tent.
"We must see the animals first," stipulated Ted. "Then we can go in theother tent and see the performance."
The animals were viewed in their circle of cages, and Trouble wasdelighted when he was allowed to put several peanuts in the outstretchedtrunk of the biggest elephant.
"I wonder if that's the one which nearly stepped on him," murmured Janetto Ted.
"Oh, is this the lad who nearly caused the riot in the parade thismorning?" asked one of the elephant keepers, standing near the bigbeasts.
"Yes, this is the chap," answered Mr. Martin, with a laugh. "He got awayfrom us."
"And my elephant nearly got away from me when he saw that bag ofpeanuts," laughed the man.
"Oh, then this is the same elephant?" asked Mrs. Martin.
"Yes. He wouldn't have harmed your little boy. Burmah is as gentle as ababy," and the keeper let the elephant wind its big trunk around himwhile he rubbed the animal's chest. "He just got a bit excited; that'sall."
Trouble laughed, called the big beast "my nellifunt," fed it morepeanuts, and then the party went into the tent where the performance wassoon to take place.
Soon after they were all in their seats, late comers being hustled offthe track by the circus men, there was a blast of music, a blare oftrumpets, and the opening procession started to wind its way around thedirt ring. Inside the big circle were other rings and platforms. Sawdustand finely chipped wood was scattered over the brown earth and thegrass, crushed under thousands of trampling feet.
"Oh, isn't this wonderful--just wonderful!" murmured Janet, as the gaylyattired horses paraded around and the band played stirring music.
"It's nifty!" Ted exclaimed.
Then Janet, turning her head to look sideways across the seated throng,saw something that made her exclaim:
"Oh, Mother! Look!"
"What! Has Trouble fallen through the seats?" asked Mrs. Martin.
"No!" answered Janet. "But there's the man who pulled Trouble out of theway of the elephant! There he is, sitting right over there!" and Janetpointed. "See him!"
Mrs. Martin had a glimpse of a white-haired gentleman with an elderlylady sitting next to him in the row just ahead of the Curlytops, and alittle to one side.
"Look, Richard--the man who saved Trouble!" said Mrs. Martin to herhusband.
Just then William gave a cry of dismay. His bag of peanuts (which he wassaving to feed to the elephant on his way out) seemed to fly out of hishand. The bag burst, showering the nuts on the head of the white-hairedgentleman.