tive figure, and anywhere from that to
fifteen, by the shrewdness of his face, stood, with arms akimbo, gazing
in rapturous admiration at a bill-board. It was a gorgeous and thrilling
sight that met his eyes. Lines in huge coloured letters, extending
across the top of the board, proclaimed the subject of the display:

Bagley & Blondin's Gigantic Circus
Two Colossal Aggregations in One
Stupendous--Startling--Scintillating
Moral--Scientific
Applauded by all the Crowned Heads of Europe.

The pictorial nightmare that bore evidence to the veracity of these
assertions was indeed wonderful and convincing. A trapeze performer,
describing a series of turns in the air that would clearly take him
from one end of the long bill-board to the other, was in manifest
peril, should he miss the swinging trapeze at the finish of his
flight, of landing within the wide open jaws of an enormous
hippopotamus--designated in the picture as, "The Behemoth of Holy Writ."
An alligator, sitting upright, and bearing the legend that he was one of
the "Sacred Crocodiles of the Nile, to which the Indian Mothers Throw
Their Babes," was leering with a hopeful smile at the proximity of a
be-spangled lady equestrian, balanced on the tip of one toe upon the
back of a galloping horse.

The jungle element was generously supplied by troops of trumpeting
elephants, tigers with tails lashing, bloated serpents dangling
ominously from the overhanging tree branches, while bands of lean and
angular monkeys jabbered and chattered throughout all the picture.

Little Tim heaved a sigh.

"Gee!" he exclaimed. "I'd like to see that Royal Bengal tiger that ate
up three of his keepers alive."

Little Tim, fired with the very thought, and emulative of an athlete in
distorted attitude and gaudy fleshings, proceeded to turn himself upside
down and walk upon his hands, waving his bare feet fraternally at the
pictured gymnasts. He found himself suddenly caught by the ankles,
however, and slung roughly across someone's shoulder.

"Hello, Tim," said his captor, good naturedly, "going to join the
circus?"

Little Tim grinned, sheepishly.

"Guess not, Jack," he replied. "Say, wouldn't you like to see that tiger
eat up a keeper?"

Jack Harvey laughed, setting Tim on his feet again.

"I'll bet that tiger isn't as great a man-eater as old Witham," he said.
"They put that in to make people think he's awful fierce, so they'll g