like that," said Mappo to Tum Tum. "I used
to go up the rain-water pipe to get the pennies from the children."

"It must have been fun for you," said Tum Tum, "as you are such a good
climber."

"Oh, it wasn't so much fun as you'd imagine," answered Mappo as he slyly
tickled another monkey with a straw. Mappo was always up to some trick
or other; he was a very merry monkey.

It was almost time for the circus performance to start. Mappo was
thinking he had better go, and get on his pretty new red, white and blue
suit, when suddenly, from outside the tent, he heard the cry of:

"Fire! Fire! Fire!"

[Illustration: Mappo sat up at the table and eat his dinner with knife,
fork and spoon. (Page 119)]

Now Mappo knew what a fire was. There used to be a fire in the stove at
the big circus barn, and once he went too close and burned his paw.

So Mappo knew what fire meant, even though it was cried in some other
language than monkey talk. Then Mappo looked out of a crack in the tent,
and he saw one of the houses, near the circus grounds, all ablaze. Black
smoke was coming from it.

"One of those houses is burning," said Mappo to Tum Tum. The monkey had
often seen the natives, in his jungle, kindle fires at night to cook
their suppers, and also to keep wild beasts away. For wild beasts are
afraid of fire.

"A house burning, eh?" said Tum Tum. "Well, that is nothing to us. We
have to go on with the show, no matter what happens."

"I'm going out to see it," spoke Mappo. "I have a little time yet before
I must do my tricks."

Mappo was not chained, so he had no trouble in slipping under the tent,
and in going toward the burning house. There was great excitement. Men,
boys, girls and women were running all around. Some of them were
carrying things out of the blazing dwelling. Then up came the fire
engines, tooting and whistling. Mappo of course did not know what fire
engines were. All he cared for was the black smoke, and the bright, red
fire.

Suddenly a woman in the crowd began to scream.

"My baby! Oh, my little baby is up in that room," and she pointed to one
on the side of the house which was not yet burning as much as the rest.
"Oh, my baby!" she cried, and she tried to run back into the blazing
house, but some men stopped her.

"The firemen will get your baby," they said.

"Oh, they will never be in time!" the woman cried.

Just then Mappo's circus trainer came running up.

"Oh, here you are!" he cried to