seen enough animals, Daddy,
and it's smelly here. Let's go into the circus."

The circus tent was fairly crowded as Norah and her father made their
way in and took the seats reserved for them, under the direction of
another official in dingy scarlet. Round the ring the tiers of seats
rose abruptly, each tier a mass of eager, interested faces. A lame
seller of fruit and drinks hobbled about crying his wares; at intervals
came the "pop" of a lemonade bottle, and there was a steady crunching of
peanut shells. The scent of orange peel rose over the circus smell--that
weird compound of animal and sawdust and acetylene lamps. In the midst
of all was the ring, with its surface banked up towards the outer edge.

They had hardly taken their seats when the band suddenly struck up in
its perch near the entrance, and the company entered to the inspiring
strains. First came the elephant, very lazy and stately--gorgeously
caparisoned now, with a gaily attired "mahout" upon his neck. Behind him
came the camel; and the cages with the other occupants of the menagerie,
looking either bored or fierce. They circled round the ring and then
filed out.

The band struck up a fresh strain and in cantered a lovely lady on a
chestnut horse. She wore a scarlet hat and habit, and looked to Norah
very like a Christmas card. Round the ring she dashed gaily, and behind
her came another lady equally beautiful in a green habit, on a black
horse; and a third, wearing a habit of pale blue plush who managed a
piebald horse. Then came some girls in bright frocks, on beautiful
ponies; and some boys, in tights, on other ponies; and then men, also in
tights of every colour in the rainbow, who rode round with bored
expressions, as if it were really too slow a thing merely to sit on a
horse's back, instead of pirouetting there upon one foot. They flashed
round once or twice and were gone, and Norah sat back and gasped,
feeling that she had had a glimpse into another world--as indeed she
had.

A little figure whirled into the ring--a tiny girl on a jet-black pony.
She was sitting sideways at first, but as the pony settled into its
stride round the ring she suddenly leaped to her feet and, standing
poised, kissed her hands gaily to the audience. Then she capered first
on one foot, then on another; she sat down, facing the tail, and lay
flat along the pony's back; she assumed every position except the
natural one. She leapt to the ground (to Norah's intense ho