they could
hear the thud of Ben's head or heels as he unexpectedly came in contact
with the floor.

When the three visitors stood at the door and looked in, Ben professed
to be unaware of their presence, and began a series of hand-springs that
might have been wonderful, if he had not miscalculated the distance,
and struck the side of the barn just as he was getting well into the
work.

[Illustration: PLANNING THE CIRCUS]

Then, having lost his opportunity of dazzling them by showing that even
when he was alone he could turn any number of hand-springs simply in the
way of exercise, he suddenly became aware of their presence, and greeted
his friends with the anxiously asked question as to what Toby had
decided to do about entering the circus business.

Bob and Reddy, instead of answering, waited for Toby to speak; it was a
good opportunity to have the important matter settled definitely, and
they listened anxiously for his decision.

"I'm goin' into it," said Toby after a pause, during which it appeared
as if he were trying to make up his mind, "'cause it seems as if you had
it almost done now. You know when I got home last summer I didn't ever
want to hear of a circus or see one, for I'd had about enough of them,
an' then I'd think of poor Mr. Stubbs, an' that would make me feel awful
bad. I didn't think, either, that we could get up such a good show; but
now you fellers have got so much done towards it, I think we'd better go
ahead--though I do wish Mr. Stubbs was alive, an' we had a skeleton an'
a fat woman."

Reddy Grant cheered very loudly as a means of showing how delighted he
was at thus having finally enlisted Toby in the scheme, and Bob, as
proof of the high esteem in which all the projectors of the enterprise
held this famous circus-rider, said:

"Now you know all about circuses, Toby, an' you shall be the chief boss
of this one, an' we'll do just what you say."

Toby almost blushed as this great honor was actually thrust upon him,
and he hardly knew what reply to make, when Ben ceased his acrobatic
exercises, and, with Bobby and Reddy, stood waiting for him to give his
orders.

"I s'pose the first thing to do," he said at length, "is to see if Jack
Douglass is willin' for us to have his hoss, an' then find out what
Uncle Dan'l says about it. If we don't get the hoss, it won't be any use
to say anything to Uncle Dan'l."

Reddy was so anxious to have matters settled at once that he offered to
go up