oe was ready he suddenly
let go and turned a backward somersault to the life net.

The trick looked simple, but Joe had practised it many times before
getting it perfectly. And he often had bad falls. One tendency he
found was to turn over too far before letting go the bar. This was
likely to cause his feet to strike the swinging bar, resulting in an
ugly tumble.

The evening performance was even better attended than that of the
afternoon. Jim Tracy succeeded in hiring a few men to assist with the
tents, but he had not enough, and it began to look as though the
performers would have to do double work again.

But there occurred one of those incidents with which circus life is
replete. The place they were showing in was a large factory town, and
at night crowds of men and boys--not the gentlest in the
community--attended.

At something or other, a crowd of roughs felt themselves aggrieved, and
under the guidance of a "gang-leader" began to make trouble. They
threatened to cut the tent ropes in retaliation.

"That won't do," decided Jim Tracy. "I've got to tackle that gang, and
I don't like to, for it means a fight. Still I can't have the tent
collapse."

He hurriedly gathered a crowd of his own men, armed them with stakes,
and charged the gang of roughs that was creating a small riot, to the
terror of women and children.

The rowdies finding themselves getting the worst of it, called for help
from among the factory workers, who liked nothing better than to
"beat-up" a circus crowd. Jim Tracy and his men were being severely
handled when a new force took a hand in the melee.

"Come on, boys. We can't stand for this!" shouted Jake Bantry, the
leader of the striking canvasmen. "They sha'n't bust up the show, even
if the boss won't give us more money."

The canvasmen were used to trouble of this kind. Seizing tent pegs,
and with cries of "Hey Rube!"--the time-honored signal for a battle of
this kind--the striking canvasmen rushed into the fracas.

In a short time the roughs had been dispersed, and there was no more
danger of the tents being cut and made to collapse.

"I'm much obliged to you boys," said Jim Tracy to the strikers, when
the affray was over. "You helped us out finely."

"It was fun for us," answered Jake Bantry. "And say, Mr. Tracy, we've
been talking it over among ourselves, and seeing as how you've always
treated us white, we've decided, if you'll take us back, that we'll
come--an