The Circus Boys Across the Continent; Or, Winning New Laurels on the Tanbark

by Edgar B. P. Darlington

  CHAPTER XXII

  WHAT HAPPENED TO A PACEMAKER

  "Find out how that car came to tumble off," were the first wordsPhil uttered after they had restored him to consciousness.

  Teddy, however, was bemoaning the loss of the sandwich that hehad bought but had not eaten.

  "The accident shall be investigated by me personally beforethis section leaves the yard," said Mr. Sparling. "I am gladyou suggested it, Phil. How do you feel?"

  "I am all right. Did somebody pull me out?"

  "Yes, Teddy did. You are a pair of brave boys. I guess thisoutfit knows now the stuff you two are made of, if it never didbefore," glowed Mr. Sparling.

  "How many were killed?"

  "None. The head steward has a broken leg, one waiter a few ribssmashed in, and another has lost a finger. I reckon the railroadwill have a nice bill of damages to pay for this night's work.Were you in the car when it occurred?"

  "Yes. They had been handling it rather roughly. We spoke of itat the time. We were moving down the yard when suddenly one endseemed to drop right off the track as if we had come to the endof it."

  Mr. Sparling nodded.

  "I'll go into it with the railroad people at once. You two getinto your berths. Can you walk?"

  "Oh, yes."

  "How about you, Tucker,"

  "I can creep all right. I learned to do that when I was inlong pants."

  "I guess you mean long dresses," answered the showman.

  "I guess I do."

  The boys were helped to the sleeper, where they were put to bed.Phil had been slightly burned on one hand while Teddy got what hecalled "a free hair cut," meaning that his hair had been prettywell singed. Otherwise they were none the worse for theirexperiences, save for the slight cuts Phil had received bycoming in contact with broken glass and some burns from thecoffee boiler.

  They were quite ready to go to sleep soon after being put to bed,neither awakening until they reached the next show town on thefollowing morning.

  When the two lads pulled themselves up in their berths the sunwas well up, orders having been given not to disturb them.

  "Almost seven o'clock, Teddy," cried Phil.

  "Don't care if it's seventeen o'clock," growled Teddy."Lemme sleep."

  "All right, but you will miss your breakfast."

  That word "breakfast" acted almost magically on Tucker.Instantly he landed in the middle of the aisle on all fours, and,straightening up, began groping sleepily for his clothes.

  Phil laughed and chuckled.

  "How do you feel, Teddy?"

  "Like a roast pig being served on a platter in the cook tent.Do you need a net this morning?"

  "No, I think not. I'm rather sore where I got cut, but I guessI am pretty fit otherwise."

  After washing and dressing the lads set out across the fieldsfor the lot, which they could see some distance to the west ofthe sidings, where their sleepers had been shifted. Both werehungry, for it is not an easy matter to spoil a boy's appetite.Railroad wrecks will not do it in every case, nor did theyin this.

  But, before the morning ended, the cook tent had seen moreexcitement than in many days--in fact more than at any time sofar that season.

  The moment Phil and Teddy strolled in, each bearing the marks ofthe wreck on face and head everybody, except the Legless Man,stood up. Three rousing cheers and a tiger for the Circus Boys,were given with a will, and then the lads found themselves thecenter of a throng of performers, roustabouts and freaks all ofwhom showered their congratulations on the boys for their heroismin saving other's lives at the risk of their own.

  Little Dimples was not one whit behind the others. She praisedthem both, much to Phil's discomfiture and Teddy's pleasure.

  "Teddy, you are a hero after all," she beamed.

  "Me? Me a hero?" he questioned, pointing to himself.

  "Yes, you. I always knew you would be if you had half a chance.Of course Phil had proved before that he was."

  Teddy threw out his chest, thrusting both hands in histrousers pockets.

  "Oh, I don't know. It wasn't so much. How'd you get out?"

  "Your friend, Phil, here, is responsible for my not being in thefreak class this morning. There's Mr. Sparling beckoning to you.I think he wants you both."

  The boys walked over as soon as they could get away fromthe others. That morning they sat at the executive tablewith the owner of the show, his wife and the members ofMr. Sparling's staff.

  For once Teddy went through a meal with great dignity,as befitted one who was in the hero class.

  "What happened to cause the wreck last night?" asked Phil,turning to his host of the morning at the first opportunity.

  "The car went off over a blind switch that had been opened."

  "By whom?"

  "Ah, that's the question."

  "Perhaps one of the railroad men opened it by mistake,"suggested Teddy. "Nobody else would have a key."

  "You'll find no railroad man made that blunder," replied Phil.

  "No! While the railroad is responsible for the damages,I hardly think they are for the wreck. No key was used to openthe switch."

  "No key?"

  "No."

  "How, then?"

  "The lock was wrenched off with an iron bar and the switchwedged fast, so there could be no doubt about what would happen.It might have happened to some other car not belonging to us,though it was a pretty safe gamble that it would catch oneof ours."

  "I thought as much," nodded Phil. "But perhaps its just aswell."

  "What do you mean by that?" questioned the showman sharply.

  "That the railroad folks will do what the police are too lazyto do."

  "What?"

  "Get after the fellow who did it," suggested Phil wisely.

  "That's so! That's so! I hadn't thought of it in thatlight before. You've got a long head, my boy. You alwayshave had, for that matter as long as I have known you, so itstands to reason that you must always have been that way."

  Teddy, having finished his breakfast, excused himself andstrolled off to another part of the tent where he might findmore excitement. He sat down in his own place near the freaktable and began talking shop with some of the performers, whilePhil and Mr. Sparling continued their conversation.

  "I haven't given up hopes of catching him myself, Mr. Sparling."

  "You came pretty close to it Saturday night."

  "And I wasn't so far from it last night either," laughed the boy."Going to be able to save the accommodation car?"

  "No, it's a hopeless wreck."

  "You probably will not put on another this season then?"

  "What would you suggest?"

  "I should not think it would be advisable. Most of the people godowntown, anyway, to get their lunch after the show."

  "Exactly. That's the way it appeared to me, but I wanted to getyour point of view." It was not that the owner had not made uphis mind, but that he wanted to get Phil Forrest's mind workingfrom the point of view of the manager and owner of a circus,seeing in Phil, as he did, the making of a future great showman.

  All at once their conversation was disturbed by a great uproar atthe further end of the tent, near where Teddy sat.

  Two midgets, arguing the question as to which of them was theSmallest Man in the World, had become so heated that they fell topummeling each other with their tiny fists.

  Instantly the tent was in confusion, and with one accordthe performers and freaks gathered around to watch theminiature battle.

  A waiter in his excitement, stepped in a woodchuck hole, spillinga bowl of steaming hot soup down the Fat Woman's neck.

  "Help! Help! I'm on fire!" she shrieked.

  Teddy, now that he had become a hero, felt called upon to hurryto the rescue. Seizing a pitcher of ice water, he leaped over abench and dumped the contents of the pitcher over the head of theFattest Woman on Earth. Several chunks of ice, along with aliberal quantity of the water, slid down her neck.

/>   This was more than human flesh could stand. The Fat Womanstaggered to her feet uttering a series of screams that mighthave been heard all over the lot, while those on the outsidecame rushing in to assist in what they believed to be aserious disturbance.

  Mr. Sparling pushed his way through the crowd, roaring outcommand after command, but somehow, the ring about the Fat Womanand the fighting midgets did not give way readily. The showpeople were too much engrossed in the funny spectacle of themidgets to wish to be disturbed.

  Not so Teddy Tucker.

  Having quenched the fire that was consuming the Fat Woman,he pushed his way through the crowd, with the stern command,"Stand aside here!" and fell upon the Lilliputian gladiators.

  "Break away!" roared Teddy, grasping each by the collar andgiving him a violent tug.

  What was his surprise when both the little men suddenly turnedupon him and started pushing and beating him.

  Taken unawares, Teddy began to back up, to the accompaniment ofthe jeers of the spectators.

  The crowd howled its appreciation of the turn affairs had taken,Teddy steadily giving ground before the enraged Lilliputians.

  As it chanced a washtub filled with pink lemonade that had beenprepared for the thirsty crowds stood directly in the lad's path.If anyone observed it, he did not so inform Teddy.

  All at once the Circus Boy sat down in the tub of pink lemonadewith a loud splash, pink fluid spurting up in a veritablefountain over such parts of him as were not already in the tub.

  Teddy howled for help, while the show people shrieked withdelight, the lad in his efforts to get out of the tub, fallingback each time, until finally rescued from his uncomfortableposition by the owner of the show himself.

  "That's what you get for meddling with other peoples' affairs,"chided Phil, laughing immoderately as he observed the ruefulcountenance of his friend.

  "If I hadn't meddled with you last night, you'd have been a deadone today," retorted the lad. "Anyway, I've made a loud splashthis morning."