Elsie gave a startled cry, and dashed
across the street, where the people were falling back out of the way,
with women pulling nervously and excitedly at their children.
A child fell headlong, and the horse seemed about to stamp it, when
Frank, with a quick leap, picked it up from under the very feet of the
runaway, and dropped it safely at its mother's side. Then a tremendous
roar ascended. Turning, Frank saw that Inza and Elsie had disappeared.
He did not at first know the cause of the roar.
The horse, veering again and wheeling sharply, had hurled the wagon
against a cage in which was confined a full-grown tiger. This was an
open cage--that is, the screening, wooden, outer shell had been removed,
showing the big beast of the jungle, with its keeper in circus costume,
seated in the center of the cage on a low stool.
Against the door of this cage the bounding wagon had struck heavily--so
heavily that the lock was torn away or broken, and the cage door pulled
open. The roar that went up was a roar of alarm and fright. And it
increased in intensity when the striped beast, with nervously flicking
tail, leaped past its keeper and into the street, where it crouched, not
knowing what to do with its newly found freedom.
The street was in the wildest tumult.
Pages:
50
51
52
53
54
55
56
57
58
59
60
61
62
63
64
65
66
67
68
69
70
71
72
73
74