nts'
care, Uncle Daniel's home seemed the very abode of love and friendly
feeling compared to this condition, where no one appeared to care even
enough for him to scold at him. He was thoroughly homesick, and heartily
wished that he was back in his old native town.

While he was washing his face in the brook he saw some of the boys who
had come out from the town to catch the first glimpse of the circus, and
he saw at once that he was the object of their admiring gaze. He heard
one of the boys say, when they first discovered him,

"There's one of them, an' he's only a little feller; so I'm going to
talk to him."

The evident admiration which the boys had for Toby pleased him, and this
pleasure was the only drop of comfort he had had since he started. He
hoped they would come and talk with him; and, that they might have the
opportunity, he was purposely slow in making his toilet.

The boys approached him shyly, as if they had their doubts whether he
was made of the same material as themselves, and when they got quite
near to him, and satisfied themselves that he was only washing his face
in much the same way that any well-regulated boy would do, the one who
had called attention to him said, half timidly, "Hello!"

"Hello!" responded Toby, in a tone that was meant to invite confidence.

"Do you belong to the circus?"

"Yes," said Toby, a little doubtfully.

Then the boys stared at him again as if he were one of the
strange-looking animals, and the one who had been the spokesman drew a
long breath of envy as he said, longingly, "My! what a nice time you
must have!"

Toby remembered that only yesterday he himself had thought that boys
must have a nice time with a circus, and he now felt what a mistake that
thought was; but he concluded that he would not undeceive his new
acquaintance.

"And do they give you frogs to eat, so's to make you limber?"

This was the first time that Toby had thought of breakfast, and the very
mention of eating made him hungry. He was just at that moment so very
hungry that he did not think he was replying to the question when he
said, quickly, "Eat frogs! I could eat anything, if I only had the
chance."

The boys took this as an answer to their question, and felt perfectly
convinced that the agility of circus riders and tumblers depended upon
the quantity of frogs eaten, and they looked upon Toby with no little
degree of awe.

Toby might have undeceived them as to the kind of food