on't care if he does get muddy. I want
him to be a circus dog, too. So please can't I have half of him? I'll
take the tail end for my half, or the head end half or down the middle,
just like we do with Splash!"

"Well," and Bunny seemed to be thinking about it. "Maybe I'll let you
have half of him, Sue. But you've got to let me train your half the same
as mine, to be a circus dog."

"Yes, Bunny, I will. Oh, isn't he a nice dog!" and she patted him on the
head. The dog wagged his tail and seemed happy.

Into the apartment house hall walked the children, leading the stray dog
they had found in the street. The elevator was not open, being on one of
the upper floors, and Bunny pushed the button that rang the bell, which
told Henry, the colored elevator boy, that someone was on the lower
floor, waiting to be taken up.

When Henry came down in the queer iron cage that slid up and down, he
looked first at Bunny, then at Sue, and then at the dog.

"What yo' all want?" asked the colored boy, smiling and showing his big,
white teeth.

"We want to ride up to Aunt Lu's house," answered Bunny.

"We got a new dog, Henry," said Sue.

Henry shook his head.

"I'll take you little folks up to yo' aunt's house," he said, "but I
can't take up dat dawg."

"Why not?" asked Bunny. "Is he too heavy? 'Cause if he is, Henry, we'll
go up with you first, and you can bring the dog up alone. We'll wait
for him up stairs."

Once more the elevator boy shook his head.

"No, sah! I can't do it!" he exclaimed.

"Is you afraid, Henry?" asked Sue, putting her head down on the dog's
back. "Is you afraid he'll bite you, Henry? He won't. He's as nice a dog
as Splash is, the one we have at home. He won't bite, Henry."

"No, Miss Sue. I ain't askeered ob dat," said Henry, with another smile.
"But yo' all can't bring no dawgs in heah! It ain't allowed, nohow!"

"You mean we can't bring a dog in the house?" asked Bunny.

"Yes, sah!" Henry exclaimed. "Dat's it. De man what owns dis house done
gib strict orders dat no dogs or cats or parrots can come in, an' I got
t' keep 'em out. Yo' all jest go up an' ast yo' Aunt Lu 'bout it."

"Shall we?" asked Sue, as she looked down at the dog.

"Yes," said Bunny. "But, of course, Henry ought to know. But we've got
to give this dog something to eat and drink, Sue, 'cause we promised we
would. So we'll just leave him down here, and go up and tell Aunt Lu. We
can do that; can't we, Henry?" Bunny asked.