g fleet comes this way it should be encouraged by every
possible means to land at the island; the heat, the thirst, the
horehound beer, and the Islanders may be trusted to do the rest.

DAN FITZGERALD EXPLAINS

The circus was having its afternoon siesta. Overhead the towering canvas
tent spread like a giant mushroom on a network of stalks--slanting
beams, interlaced with guys and wire ropes.

The ring looked small and lonely; its circle of empty benches seemed
to stare intently at it, as though some sort of unseen performance were
going on for the benefit of a ghostly audience. Now and again a guy rope
creaked, or a loose end of canvas flapped like faint, unreal applause,
as the silence shut down again, it did not need much imagination to
people the ring with dead and gone circus riders performing for the
benefit of shadowy spectators packed on those benches.

In the menagerie portion matters were different; here there was a free
and easy air, the animals realising that for the present the eyes of the
public were off them, and they could put in the afternoon as they chose.

The big African apes had dropped the "business" of showing their teeth,
and pretending that they wanted to tear the spectators' faces off. They
were carefully and painstakingly trying to fix up a kind of rustic seat
in the corner of their cage with a short piece of board, which they
placed against the wall. This fell down every time they sat on it, and
the whole adjustment had to be gone through again.

The camel had stretched himself full length on the tan, and was enjoying
a luxurious snooze, oblivious of the fact that before long he would
have to get up and assume that far-off ship-of-the-desert aspect. The
remainder of the animals were, like actors, "resting" before their
"turn" came on; even the elephant had ceased to sway about, while a
small monkey, asleep on a sloping tent pole, had an attack of nightmare
and would have fallen off his perch but for his big tail. It was a land
of the Lotus-eater

"In which it seemed always afternoon."

These visions were dispelled by the entry of a person who said, "D'ye
want to see Dan?" and soon Dan Fitzgerald, the man who knows all
about the training of horses, came into the tent with Montgomery, the
ringmaster, and between them they proceeded to expound the methods of
training horseflesh.

"What sort of horse do we buy for circus work? Well, it depends what we
want 'em for. There are