e he'd
let us in if he saw that."

"Maybe. But, Bunny, you haven't any lobster claw to put on your nose, to
make you look like Mr. Punch."

Bunny sighed.

"That's so," he said. "The lobster claw is broken. I guess we'll have to
carry the water, Sue. I'll get some for the elephant, and you can carry
some for the ponies. Then the circus man will give us tickets to the
show. We'll go, anyhow."

So Bunny had it all planned out. Neither he nor Sue said anything to
their father, mother or grandparents about what they were going to do.
Bunny was quite sure if they asked they would not be allowed to go, and
he did not want to do anything he was told not to do. But he and Sue had
not really been forbidden to go to the circus, though of course Mrs.
Brown had no idea the children were planning to see the show in the
tent, with the wild animals, and the men and women jumping into nets.

The rest of the day Bunny and Sue spent pretty much out near the barn,
looking at the big circus poster, wondering if they would see all the
animals in the picture. They spent part of the next day doing the same
thing.

Mrs. Brown was so busy helping Grandma Brown, and Mr. Brown was so busy
getting ready for his trip to the city, that no one paid much attention
to the children.

"We'll start off early to-morrow morning," said Bunny, the night before
the circus was to come to town. "We'll take a lunch with us. I'll save
some of my supper and some of my breakfast. We can take some bread and
cake, and we've each got five cents, to get some pink lemonade with."

"I want a circus balloon, too," said Sue.

"Well, maybe a man will give you one," said Bunny, hopefully.

Sue clapped her hands in joy.

"I hope he gives me a red one!" she cried.

Early the next morning, right after breakfast, Bunny Brown and his
sister Sue went quietly from the house. They had wrapped some slices of
bread, and some cookies, in pieces of newspaper, and this lunch they
carried with them as they started off for the circus. No one saw them
start, and down the road they went, hand in hand, off toward town.

"Oh, Bunny!" cried Sue, as she toddled along beside her brother. "Isn't
it just fine!"

"Wait till you see the circus!" said Bunny, his eyes shining with
delight. "We'll have lots of fun!"

CHAPTER XXIII

THE GYPSIES

Along the dusty road, on the way to town, walked Bunny Brown and his
sister Sue. Hand in hand they toddled on, thinking of the fun t