y beside Jim and commenced to frisk and play with her.

The cab-horse, who never slept long at a time, sat upon his haunches
and watched the tiny piglets and the kitten with much approval.

"Don't be rough!" he would call out, if Eureka knocked over one of the
round, fat piglets with her paw; but the pigs never minded, and enjoyed
the sport very greatly.

Suddenly they looked up to find the room filled with the silent,
solemn-eyed Mangaboos. Each of the vegetable folks bore a branch
covered with sharp thorns, which was thrust defiantly toward the horse,
the kitten and the piglets.

"Here--stop this foolishness!" Jim roared, angrily; but after being
pricked once or twice he got upon his four legs and kept out of the way
of the thorns.

The Mangaboos surrounded them in solid ranks, but left an opening to
the doorway of the hall; so the animals slowly retreated until they
were driven from the room and out upon the street. Here were more of
the vegetable people with thorns, and silently they urged the now
frightened creatures down the street. Jim had to be careful not to
step upon the tiny piglets, who scampered under his feet grunting and
squealing, while Eureka, snarling and biting at the thorns pushed
toward her, also tried to protect the pretty little things from injury.
Slowly but steadily the heartless Mangaboos drove them on, until they
had passed through the city and the gardens and come to the broad
plains leading to the mountain.

"What does all this mean, anyhow?" asked the horse, jumping to escape a
thorn.

"Why, they are driving us toward the Black Pit, into which they
threatened to cast us," replied the kitten. "If I were as big as you
are, Jim, I'd fight these miserable turnip-roots!"

"What would you do?" enquired Jim.

"I'd kick out with those long legs and iron-shod hoofs."

"All right," said the horse; "I'll do it."

An instant later he suddenly backed toward the crowd of Mangaboos and
kicked out his hind legs as hard as he could. A dozen of them smashed
together and tumbled to the ground, and seeing his success Jim kicked
again and again, charging into the vegetable crowd, knocking them in
all directions and sending the others scattering to escape his iron
heels. Eureka helped him by flying into the faces of the enemy and
scratching and biting furiously, and the kitten ruined so many
vegetable complexions that the Mangaboos feared her as much as they did
the horse.

But the foes wer