d of been good to it, fur she was awful good to animals. She
had been big from a little girl, and never got no sympathy when sick,
nor nothing, and even whilst she played with dolls as a kid she knowed
she looked ridiculous, and was laughed at. And by jings!--they was
the funniest thing come to light before we left that crowd. That poor,
derned, old, fat fool HAD a doll yet, all hid away, and when she was
alone she used to take it out and cuddle it. Well, Dolly never had many
friends, and you couldn't blame her much if she did drink a little too
much now and then, or get mad at Watty fur his goings-on and kneel down
on him whilst he was asleep. Them was her only faults and I liked the
old girl. Yet I could see Watty had his troubles too.

That show busted up before the fair closed. Fur one day Watty's wife
gets mad at Mrs. Ostrich and tries to set on her. And then Mrs. Ostrich
gets mad too, and sicks Reginald onto her. Watty's wife is awful scared
of Reginald, who don't really have ambition enough to bite no one, let
alone a lady built so round everywhere he couldn't of got a grip on her.
And as fur as wrapping himself around her and squashing her to death,
Reginald never seen the day he could reach that fur. Reginald's feelings
is plumb friendly toward Dolly when he is turned loose, but she don't
know that, and she has some hysterics and faints in earnest this time.
Well, they was an awful hullaballo when she come to, and fur the sake of
peace in the fambly Watty has to fire Mr. and Mrs. Ostrich and poor old
Reginald out of their jobs, and the show is busted. So Doctor Kirby and
me lit out fur other parts agin.

CHAPTER IX

We was jogging along one afternoon not fur from a good-sized town at the
top of Ohio, right on the lake, when we run acrost some remainders of
a busted circus riding in a stake and chain wagon. They was two
fellers--both jugglers, acrobats, and tumblers--and a balloon. The
circus had busted without paying them nothing but promises fur months
and months, and they had took the team and wagon and balloon by
attachment, they said. They was carting her from the little burg the
show busted in to that good-sized town on the lake. They would sell the
team and wagon there and get money enough to put an advertisement in
the Billboard, which is like a Bible to them showmen, that they had a
balloon to sell and was at liberty.

One of them was the slimmest, lightest-footed, quickest feller you ever