to their own circus that day, so intent were they on
talking about the one that was to come, and it was not until nearly time
to drive the cows home that they remembered the presence of their band.

Ben proposed that Leander should show them what he could do in the way
of music, so that he need not be at the trouble of bringing his
accordion up into the pasture again, and the boys ceased all
conversation for the purpose of listening to the so-called melody.

After considerable preparation in the way of polishing his clappers on
the cuff of his jacket and fingering the keys of his accordion to make
sure they were in proper working order, Leander extracted with one
finger a few bars of "Yankee Doodle" from the last-named instrument, and
gave an imitation of a drum with the clappers, in a manner that won for
him no small amount of applause.

"Now, we'll go home," said Toby, "'cause Uncle Dan'l will be waitin' for
me an' the cows, an' to-morrow I'll meet you down-town where the circus
pictures be."

Then he helped Abner on to his crutches, and walked beside him all the
way, wishing, oh, so much! that he could save the poor boy from having
to go out to the poor-farm to sleep.

"You come in just as early as you can in the mornin', Abner, an' you
shall eat dinner with me," he said, as he parted with the boy at Uncle
Daniel's gate, "an' perhaps you'll make so much money at our circus that
you won't ever have to go out to the poor-farm again."

Abner tried to thank his friend for the kindness he had shown him; but
the sobs of gratitude came into his throat so fast that it was
impossible, and he hobbled away towards his dreary home, while Toby ran
into the house to tell the astounding news of the coming of the circus.

"So all the people who were so kind to you will be here next week, will
they?" said, rather than asked, Aunt Olive. "Well, Toby, we'll kill one
of the lambs, an' you shall invite them up here to dinner, which will
kind of encourage them to be good to any other little boy who may be as
foolish as you were."

Toby lay awake a long time that night, thinking of the pleasure he was
to have in seeing Mr. and Mrs. Treat, old Ben and little Ella, eating
dinner in Uncle Daniel's home, and of how good a boy he ought to be to
repay his uncle and aunt for their loving-kindness to him.

Operations were almost entirely suspended by the would-be circus
managers in view of the coming of the real show. It would have been