which he was
to jump onto the horse's back, but when the horse came around the lion
wouldn't jump, and pa said: "I'll give you one more chance," and the
horse went under the lion, and he wouldn't jump. So pa stopped the horse
and took an iron bar and knocked the lion off onto the floor, and he
growled at pa, but pa kept mauling him, and finally the lion jumped up
on the pedestal and seemed to say: "Bring on your horse," and pa started
the horse, and Mr. Lion made his jumps all right, and the audience
cheered pa.

[Illustration: Pa Kept Mauling the Lion.]

All the animals went through their stunts all right, but I thought I
could see they were laying for pa, and I wished he was out of the cage.
The wind-up came when the lions were seated on benches, and the elephant
was between them, and the tigers and leopards made a pyramid, and the
monkey was clawing around pa's legs. The signal was about to be given
for the animals to return through the chute, when the monkey tackled
pa's legs like a football player, the elephant pushed pa over, and the
lions pawed him and snarled, and the tigers took a mouthful out of pa's
pants, and the leopards snatched his red coat off, and the signal was
given for them to get out of the cage, and they went out like boys at
recess, leaving pa in the cage with the blind horse, with not clothes
enough left on him to wad a gun. He was not even scratched, however, the
animals having just combined to humiliate pa.

The audience cheered. Pa said "Well, wouldn't that skin you." They threw
him an overcoat to put on, and he bowed like a hero, and quit the ring
cage, and was met outside by the whole show management, and
congratulated on having more nerve than any man alive.

Pa said: "If you will give me a shotgun loaded with bird shot, I will
make those animals get on their knees at the next performance, and beg
my pardon. You can discharge your trainer, and I will teach them a lot
of new stunts."

Say, pa is a wonder, and he has already got old Barnum beat a block.

CHAPTER XV.

The Bad Boy Feeds the Menagerie Scotch Snuff--Pa Gets Mauled by the
Sneezing Animals--Pa Takes a Midnight Ride on a Mule to Escape
Punishment.

Well, I s'pose I have done it now and it would not surprise me to be
killed and fed to wild animals,' The manager of the show was talking to
pa and me, before we left New York, about the condition of the show. Its
finances were all balled up on account of se