es, and other feminine wearing apparel. As she delved among the
things, a shout arose from the street, the noise of the voices floating
in through the open window. Joe looked out.

"Oh, has Peter fallen?" cried the woman.

That, too, had been Joe's thought.

"No," he answered, as he took an observation. "Your cat has only changed
his position a little. I suppose the crowd thought it was going to fall,
but it's all right. I'll soon have it back to you. Is it a vicious cat?"

"Oh, no indeed. He's as gentle as can be. But perhaps he might be so
scared now that he wouldn't know what he was doing. I see what you mean.
Here, I'll give you an old pair of gloves for your hands."

"That's what I want," said Joe. "I can't afford to have my hands
scratched, as I do some legerdemain tricks. But I need some soft-soled
slippers more than I need gloves."

"Here is a pair," said the woman. "They're mine. I wear large ones, for
I like to be comfortable."

"They'll fit me," decided Joe, after an inspection. "Just what I want,
too!"

He began to take off his shoes.

"Do you really mean you are going to walk out on that wire and get my
cat?" asked the woman, comprehending his intention as she saw Joe
putting on the slippers and drawing on the old gloves she had given him.
They were a man's size, and he judged she must have used them in rough
work about the house.

"I'm going out on the wire to get your cat," he said.

"Oh, but I ought not to let you! You may fall and be killed! When I said
I'd give a hundred dollars to whoever would save Peter, I did not mean
that any one should risk his life. Much as I love my cat, I couldn't
allow that."

"I'll be all right," said Joe easily. "Walking wires is part of my
business. Now don't worry. And please don't scream if you are going to
watch me."

She looked at him curiously.

"I am not in the habit of screaming," she said quietly.

"Well, I thought it best to mention it," said Joe.

He was now ready for his most novel form of walking the wire. He moved
toward the window from which the woman had leaned. It was the same
casement whence the cat had started on its perilous journey. Joe felt
sure of himself. The slippers were just what he needed, with soft,
pliable soles, worn thin. They were the best substitute he could have
found for his circus shoes.

The wire from which the banner was suspended was fast to an eye-bolt
set in the brick wall of the building a little below the sil