Nero, the Circus Lion: His Many Adventures

gle of Africa live

was covered with low vines and bushes so that animals, creeping along, could scarcely be seen. That was why the animals liked the jungle so much; they could roam about in it

little boy lion, about two years old, but please don't think he was a baby because he was only two years old. Lions gro

ave was among the rocks, and not far from a spring of water where the lions went to drink each night. They drank only at night because th

to be the right name for some one large and strong. Chet, who was Nero's brother, got his name bec

When Boo, who was Nero's sister, was a little baby lion, she was sitting in the front of the jungle cave one day,

long the jungle path, stepping on twigs and tree branches and making the

e behind this piece of rock, and then I'll jump out a

, and, when the noise came nearer, the little girl lion jumped o

th, it was a big prickly hedgehog with sharp quills all over his back, and when Boo put out her paw s

trying to make believe scare some one. The hedgehog, however, was very much frighte

little later, Mrs. Lion came back, with something to eat, and

t had been told about it, they all said that "Boo"

lion talk of course. "I don't care what my name is, if

ttle girl lion's paw, and she washed it in cool wa

hey learned how to tread softly on the leaves and twigs of the jungle path, so as to make no noise. They lear

ions in that same part of the forest, and very often a herd of elephants would pass by, t

the lion boy cub one day, as she saw him starting

fun," he answered. "I'm g

He was about a year older than the lion chap about whom I am going to tell you in this

d at a place where a sharp stone had cut her foot, though the sore was now getti

chief, Ma?"

nguage. "So don't get into trouble. Don't go to the spring now to get a drink, for the hunters may be watching, and may s

t then he didn't count on Switchie. That chap was a bold li

hie, when he saw his friend

" growl

way of speaking. Your cat mews and sometimes growls or "spits," and often purrs, especially when you tickle her ears. And a lion always growls when he talks. When he is angry he roars-that's the

sked Switchie, as Nero lay

o answered. "Only my mother said I

go along in the jungle and have some fun. I know where there is some s

Nero. "We'l

ssy place. That is, it had been green and grassy once when it was raining, which it does for several months at a time in the jung

just hard enough," said Switchie, making his tail, with

my back scratc

f you had gone to roll and tumble on the hay in Grandpa's barn. The lion boys leaped abo

ickled their backs just enough when they rolled

en't you

swered Ne

spring and get a dri

spring in the daytime!" exclaimed Nero. "Ther

not to go to the spring, so I'll walk on ahead until we come to it. Then I can look and see if there a

her wouldn't want me not to have a drin

e. "We'll go to the spring, and

way they fell down and rolled over and cuffed one another with their paws-the way all lions do to

and Nero came clo

ntil I look out and see if there

t," answe

pring except some little monkeys, getting a drink, and as soon as they saw the li

tchie to the hiding Nero. "There are

very much wanted a drink. So he rushed down to the spring, which was quite a large

, as he stopped drinking for a mom

answered the

the dried leaves in the jungle back of the spring. Som

to drink from my edge o

ng down the slippery bank of the spring, an

nt