Nero, the Circus Lion: His Many Adventures

s of the crowd to see what had become of the boy

trainer to him in a kind voice. "What happened, anyhow? Why are you roaring

the bars of his cage. Perhaps he thought that, as long as h

n friend?" asked the trainer, lo

reach out and claw a boy who was going to give an apple to an

aid the trainer. "Nero is a good lion. He

the crowd that had been around the lad wh

lephant. He was going to give him a bad apple just

lion must have smelled the rotten apple and didn't

right," said a man. "He ran

said the traine

had been frightened, for Nero had sent his powerful voice rumbling through the circus tent as his f

g the row of cages, looking at the animals, Tum Tum,

I'd have smelled that it was bad, and I would not have eaten it. But some one might have given me a popcorn ball in my trunk at the same time, and that might ha

could do you a favor. You have been kind to me, pu

nd that day in the performers' tent Nero opened his mouth

, from which he was never taken. Nero might be a tame lion, but the circus folk did not think

er on, somet

tell about it in

so. And the people who came to the circus performances seemed to like, very much, seeing Nero do his tricks. And they always clapped loudest and longest

he dancing bear, had done his, and Chunky, the happy hippo, had opened his big mouth so his keeper could toss loaves of

is going

hink so?" asked N

"I think we are going to have a big thunder

m, where the rain comes down and cools you off! I like to feel the squidgie mud of the jung

l

put his head in

ge

large

aren't very likely to feel any rain. We elephants will get wet, and so will the camels and the ho

o hot and dry, sitting in this cage, that I wish I could get out and splash a

ood," went on Tum Tum, "but it wi

It did not get much cooler after dark, and when the circu

s is to show," said Tum Tum to Nero, as the men began hitching horses to the an

med Nero. "And, if it rains, I can stick my

lp push some of the heavy wagons, and it was some

it was not dark all the time, for, every now and then, there came a flash of l

he crouched down in one corner of his cage, which, like th

better when it rai

nd the storm broke. Down came the rain, in "buckets full," as is sometimes said, and the horses, camels and elepha

ro and the tiger, and the jungle cats liked the f

nd in the middle of the night, when Nero's cage was being pulled up a steep hill, somethin

brake. "The lion's cage is running away downhill! Look out, ever

hind. Instead, Nero's house on wheels rolled to one side of the road and toppled ove

n as he got steady on his feet, after being tossed about by the fall, the lion gave a leap and fo

ime since I was caught in the jungle! Oh, and this is like the jungle,

s the lightning flashed he could see his broken cage at one side of the ditc

saying he did not know, but they were telling one another that the li

e well in the dark. Off to one side he sa

ave the circus for a while. It was very nice, but I want to be free. I want to fe

Nero ra

nt