night, an' in the mornin' he couldn't be found. We hunted an' hunted, an' the next night nobody wanted to go to sleep fer fear he'd wake up dead. The cap'n had his family aboard and the wife she was 'most scart stiff an' wouldn't hardly leave her room."
"And did you find the orang-outang?" asked Songbird, with interest.
"We did an' we didn't. The fifth night after he was missing we heard a fearful noise right in a cage wot had a lion in it. We run to the place with shootin' irons an' spears and capstan bars, thinkin' the lion was loose. When we got there we found the orang-outang had twisted one o' the bars o' the cage loose an' got inside and disturbed Mr. Lion's best nap. Mr. Lion didn't like it, an' he gets up, and in about two minutes he makes mince meat o' the orang-outang. When we got there all we see was bits o' skin, an' the feet an' head o' the orang-outang, yes, sir. We was glad he was gone—especially the cap'n wife—but the circus men was mad to lose sech a valerable beast," concluded Bahama Bill.
"That was a pretty good one," was Tom's comment. "Too good to be spoiled," and at this remark the others laughed.
"Veil, it's someding like ven dot snake got
