"Oh, look what you did!" cried Flossie."And that's your best coat!" "I - I couldn't help it," stammered Freddie.
"Never mind, little boy," said the fat lady."It's only clean water.Come here and I'll wipe it off with my handkerchief.I'd come to you, only I'm so stout it's hard enough for me to walk anyhow, and when the train is moving I simply can't do it."Freddie and Flossie went to her seat, and with a handkerchief, that Flossie said afterward was almost as big as a table cloth, the fat lady wiped the water off Freddie's coat.
The little boy held the silver cup in his hand, and feeling, somehow, that he ought to repay the fat lady's kindness in some way, after thanking her, he asked:
"Would you like a drink of water? I can bring it to you if you would.""Thank you," she answered."What a kind little boy you are! I saw you give your sister a drink first, too.Yes, I would like a drink.I've been wanting one some time, but I didn't dare get up to go after it.""I'll get it!" cried Freddie, eager to show what a little man he was.He made his way to the cooler without accident, and then, moving slowly, taking hold of the seat on the way back, so as not to spill the water, he brought the silver cup brimful to the fat lady.
"Oh, what a beautiful cup," she said, as she took it.
"And it cost a lot of money, too," said Flossie."It's ours - our birthday cup, and when I grow up I'm going to have a bracelet made from my half.""That will be nice," said the fat lady, as she prepared to drink.
But she never got more than a sip of the water Freddie had so kindly brought her, for, no sooner did her lips touch the cup than there was a grinding, shrieking sound, a jar to the railway coach, and the train came to such a sudden stop that many passengers were thrown from their seats.
Flossie and Freddie sat down suddenly in the aisle, but they were so fatthat they did not mind it in the least.As surprised as he was,Freddie noticed that the fat lady was so large that she could not be thrown out of her seat, no matter how suddenly the train stopped.The little Bobbsey boy saw the water from the cup spill all over the fat lady, and she held the silver vessel in her big, pudgy hand, looking curiously at it, as though wondering what had so quickly become of the water.
"It's a wreck - the train's off the track!" a man exclaimed."We've hit something!" cried another.
"It's an accident, anyhow," said still a third, and then every one seemed to be talking at once.
Mr.Bobbsey came running down the aisle to where Flossie and Freddie still sat, dazed.
"Are you hurt?" he cried, picking them both up together, which was rather hard to do."No - no," said Freddie slowly.
"Oh, papa, what is it?" asked Flossie, wondering whether she was going to cry.
"I don't know, my dear.Nothing serious, I guess.The engineer musthave put the brakes on too quickly.I'll look out and see."Knowing that his children were safe, Mr.Bobbsey put them down and led them back to where his wife was anxiously waiting.
"They're all right," he called."No one seems to be hurt."Bert Bobbsey looked out of the window.Though darkness had fallen there seemed to be many lights up ahead of the stopped train.And in the light Bert could see some camels, an elephant or two, a number of horses, and cages containing lions and tigers strung out along the track.
"Why - why, what's this - a circus?" he asked."Look, Nan! See those monkeys!""Why, it is a circus - and the train must have been wrecked!" exclaimed his sister."Oh mamma, what can it be?"A brakeman came into the car where the Bobbseys were.
"There's no danger," he said."Please keep your seats.A circus train that was running ahead of us got off the track, and some of the animals are loose.Our train nearly ran into an elephant, and that's why the engineer had to stop so suddenly.We will go on I soon.""A circus, eh?" said Mr.Bobbsey."Well, well!This is an adventure,children.We've run into a circus train!Let's watch them catch the animals."
