down on his stomach again.

Jerry was very hot and flushed and the muscles of his back and neck
ached. He tried desperately to balance the ball of carpet rags on his
nose, but it kept rolling off, and Jerry had to scramble after it and
the parade was soon away ahead again. In desperation, he held the
balloon on his nose with one hand and tried to creep ahead with but one
arm and his legs as motive power. His progress was slower than ever.

He could see Danny--or, rather, the elephant--stalking majestically
ahead to the strains of "I Went to the Animal Fair," his trunk and his
tail wobbling about until they met under his body, and the palm-leaf
ears flopping with every step. Jerry felt hurt and out of sorts as he
panted from the exertion of trying to crawl on one arm. He had suggested
playing circus and he ought to have been allowed to play the part of the
elephant. There was no fun in being a trained seal balancing a balloon
on its nose, as there was in being a green elephant with floppy ears and
wobbly tail and trunk. It would serve that greedy Danny just right if he
should refuse to play in his old circus.

Jerry saw that he was again falling far in the rear and tried to
scramble on faster. Then, of course, the balloon fell off and Jerry was
almost in tears as he jumped after it.

Then the music of the parade came to a sudden end. The rest of the
performers were at the main entrance, having marched clear around the
ring while Jerry had not covered much more than half the distance.

"Can't you hurry any?" asked Danny. "You're spoilin' the circus all the
time, 'way behind like that."