could not get along without you. I am thinking very seriously of
transferring you."

"Transferring me?" wondered Phil.

"Yes. By the way, do you know much about the advance work, the
work ahead of the show?"

"Very little. I might say nothing at all, except what I have
picked up by reading the reports of the car managers, together
with the letters you write to these men."

"That is all right, as far as it goes, but there is a deal more
to the advertising department of a show than you will ever learn
from reports and correspondence."

"So I should imagine."

"Yes; the success, the very existence of a circus is dependent
upon the work of the men ahead of it. Let that work be
neglected and you would see how soon business would drop off
and the gate receipts dwindle, until, one day, the show would
find itself stranded."

"Nothing could strand the Sparling Show," interposed Phil.

"You are mistaken. Bad management would put this show out of
business in two months' time. That is a point that I cannot
impress upon you too strongly. Any business will fail if not
properly attended to, but a circus is the most hazardous of