"Oh, dear, oh, dear, what shall I do? I'll never get him with my old lasso! " Cried the Circus Elephant with a sigh, As he looked at Hungry Hawk on high.
Now I hope you haven't forgotten what just took place. How Hungry Hawk had picked up poor Little Jack Rabbit. Of course you haven't! Nor how the big kind Circus Elephant had almost caught this bad robber bird with a long lasso.
But, dear me! I wonder what is happening to Little Jack Rabbit all this time. Maybe the cruel hawk has eaten him for dinner or supper or maybe breakfast.
"Well, I'm not going to give up hope," said the big Elephant to himself, again setting off after Hungry Hawk, who now could hardly be made out up in the sky so far away.
By and by the Elephant came to a mountain. My, but it was a steep old mountain. Right up and down-almost straight, you know. "Dear me! " almost sobbed the anxious circus animal, sitting down to consider the best thing to do-climb up the mountain or walk around it.
"Right on the top of this mountain's crest Hungry Hawk has his castle nest,"
all of a sudden, just like that, shouted a voice.
"Who spoke? " asked the Elephant, mighty anxious to find out quickly if there were a road up this steep, high mountain.
"Look! " answered the same kind voice, and the next minute a little white mountain goat stood before him.
"Oh, I'm so glad you're a mountain goat," laughed the big animal. "I'm so glad I could cry. Maybe you can climb up and rescue my Little Jack Rabbit."
"I can't fight old Hungry Hawk," answered the little Mountain Goat. "He's too strong for me."
"Dear, dear, dearest me! " cried the poor distracted Elephant, "then how can we save my little bunny friend?"
"I can help you climb the mountain," answered the little Mountain Goat.
"Me? " enquired the big animal. "How could you help a great big elephant up this steep, right-up-and-down, mountain, I should like to know."
"That won't be so hard," answered the little Mountain Goat. "Give me your lasso."
Throwing the loop over his horns, the little Mountain Goat started to climb up the mountain side. First he jumped to a ledge of rock, then scrambled up sideways, then sideways the other way, then another jump, and perhaps two, and then a scramble.
After working his way up almost as far as the length of the long rope, he braced his forefeet against a rock and called down: "Pull yourself up with your trunk!"
Well, sir, that's just what that big kind anxious Circus Elephant did. He took hold of that rope with his trunk and up he went, hand over hand-I mean trunk over trunk-just like a fireman, and by and by, pretty soon, not so very quick, he stood beside the little Mountain Goat.
"Good for you," exclaimed that plucky little animal, as the Elephant took out his big pocket handkerchief to wipe his forehead. "You came up all right. Now wait here while I climb up higher. " Up and up went the little Mountain Goat, now sideways, now straight; now the other way sideways, then a jump and a scramble, or a scramble and a jump, or two jumps, or two scrambles till, by and by, not so pretty soon, but after a while, he called down; "Come on, pull yourself up!"
Then up went the big Circus Elephant trunk over trunk-now slipping and sprawling, or sprawling and slipping till, by and by, after a while, out of breath, with a dusty smile, he stood by the side of the little Mountain Goat.
"Good for you! Now wait here till I go up. Don't slip, but stand still. " And away went this nimble little goat up, up, up; now sideways, this way and that; now up straight; then slanting, right and left, criss-cross, with a jump and a leap, or a scramble and a scrumble, making the pebbles fly downward, and sometimes a big rock, till, by and by, after a while, up nearly a mile, he called down:
"Come on, pull yourself up!"
Again bracing his front feet, the little mountain goat held on to the long rope, the loop of which was over his strong little horns, you know, until the Elephant had drawn himself up.
"Whew! " exclaimed the big animal. "Aren't we 'most there?"
"Almost," answered the little Mountain Goat, and up he went again. When at last he reached the top the big Elephant could hardly touch the end of the lasso, and then only by standing up on his hind legs and stretching 'way up with his trunk. But he just could, all right. So up he went, trunk over trunk, scrambling and tugging and panting and puffing, till by and by, after a while, and it seemed like a mile, he stood by the side of the little goat on the tip-top of the mountain.
Dearest me, I thought the little Mountain Goat and the big kind Circus Elephant would never reach the mountain top, didn't you? I'm mighty glad, for now I'll have more room to tell you what happened as soon as they saw the nest to which old Hungry Hawk had carried Little Jack Rabbit.
"There he is," whispered the Elephant, who had wonderful far-sighted eyes.
"Where? " asked the little goat in another whisper, only of course it was much softer than the Elephant's.
"Don't you see? " replied the big animal.
"Oh, yes, now I do," answered the little Mountain Goat. "That is, I can just see the tips of his ears."
"Dear me, how can I get over to him without Hungry Hawk seeing me? " asked the big anxious Elephant.
"Hide behind this rock," advised the little goat. "I'll skip about and maybe Hungry Hawk will go for me. If he does, I'll jump behind the rock and you can grab him with your long trunk."
"Good idea," laughed the Elephant softly. "You've got quite a head under your horns. Yes, sireebus!"
Then with a gentle shuffle he tip-toed behind the rock and the little Mountain Goat went skip-toeing, hipperty-hop, over toward the big nest.
All of a sudden there was a great whirring of wings and up flew Hungry Hawk, circling just above the little goat, stretching down his long sharp claws, opening his great bill and clapping it together with a snap.
"Bleat, bleat! " went the little Mountain Goat, pretending he was frightened. Then back he turned and skip-toed over to the big rock.
"Ha, ha! " thought Hungry Hawk to himself. "I'll have a nice tender little goat for dinner. Little Jack Rabbit is only big enough for supper."
Perhaps the little goat heard old Hungry Hawk, for he gave two more little bleats and hid behind the great big stone.
"Ha, ha! " again laughed Hungry Hawk. "I'll dash down behind that rock and grab that little goat before he can wink his left eye three times!"
Whish, whish! went the big robber bird's wings, and swish! swish! went his long tail as he swung around the corner of the big rock.
Then something happened. Oh, my, what a scuffle there was for the next few minutes! Goodness me! The air was full of funny squawky noises and feathers were flying here and there and everywhere! For no sooner had Hungry Hawk flown around the big rock to catch the little Mountain Goat than the Circus Elephant reached out his long trunk, catching by the neck that wicked bird before he could turn away.
Goodness me! again. How Hungry Hawk flapped his wings and wiggled his tail and clawed with his long hooked toes! But that didn't do a bit of good. Dear me, no! It only made matters worse, for the harder he struggled the more the Elephant swung him around until, goodness knows, he would have lost every feather if he hadn't begged in a squeaky, stifled voice to be allowed to sit down and talk matters over.
"Talk matters over? " grunted the Elephant, holding on to the tip of the old hawk's tail, "what's the use? I'm going to take Little Jack Rabbit home with me. As for you, I've a good notion to whack your head against the rock till you see stars and comets."
"Oh, please don't," begged Hungry Hawk, "I've had enough banging for a year. I'll give you Little Jack Rabbit and a cigar coupon if you'll let me go."
"Come along with me till I see if the little bunny is safe and well," answered the big circus animal, and he and the little Mountain Goat walked over to the old hawk's nest. There stood poor little Jack Rabbit tied fast to a ring in the big rock. He was so glad to see his dear friend the Elephant that he almost cried-maybe he did shed a tear or three and perhaps four.
Well, sir. Troubles weren't over, just the same. For now they all had to climb down the high, steep and straight mountain side.
"Get on my back, little bunny," said the kind Circus Elephant. "I'll go down backwards the same as I came up frontwards, only different."
Then the little Mountain Goat braced his forefeet against the rock and the big elephant took hold of the lasso, the loop end of which was over the little goat's horns, you know, and down the side of the steep mountain slid the big animal, first one foot, then two, then three and finally four, and when he reached the end of the rope he waited for the little Mountain Goat to come down, and then they started all over again. The little Mountain Goat braced his feet against the rock and the big elephant took hold of the rope and slid and slid and scrambled and scrambled, or jiggled and rumbled, down and down, until he came to the end of the long lasso.
"My goodness meebus, that was a high mountain," gasped the Circus Elephant, when at last his hind feet touched the level meadow. "Really, I thought I'd never get down."
"Oh, that's nothing," laughed the little Mountain Goat, shaking his head till the lasso fell off his horns. "I run up and down sometimes three times a day."
"All right, but don't ask me to," replied the Elephant. "Although I'd do it all over again for Little Jack Rabbit's sake."
"Oh, won't I be glad to get home to mother," sighed the little bunny. "I was so frightened up there on the mountain top with Hungry Hawk. Dear, dear me! Have I been dreaming?"
"No, not this time," answered the big circus animal. "But, cheer up! I'll take you home in a jiffy," and saying good-by to the little Mountain Goat he trotted off at a rapid rate.
By and by it grew dark. Oh, yes, very dark. You couldn't see your hand behind your face. So the Circus Elephant stopped to think what was best to do. He was afraid, you see, that he might bump into something or other or be arrested by the Policeman Dog. One can never tell on a dark night what may happen.
Pretty soon a tiny light appeared in the distance. Then it came nearer and nearer, but never growing much larger. Wasn't that strange and queer?
"My tiny lantern in the dark Throws just a little twinkle spark. But maybe it will help you see Danny Fox behind a tree,"
cried a little voice.
And that's just what it did, for the little firefly swung her tiny lantern to and fro until the big elephant said all of a sudden:
"I see him! " Which so frightened the old robber that he turned and fled.
"Go ahead, little firefly. I'll follow if you don't go out," went on the big brave circus animal.
"Never fear," answered the little firefly. "I have a tiny electric bulb in my lantern. You don't think I use a flickery candle, do you?"
"Bend your head or maybe you'll be brushed off my back," warned the Circus Elephant, following the tiny light. So Little Jack Rabbit lay flat down on the big animal's back and away they went through the darkness, in and out among the forest trees, while Billy Breeze sang a sleepy song about rocking chairs and tick-tocky clocks and tired feet and little pink socks.
End of title
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