Evening star., 1932-08-28

horned in and stopped em. And all the time +
since I been wondering if maybe I hadn't
stopped 'em wouldn't it of all turned OUT
different"
uhIo. of course, it wouldn't" declared Pa
Y Darby 1.-THE poor kids number was up.
that's the only way to figure it. But, OF course,
me calling him yellow, didn't really mean he |
was yellow all over, but just yellow about BAL |
looming. Why, I've seen that kid clean out the /
hyena cage many time with nothing to pro-
tect him but the broom"
"So've l." Ma Darby nodded He wasn't
yellow all over. It's like Joe says-it was only
about flying he was yellow. There's lots of
people like that, and they just can't help 1t,
same as some people are a-scared OF cats. But,
anyway, after I'd made Pa lay of and stop
hollering at him, . talked poor Boy-Joe
into it myself. Oh, just think, I talked my
own little baby -
alta grill" old Joe Darby hastened to comfort
her. You gotta brace up and help me tell
this, Ma"
"okayl" she said, biting her lip and trying
to smile "Okay Sure. Go right ahead Pa
I'm okay now"
talks to Boy-Joe pretty near all morning and
when sees 'em in the chow tent that noon ]
can see that Boy-Joe's been crying. But he
grins at me and socks me on the back and
says 'Okay, Pop! Trot out your old smokebag
and lead me to it! And that afternoon he
chucks up his two jobs with the menadjerie
and the band and we go over to the canvas
boss and get to work.
I'VE work for three days at that stand, ana
then two days more at the next town we move
to- and so on, and at the end of three weeks
we've got very nice outfit. We've got nice
tight smokebag, a couple of chutes, the four
big hold-down posts, and rigging for filling
her up and everything.
"AH the time we're working I keep telling
Boy-Joe what's what and what to do
when you're riding smokebag I give him
all the dope that me and Ma learned in the
eleven years we was riding smokebags together
before he was born"
And not so many days before he was born,
eitheri" said Ma Darby proudly.
mo, I'll say it wasn't" agreed Pa, squeez-
ing her hand. "And say, come to think Of 1t,
you'd Of thought that would Of made differ
ence to him, having balloons bred in his blood.
so to speak. But it didn't. Nope, 1t didn't.
For all the time I'd be talking to him and
telling him what cinch it was, could tell that
he was scared to death. He was only half
listening, kind Of But, shucks,' thinks I to
myself, IN make the first couple or three
jumps with him, and after that he'll be rarin'
to go, he'll be that tickled with it. You know
the spangled tights and all. -.
"Wen, the outfit is all ready, so go to Sam
Shapiro and tell him we'll show at the next
pitch. Alta stuff says Sam. III wire the
advance crew to stick up plenty of paper, and
bet We'll play to capacity
We'll, when we get to this joint Bement, or
Bismont, or whatever its name is it sure looks
like Sam has called the turn. The hicks has
come in hivvers from all over the country, and
the town Is jammed And they're all talking
about the balloon-tEe old ones remembering
when they'd last seen one. and the kids all
anxious to. You see, this burg was on an air
mail route, and nobody even bothered to rub
Der up when an airplane went buzzng by. But
balloon-oh, boy, balloon something diff
ferent!
"An that morning we are busy digging the
fire pit and putting the straw in it, and rig
ging the four big corner poles that the smoke
bag hangs from when you're filling 1t up. But
all the time we are working can see that Boy
Joe IS feeling pretty weak in the knees. He
amt surly. exactly but still he don't say
much.
We're billed to go up at 80, but when
knock off at about IL 100 to grab a bite Of
lunch I tell Boy-Joe that maybe he'd better
not eat any. You see, if he gets swung around
much on the chute know he's liable to be
sick.
mo chow for yours, kid, till after you're
down. tell him. But then your Ma and me
will take you uptown and buy you q swell
plank steak; what do you know about that?'
I'll IE don't say nothing to this, way or
the other. but just sets down on coal
Oil barrel and looks awful solemn. And then
know it's pretty bad with him, because he Is
always nuts about plank steak"
"Yair," said Ma. plank steak, and also cold
hard-boiled eggs"
"Yair, and he liked pigs knuckles, too" mur-
INJURED Pa Darby. Pigs knuckles with kraut
on the side. He always put vinegar on them"
He did that because told him to when he
was Just a baby" explained Ma. TITS really