Page:Hugh Pendexter--Tiberius Smith.djvu/318

 Now, in adding three columns of lions, when you have two to carry—'

"‘They are opening the barrier again,' I groaned, giving my patron up as a hopeless slave to purple pipe-dreams.

"‘Tib reeled to his feet and tore open his shirt and peered under a shaky hand down the line.

"‘More lions,' he said, simply.

"‘White leopards! Two of 'em!' I corrected.

"‘Hurrah!' he shouted, and I believed him thoroughly crazy again. 'They looked leopards to me,' he cried, 'but I thought I must be fuzzy again. So I said lions. But white leopards!'

"And he waltzed me around joyfully. 'We must have 'em. Isn't this luck!'

"‘Awfully good luck,' I despaired; for I knew a leopard was as formidable as a lion or tiger and harder to dodge.

"And the brunettes along the fence evidently were now determined to stick to their gods through one more whirl, and forgetting their recent fears began to shout exultantly. It sounded like a Russian college yell, and Tib tossed back a little circus talk and dragged me in between the two sleeping pups nearest the centre of the arena.

"The big cats, white with dark polka-dots, about five feet in length and with abnormally long tails, now saw us, and after a few preliminary snarls began