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Mitchell, Lebbeus, 1879-1963

"The Circus Comes to Town"

He did not pick out Whiteface the first time the clowns
came out, there were so many of them and they looked so much alike with
their white faces and red mouths.
But just after the dancing horses had left the tent and the clowns
swarmed in again, Jerry saw one of them stop and look up at the boys
above him. He had a bulldog under his arm.
Jerry, unmindful of those about him, stood up and shouted:
"Whiteface! Here I am!"
The clown turned to him, made that funny clicking noise in his mouth and
bowed.
"Jerry Elbow," said the clown and clapped his hands.
"It's Jerry!" exclaimed Danny's startled voice somewhere among the
hundreds of boys and grown-ups back of Jerry. Then Danny added in an
awed voice, "The clown spoke to him!"
Jerry suddenly sat down, for all eyes were directed towards him. He
didn't look around for Danny and Chris, for he was too confused to face
all those pairs of eyes.
Four or five of the other clowns gathered about Whiteface, looked up at
Jerry and clapped their hands, too. Jerry shut his eyes for a moment,
and when he opened them Whiteface and the other clowns were all doing
something there right in front of him.


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