At sight of it a puzzled look crossed the faces of all those who watched. It was Lion who first caught the thought.
“Why, of course!” he exclaimed, with a wise nod of his head. “Giraffe proposes to talk with the chalk.”
“With the chalk, to be sure,” agreed Puma, “and I know where there’s a board. The inner side of the strips that close up my cage are all painted black. Come on, Elephant, and we’ll get one right now.”
So away the two of them went, and soon Elephant was holding the board high up in his trunk. And, as he held it in place, Giraffe wrote with the chalk:
“Very thoughtful of you—Thanks—Heartily agree with all done thus far—Giraffe.”
And, putting the chalk alongside the top, he made a low swinging bow with his long spotted neck and hurried off to his place at the rear of the group, amid the shouts and the cheers of his fellows.
While the animals were cheering or telling one another just what each had been thinking when Giraffe was rummaging Dan’s pocket, the old clown’s pen was going “scratch, scratch, scratch” back and forth across the poster.
“And now, Mr. President,” said Dan, as he finished writing and folded up the great sheet of paper, “I suggest that we forget business for a time and engage in a game that I have in mind.”
Away they all went, down through the line. Page [35].