But it was raining when the parade started, and Jack and his fellow clowns were wet and cold riding on top of the open wagon, playing their battered instruments.
Now, whether the rain was the cause for what happened when the procession reached the middle of the town, where quite a crowd had gathered to view it, or whether the little beasts managed to break open the door, was not disclosed. At any rate, just as the parade was turning back to the grounds, the cage containing the monkeys suddenly opened.
Jack was the first to notice it, for the clowns’ wagon was right behind that containing the long-tailed creatures. He saw several of the monkeys leaping out of the opened door, and swinging themselves up on top.
“The monkeys! The monkeys!” he cried. “They’re getting loose!”
“They’re already loose,” observed Sam grimly. “Now there’ll be some fun. They’re the hardest of all animals to catch, once they get out.”
Shouts and laughter from the crowd, which, now that there was more than the usual excitement, did not seem to mind the rain, told the man driving the monkey wagon that something was wrong. But he hardly needed this warning, for, a moment later, one of the mischievous simians snatched off the driver’s hat, and clapped it on its own queer head. Another monkey grabbed it from the first one, and soon the whole troop was on top of the wagon fighting and chattering over the possession of the hat.
The driver wound the reins about his whip, and scrambled up on top of the vehicle in a desperate endeavor to capture some of the nimble animals. But, no sooner did they see him coming than, with one accord, they scrambled down the sides of the wagon, reached the ground, and, rejoicing in their new-found freedom, scattered about the street.
“Come on, boys!” cried Sam. “Those monkeys are valuable. We’ll have to help catch ’em.”
“Let the animal men look after ’em,” said Ted Chester.
“The boss will appreciate it if we help,” remarked the head clown. “Come on, boys.”