And then Jack began to chatter as he tried to tear loose the lace curtain which was tangled all about him as he sat perched in a tree, licking from his paws some bits of crushed banana.
With the crying of Trouble, the chatter of the monkey, and Mrs. Martin saying: "Oh dear! Oh dear!" again and again, there was quite a little excitement in the yard of the Curlytops just then.
"Poor Trouble!" sighed Janet, as she walked over to her little brother, who was crying and sitting on the ground where Jack had knocked him. "Did the monkey scratch you?"
But Trouble was sobbing too hard to answer.
"What in the world were you doing?" asked Mrs. Martin, as she picked Trouble up in her arms, and finally made him stop crying. "Why did you take one of my nice curtains?"
"We didn't know it was nice," Teddy answered. "And we had to get something for a net to have Jack jump in. I thought it was an old curtain."
"It wasn't one of my best ones," said his mother, "still I didn't want it torn. And it is of no use now. Look! All in shreds!"
Indeed that was the state of the curtain. For by this time Jack had managed to tear it off him, and it dangled in the tree like the tail of a broken kite.
"It will be good for dolls' dresses," said Janet. "And we can make other things to dress the animals up in for the circus."
"Oh, you Curlytops!" cried Mrs. Martin, trying not to laugh, for it was all rather funny in spite of the fact that one of her curtains was ruined. "However, it can't be helped," she went on. "Only, next time, come and ask me when you want a circus net."