Presently Nadine recovered her wits, and at once realized the situation.
"Nalla has been frightened," she cried, "and has run off. Oh! how shall we get him back?"
"Why, he'll come back himself when he gets over his scare," responded Cæsar, doing his best to be cheerful. "If not, we'll find him in the morning all right."
But Nadine was not to be easily comforted. Nalla's frantic trumpeting had filled her heart with terror, and this combined with the sudden awakening from sleep, had completely unnerved her. She burst into tears, and wrung her hands as she sobbed out:
"Poor Nalla! what will happen to him? He'll be sure to get hurt. Oh! Isn't it dreadful!"
Her distress certainly had good grounds. A huge creature, mad with terror, charging wildly through the streets of the town, and perhaps out into the country, could hardly fail to do injury to himself if not to others.
By the time the matter was made clear to the dull-witted though well-intentioned gendarme, a number of the soldiers had come over from their side of the market-place to offer their services if they could be of any use.
An excited consultation followed in which several voices were always trying to make themselves heard simultaneously, and there did not seem much hope of any practical issue until one of the officers put in an appearance, and he at once assumed the direction of affairs.
He questioned the tearful Nadine and the troubled Cæsar about Nalla and his habits, and on learning how kind and faithful a creature he was, he strove to reassure them.