Tom's costume was a splendid imitation of a cowboy. He wore tan-colored overalls and a jumper, the jumper being slashed up at the sides like an Indian's coat. On his head was a very broad sombrero, this hat having really come from the plains, as it belonged to a Western farmer who had lately moved to Meadow Brook.
Presently Tom appeared again, this time riding the fiery Sable.
"Hurrah! hurrah!" shouted the boys, as Tom drove into the ring like a major.
Bert now stepped into the middle of the ring alongside of some soap boxes that were piled up there.
"Now you see ladies and gentlemen," began Bert, laughing a little at the show in broad daylight, "you see this (the soap boxes) is a mail coach. Our cowboy will rob the mail coach from his horse just as they used to do in the mountains of Arizona."
Snap went the whip, and away went Sable around the ring at a nice even canter. After a few turns around Tom urged his horse on a little until he was going on a steady run. Every one kept quiet, for most of Meadow Brook people had heard how Sable had run away some days before.
"There ought to be music," whispered Jack to Harry, for indeed the circus was so real it only lacked a brass band.
Now Bert put on top of the soap boxes Harry's canvas schoolbag stuffed full of papers.
"This is the United States mail," he said. "We will understand that the coach has stopped for a few minutes."
Sable was going along splendidly by this time, and everybody said what a pretty little horse he was.