“I am glad to meet you,” said Shaggo, and he told his name. “I am a buffalo.”
“Yes, I know you are,” said the tiger.
“You did? How?” asked Shaggo in surprise. “I am the only buffalo in the circus, and—”
“Oh, but I have seen buffaloes in the jungle,” said Tamba. “They are not exactly like you, and their horns are longer. We call them water buffaloes, but they are near enough like you so that I knew who you were. But you seem to have two humps; how is that?”
“That swelling on my shoulder is not a hump,” answered Shaggo. “It is where I hurt myself when I leaped over the fence as I ran away from the range.”
“Then you are a runaway!” exclaimed Tamba.
“Yes,” answered Shaggo, somewhat sadly, for his shoulder hurt him more than ever. “I thought I was such a mighty buffalo that the preserve, in the Park, was too small for me. I thought I was the strongest animal in the world—until I saw Tum Tum. He would make two of me.”
“Yes, Tum Tum is the greatest of all animals,” said the tiger. “But, with all that, he is kind and gentle, and the jolliest friend you could ever have.”
“I can easily believe that,” rumbled Shaggo. “Well, I ran away, and now I can not get back. I must make the best of it.”
“Oh, you’ll like it here in the circus,” said Tamba. “We have good times after we get started, and it is fun to watch the people come and see us. Besides we do tricks. Do you know any?”