Perhaps it was the flag waving over the sign of the "Stanley Brothers" that suggested to the man to play "Rally round the Flag, Boys." He played it with a will, and the boys, and girls too, rallied with a vengeance. The young merchants found their store again a grand centre of attraction.
The monkey seemed particularly delighted with it, for, after dancing and bowing on the organ-top a short time, he leaped upon the counter, and before the proprietors knew what he was about he had thrust his paw into the box of rubber balls, and was throwing a ball into the crowd.
A shout of delight greeted this feat. Tom and Bob each made a dive after the monkey, but he dexterously eluded them, and threw another ball.
Of course the balls were thrown back at him, and in a moment the air seemed full of them, flying in every direction. The boys could not turn their heads but bounce would come a ball into their eyes, and if they tried to say, "You rascal," the words would be cut short by a ball flying into their mouths. The uproar was tremendous, and the crowd grew larger every minute. The monkey seemed to be in his element, dancing and jumping from shelf to shelf, grinning and chattering with all his might, and when there was no ball convenient he did not hesitate to throw something else.
The boys grew desperate when they saw their slate-pencils and Jew's-harps flying through the air.
"See here!" they shouted to the organ-grinder, who was now peacefully playing the "Marseillaise Hymn," "this thing is getting dangerous. Take your old monkey away, will you? You'll have to pay for all the damage. Do you hear?"
It would have been surprising if he had heard in all that uproar, but he gave no sign.
Tom made another lunge at the monkey, and fell sprawling over the counter. Then Bob dived at him, but the monkey, reaching down from a high perch, deftly lifted Bob's hat, and threw it into the crowd.
"You rascal. I'll pay you for this," screamed Bob.
But the next thing the monkey did was to plant himself on Bob's head. Bob, with his face as red as the monkey's coat, clutched wildly at him, but the monkey clutched the tighter.