After cracking the whip a few times to show how skillfully it could be done, the ringmaster proceeded to deliver a highly entertaining lecture prepared by himself in collaboration with one Job, and to assure his hearers that his show possessed the only "genuine blood-sweatin' behemoth of Holy Writ now in captivity, regardluss of the claims of jealous compet'ors exackly as advertised."
As he gave a preliminary shake of the drop-curtain the anticipations of the audience ran high, for they distinctly smelled something suggestive of the odor of wild animals; but alas, it was only a faint reminiscence from the curtain. After one or two false starts the ringmaster drew back the curtain.
"Behold now behemoth, ladies and gent'mun!" he cried with a sweeping gesture of the hand toward the center of the stage.
With a craning of necks and a straining of eyes the audience beheld a quadruped about the size of Sport and the color of stove-blacking, manacled by a huge log-chain to a Nubian animal trainer who bore a striking resemblance to Gizzard Tobin, although bereft of all clothing save a pair of swimming trunks and a sparse coating of black.
The murmur of disapproval that greeted this tableau was quickly quelled by the ringmaster, as he brought the curtains together and began to declaim in a loud voice:
"Not so pre-vious, ladies and gent'mun! Not so pre-vious, I beg of you! The best is yet to come! You have not seen this wonderful Biblic animal p'form!... Why, ladies and gent'mun, he sweats blood! Bl-l-l-l-ud!... Real,--rich,--red,--human bl-l-l-ud!... Each and every person present is untitled to see him sweat bl-l-l-ud, or money refunded, exackly as advertised!"
Then the ringmaster poked his head between the curtains and said in a desperate whisper quite as audible on one side of the curtain as the other: "Hurry up, Giz! I can't keep this up all night!" and turning to the audience resumed, "Yes, ladies and gent'mun, he sweats bl-l-lud; and Job, this wond'ful blood-sweatin' creature's trainer, is now gettin' his blood ready for him. For, ladies and gent'mun, he does act'ally sweat bl-l-lud! Real,--rich,--red,--human,--bl-l-l-lud! The same as you one and all have got in your insides, exackly as advertised--"