Lord and Jacobs's booth.
IX: THE DINNER PARTY
At noon Toby was thoroughly tired out, for whenever anyone spoke
kindly to him Mr. Lord seemed to take a malicious pleasure in giving
him extra tasks to do, until Toby began to hope that no one else
would pay any attention to him. On this day he was permitted to
go to dinner first, and after he returned he was left in charge of
the booth. Trade being dull -- as it usually was during the dinner
hour -- he had very little work to do after he had cleaned the
glasses and set things to rights generally.
When, therefore, he saw the gaunt form of the skeleton emerge from
his tent and come toward him he was particularly pleased, for he
had begun to think very kindly of the thin man and his fleshy wife.
"Well, Toby," said the skeleton, as he came up to the booth, carefully
dusted Mr. Lord's private chair, and sat down very cautiously in
it, as if he expected that it would break down under his weight,
"I hear you've been making quite a hero of yourself by capturing
the monkeys last night."
Toby's freckled face reddened with pleasure as he heard these words,
and he stammered out, with considerable difficulty, "I didn't do
anything; it was Mr. Stubbs that brought 'em back."
"Mr. Stubbs!" And the skeleton laughed so heartily that Toby was
afraid he would dislocate some of his thinly covered joints.
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