"Well, several days before they get in a tantrum you will see a
few tear drops--that's what I call them--oozing from that little
slit. I don't know whether it's water on the brain or what it is.
But when you see the tear drops you want to get from under and
chain Mr. Elephant down as quickly as possible.
"That is strange."
"Very. But it's a sure sign. Never knew it to fail, and I've
known some elephants in my time. But Emperor and Jupiter never
have shed a tear drop since I've known them. They are not the
crying kind, you know."
The lad nodded understandingly.
"How about the lions and the tigers--can you tell when they are
going to have bad spells?"
"Well," reflected the showman, "it's safe to say that they've
always got a grouch on. The cats are always--"
"Cats?"
"Yes. All that sort of animals belong to the cat family and
they've got only one ambition in life."
"What's that?"
"To kill somebody or something."
"But their keepers--don't they become fond of their keepers or
trainers?"
The elephant tender laughed without changing the expression of
his face. His laugh was all inside of him, as Phil characterized
it.
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