"Special
announcement!" said the loud speaker in a pompous voice. "The
management of the Fair takes great pleasure in presenting Mr. Homer L.
Zuckerman and his famous pig. The truck bearing this extraordinary animal is
now approaching the infield. Kindly stand back and give the truck room to
proceed! In a few moments the pig will be unloaded in the special judging ring
in front of the grandstand, where a special award will be made. Will the crowd
please make way and let the truck pass. Thank you."Wilbur trembled when he
heard this speech. He felt happy but dizzy. The truck crept along slowly in low
speed. Crowds of people surrounded it, and Mr. Arable had to drive very
carefully in order not to run over anybody. At last he managed to reach the
judges' stand. Avery jumped out and lowered the tailgate.
"I'm scared to
death," whispered Mrs. Zuckerman. "Hundreds of people are looking at
us.
"Cheer up,"
replied Mrs. Arable,"this is fun.""Unload your pig,
please!" said the loud speaker.
"All together,
now, boys!" said Mr. Zuckerman. Several men stepped forward from the crowd
to help lift the crate. Avery was the busiest helper of all.
"Tuck your shirt
in, Avery!" cried Mrs. Zuckerman. "And tighten your belt. Your pants
are coming down.""Can't you see I'm busy?" replied Avery in
disgust.
"Look!"
cried Fern, pointing. "There's Henry!""Don't shout, Fern!"
said her mother. "And don't point!""Can't I please have some
money?" asked Fern. "Henry invited me to go on the Ferris wheel
again, only I don't think he has any money left. he ran out of money."Mrs.
Arable opened her handbag. "Here," she said. "Here is forty
cents. Now don't get lost! And be back at our regular meeting place by the
pigpen very soon!"Fern raced off, ducking and dodging through the crowd,
in search of Henry.
"The Zuckerman pig
is now being taken from his crate," boomed the voice of the loud speaker.
"Stand by for an announcement!"Templeton crouched under the straw at
the bottom of the crate. "What a lot of nonsense!" muttered the rat.
"What a lot of fuss about nothing!"Over in the pigpen, silent and
alone, Charlotte rested. Her two front legs embraced the egg sac. Charlotte
could hear everything that was said on the loud speaker. The words gave her
courage. This was her hour of triumph.
As Wilbur came out of
the crate, the crowd clapped and cheered. Mr. Zuckerman took off his cap and
bowed. Lurvy pulled his big handkerchief from his pocket and wiped the sweat
from the back of his neck. Avery knelt in the dirt by Wilbur's side, busily
stroking him and showing off. Mrs. Zuckerman and Mrs. Arable stood on the
running board of the truck.
"Ladeez and
gentlemen," said the loud speaker, "we now present Mr. Homer L.
Zuckerman's distinguished pig. The fame of this unique animal has spread to the
far corners of the earth, attracting many valuable tourists to our great State.
Many of you will recall that never-to-be-forgotten day last summer when the
writing appeared mysteriously on the spider's web in Mr. Zuckerman's barn,
calling the attention of all and sundry to the fact that this pig was
completely out of the ordinary. This miracle has never been fully explained,
although learned men have visited the Zuckerman pigpen to study and observe the
phenomenon. In the last analysis, we simply know that we are dealing with
supernatural forces here, and we should all feel proud and grateful. In the
words of the spider's web, ladies and gentlemen, this is some pig."Wilbur
blushed. He stood perfectly still and tried to look his best.
"This
magnificent animal," continued the loud speaker, "is truly terrific.
Look at him, ladies and gentlemen! Note the smoothness and whiteness of the
coat, observe the spotless skin, the healthy pink glow of ears and
snout.""It's the buttermilk," whispered Mrs. arable to Mrs.
Zuckerman.
"Note the
general radiance of this animal! Then remember the day when the word 'radiant'
appeared clearly on the web. Whence came this mysterious writing? Not from the
spider, we can rest assured of that. Spiders are very clever at weaving their
webs, but needless to say spiders cannot write.""Oh, they can't,
can't they?" murmured Charlotte to herself.
"Ladeez and
gentlemen," continued the loud speaker, "I must not take any more of
your valuable time. On behalf of he governors of the Fair, I have the honor of
awarding a special prize of twenty-five dollars to Mr. Zuckerman, together with
a handsome bronze medal suitably engraved, in token of our appreciation of the
part played by this pig--this radiant, this terrific, this humble pig--in
attracting so many visitors to our great County Fair."Wilbur had been
feeling dizzier and dizzier through this long, complimentary speech. When he
heard the crowd begin to cheer and clap again, he suddenly fainted away. His
legs collapsed, his mind went blank, and he fell to the ground, unconscious.
"What's
wrong?" asked the loud speaker. "What's going on, Zuckerman?"
What's the trouble with your pig?"Avery was kneeling by Wilbur's head,
stroking him. Mr. Zuckerman was dancing about, fanning him with his cap.
"He's all
right," cried Mr. Zuckerman. "He gets these spells. He's modest and
can't stand praise.""Well, we can't give a prize to a dead pig,"
said the loud speaker. "It's never been done.""He isn't dead,"
hollered Zuckerman. "He's fainted. He gets embarrassed easily. Run for
some water, Lurvy!"Lurvy sprang from the judges' ring and disappeared.
Templeton poked his
head from the straw. He noticed that the end of Wilbur's tail was within reach.
Templeton grinned. "I'll tend to this," he chuckled. He took Wilbur's
tail in his mouth and bit it, just as hard as he could bite. The pain revived
Wilbur. In a flash he was back on his feet.
"Ouch!" he
screamed.
"Hoorray!"
yelled the crowd. "He's up! The pig's up! Good word, zuckerman! That's
some pig!" Everyone was delighted. Mr. Zuckerman was the most pleased of
all. He sighed with relief. Nobody had seen Templeton. The rat had done his
work well.
And now one of the
judges climbed into the ring with the prizes. He handed Mr. Zuckerman two ten
dollar bills and a five dollar bill. then he tied the medal around Wilbur's
neck. Then he shook hands with Mr. Zuckerman while Wilbur blushed. Avery put
out his hand and the judge shook hands with him, too. The crowd cheered. A
photographer took Wilbur's picture.
A great feeling of
happiness swept over the Zuckermans and the Arables. This was the greatest
moment in Mr. Zuckerman's life. It is deeply satisfying to win a prize in front
of a lot of people.
As Wilbur was being
shoved back into the crate, Lurvy came charging through the crowd carrying a
pail of water. His eyes had a wild look. Without hesitating a second, he dashed
the water at Wilbur. In his excitement he missed his aim, and the water
splashed all over Mr. Zuckerman and Avery. They got soaking wet.
"for goodness'
sake!" bellowed Mr. Zuckerman, who was really drenched. "What ails
you, Lurvy? Can't you see the pig is all right?""You asked for
water," said Lurvy meekly.
"I didn't ask
for a shower bath," said Mr. Zuckerman. The crowd roared with laughter. Finally
Mr. Zuckerman had to laugh, too. And of course Avery was tickled to find
himself so wet, and he immediately started to act like a clown. He pretended he
was taking a shower bath; he made faces and danced around and rubbed imaginary
sop under his armpits. Then he dried himself with an imaginary towel.
"Avery, stop
it!" cried his mother. "Stop showing off!"But the crowd loved
it. Avery heard nothing but the applause. He liked being a clown in a ring,
with everybody watching, in front of a grandstand. When he discovered there was
still a little water left in the bottom of the pail, he raised the pail high in
the air and dumped the water on himself and made faces. The children in the
grandstand screamed with appreciation.
At last things calmed
down. Wilbur was loaded into the truck. Avery was led from the ring by his
mother and placed on the seat of the truck to dry off. The truck, driven by Mr.
Arable, crawled slowly back to the pigpen. Avery's wet trousers made a big wet
spot on the seat.