Mr. Popper’s Penguins: Chapters 16–20

The first thing they did was to pay off the man who had installed the freezing plant in the basement. He had been getting rather uneasy about his money; and after all, without him they could never have trained the penguins.

In the sleeping cars, however, where the porter was already making up some of the berths, there was trouble.

In the sleeping cars, however, where the porter was already making up some of the berths, there was trouble.

There were a dozen happy Orks from a dozen ecstatic beaks.

From the start the penguins were a riotous success.

You might think that a large hotel would offer a great many opportunities for mischief to a lot of penguins, but they behaved very well, on the whole, never doing anything worse than riding up and down too often in the elevators, and occasionally biting the brass buttons off some bellboy’s uniform.

So Mr. Popper, who never liked to be a nuisance to anyone, always took taxis instead.

Wherever they went, their reputation traveled ahead of them.

Mr. Popper was beginning to think, however, that he had better be getting back to Stillwater, for the penguins were growing irritable.

In the wings stood a large, burly, red-faced man.

From the stage could be heard the hoarse barks of the seals, who were going through their act.

There was a sound of dreadful confusion on the stage, the audience was in an uproar, and the curtain was quickly rung down.

“I can’t bear to think what’s happening up there,” said Mr. Popper, with a shudder.

When the firemen, with a great clanging, came and set up their ladders so that they could get in through the window of Mr. Swenson’s dressing room, they were a little vexed to find that there was no fire at all.

“Hold that man,” he shouted to the policemen, pointing at Mr. Popper. “I have a warrant for his arrest.”

“Who, me?” said Mr. Popper, in a daze. “What have I done?”

So Mr. Popper, with Captain Cook, Greta, Columbus, Louisa, Nelson, Jenny, Magellan, Adelina, Scott, Isabella, Ferdinand, and Victoria, was bundled into the patrol wagon and hustled off to the police station.

None of his pleas could move the desk sergeant.

“That theater manager is pretty mad at the way you busted into his theater, so I’m holding you. I’m going to give you all a nice quiet cell—unless you furnish bail. I’m putting the bail at five hundred dollars for you and one hundred dollars for each of the birds.”

“That theater manager is pretty mad at the way you busted into his theater, so I’m holding you. I’m going to give you all a nice quiet cell—unless you furnish bail. I’m putting the bail at five hundred dollars for you and one hundred dollars for each of the birds.”

Even the younger birds sat all day in dismal silence, and Mr. Popper could not cheer them up.

Then he dusted off the penguins as well as he could, for he wanted everything to look as presentable as possible, in case Mr. Greenbaum should appear.

Then, as his eyes became accustomed to the light, he looked again.

“Yes,” said the Admiral, “the Drake Antarctic Expedition ship returned yesterday. You should have seen the reception New York gave us. You can read about it in today’s paper. But I read about the trouble you were having over the penguins, and so here I am. I have a long story to tell you.”

“Oh yes,” said Mr. Popper respectfully, “I have read books about both your Arctic and your Antarctic expeditions.”

“Oh, ordinary penguins, yes,” said the Admiral judiciously; “but not such highly-trained birds as yours, Mr. Popper. They could outwit any polar bear, I guess.”

“Oh, ordinary penguins, yes,” said the Admiral judiciously; “but not such highly-trained birds as yours, Mr. Popper. They could outwit any polar bear, I guess.”

It was a pale and haggard Mr. Popper who was ready to announce his decision the next day.

The Admiral shook hands with them and Mrs. Popper, and thanked them for having helped to train the extraordinary penguins that were to be a real contribution to science.

And the penguins, hearing their voices, scuttled up on deck and stood there beside the Admiral and Mr. Popper. Then they solemnly lifted their flippers and waved, as the great ship moved slowly down the river toward the sea.