 When the night comes for the escape, Dolittle waits in the street while Matthew and Jip get Sophie out of the circus, but the guards shut the gate before the seal can make a break for it, 
so Matthew and his wife Theodosia distract them by luring them to Sophie's tank and pushing them in.The whole circus goes into pandemonium when they see the disappearance of Mr Higgins's seal, but Sophie manages to escape eventually.When Dolittle and Sophie reach the outskirts of the town, Sophie has an idea that if they follow the river, they will get to the sea quicker.