Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1865-12-02
MISCELLANY.
THE HELHSniI,S DOG.
A Memory ofthe Rhine.
BIZ MISS PARpOE.

BT MISS PARDOE-
We were on our return from Hun.
gary, In the autumn of 1910, and had
approached sufficiently near home t
find ourselves III the last steamboat OF
the Rhine-I forgot its name, nor Is i
essential to nv story-I remember only
that it was one which was to bear Us
into ScheIdt, and to deposit us in the
amphibiOus city of Rotterdam. The
summer had been unusually sultry, and
the consequent evaporation which had
taken place In the ''abOunding river.
rs il Is the fashion for tourists who are
not travellers to call it, had lost its claim
to that OVERLOOKING adjective. The
body of water had. III fact, so unequiv
Ocaliy decreased. that the shadows ellie
tied ali the nautical skill at the local
pilots; and the m0mentuOus progress
which 80 male over this-may use q
woman privilege. and say, threadbaTe.
stream, which has been said, sung,
and sketched, until its very name is
likely to become nauseate, grew to be
so wearisOme, thai we were glad to
make amusement out OF the most Un-
promising materials.
l.
which led me to form an acquaintance
with dog that was on board; a most
unt0ward-loOking cur, which / do not
believe that BuffOn himself could have
ciassed To the satisfaction of his own
conscience. The poor little brute was
the color Of scOrched flannel; and all
the hair. which had refused to grow in
different patches upon his body, APP
peared 10y tacit consent to have sprout-
ed at the extremely of his long. straight
tail, whence 1t depended after the fash
ion of an Overvrung mop. It's ears had
been cropped to one-third their natural
dimensions; it had cash across the
upper tip. that laid bare two of its
teeth; and. in short, had il not been for
the soft expression Of its large round
eyes, an expression more marked and
human than L ever before observed In
an animal, it would have been iIrecIaim-
ably hIdeOus.
Such as it was. however, / was de-
lighted to introduce myself to this new
fellow-traveler, in order to relieve the
tedium of our almost imperceptible on
ward progress. i portable library is
soon exhausted, and ours had long
been as bethUmbed as the volumes In a
schOolboy's satchcl; We had conversed
with the strangers among whom we were
thrown until we had literally exhausted
our commonplace talk; we had whis-
pered TO each other of home, and the
dear ones there, until, after our long
absence, we Were afraid to trust our
feelings further with the subject: and.
finally, no resource remained to indi-
vldugls who, like ourselves, knew the
banks between which we were passing
rs familiarity as monk knows his brew
larry save eating and drinking-an
amusement, which, despite tho opinion
of many older and wiser heads than nv
OVID, | cannot help considering as very
questionable, when there is neither
thirst nor hunger to lend them a zest.
Under these circumstances. the com
paniOnsiIip even of this modem ''Snar-
ley-yow, unprOmising us ii at first APP
peared, was welcome: and 1 forthwith
commenced operations towards nv ca
niue mOnstrOslty, as human beings &C
sor ly do not dIsdain to do towards
each other-I fed him. / cannot see at
this moment the gracious and oncour-
aging expression If eye with which he
met my advances. was lying upon a
mattress on the deck, with heap OF
pillows snugly progped up behind me.
By t1e raised platform of the tilIer. dis
cusSing some dainties with which one
OF our warm-bearted Viennese friends
had stored little travelling basket,
which had hitherto been preserved in
tact, and which IN the very luxury of
ldleness, / had now summoned from
the cabin, in order to discover whether
cOIld tLen snd there educe momen-
tary occupation, / imagine that a
grateful odor must have exhaIed from
the first neat little paper parcel which
l unfOlded, for l had no sooner depOs-
tied Its contents upon my lap, when
the lean, lank, ungainly dog wake d
slowly towards me, aud demurely seated
itself upon its launches, about two
yards from the basket, its long tail
lying stifiiy along the deck, and look
ing precisely (Only not quite so good a
oolOrl) like one OF the brOOms ere-while
hawked about the streets Of London, by
the shOrt-petticoated Bavarian girls
There WAS tranquil ifinOt altogether
graceful at-hOme-ness about the ami
nal, which made us friends in a mo-
ment, and handed sugar biscuit to
myself constituted guest, without @
single misgiving that should lose the
FIRST joint of my finger in return for my
courtesy. Nor was my confidence mis-
placed, for the creature received il as
quietly as it was offered, and when the
delicate morsal was discussed. the dog
continued to lick its lips calmly at in.