American citizen., 1872-02-03
About Couple of Knowing Dogs.

THERE is in this city dog that can
sing. We state the fact unqualitiedly, on
the testimony Of all the friends of the
gentleman who owns him. The animal
in question is a large, mouse-colored
greyhound, perhaps about six or seven
years old. His attempts at singing,
though they are certainly not very musi-
cal are unmstakable and they have been
observed by the family for the last two
or three years. He does not sing alone,
but when he hears certain members of
the family singing, he "ioins in" This
is more particularly the case with one
lady of the house, who, if she begins to
sing when the dog is anywhere about the
place, is pretty certain to obtain canine
accompaniment. If she is heard singing
up stairs, and the dog is shut out below,
he will raise rumDus till he is admitted
to the room where she is, when he will
join in, keeping very good time, and
actually keeping-we are assured-on the
same key, rising with the singer to the
higher notes, in kind of blended whine
and howl, that is yet neither like the
voice of dog, nor anything else, but
showing something of musical car.
When she reaches a note too high for him,
the song to reach the lower notes again.
In his rising notes he lifts his head as well
as his voice When his owner enters the
room, he will suddenly stop, and not an
other note can be got out of him while his
master remains. In fact, he dislikes to
have anybody present except the one with
whom he sings. "His voice is improv-
ing, and he sings better than he did" He
may yet sing with Nilsson. There are a
good many puppies following in her
wake who have neither the music nor the
sense of this one
In proof of this we will state some 9TH
er performances of this dog. These will
show that some, at least, of the brute ere
alton can, and do reason from cause to
effect, and rice Ucysd, precisely as a man
reasons.
This dog has long made il a practice,
after the family have gone up stairs for
the evening, of getting into the sitting
room below and making his bed on the
sofa. He knows this is forbidden thing,
and seems to do il out of what the Hoo
siers call "pure cussedness"-for he has
a much more comfortable bed of his own,
in the rear of the kitchen. His practice
was discovered by the disarranged condi-
ton of the sofa-pillow, and the marks of
muddy feet. Coming suddenly down
stairs, at a late hour, on purpose to see if
they could find him on the sofa, the mas
ter or mistress of the dog have never
been able to catch him in the act
The sofa would be disarranged and quite
warm where the animal had laid on it, but
the dog himself would invariably be
found in his own bed his eyes shut, and
he apparently fast asleep He is only
aroused as if from a sound slumber, and
puts on all the stretching attitudes and
sleepy airs Of a dog newly aroused from
sound nap.
One night, determined 10 catch the gen
leman in the act, and at the same time
cure him Of the trick. the owner Of this in
tellirent piece of property 50 fixed a load
ed pistol % a chair. which was placed near
the sofa, that by pulling a string the
weapon would BE- discharged Th-l. hid .
ing himself in the closet. extinguished The .
light. and leaving the door open Just far
enough 90 enable him to see uut. he wait .
ed. The room was not 80 dark a. o. pr,s-
vent him from seeing al that occurred I