National opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1865-1874, 1873-02-07

comparatively to his station. He had
made himself small fortune by the in
telligence Of his dog, and his sudden
illness, instead Of reducing him to pow
erty, had, on the contrary, only added
TO his means. The dog earned more
alone than he had ever earned with his
master. Each morning at the break OF
day he went out with his empty basket,
and every night at sunset he returned
with it half full. ! learned this from
the miser's neighbors honest people,
though poor, who pretended to believe
in the fevered wretchs tales Of vant in
order that he might not have \ 4ssa to
dread .hem, and so refuse the '''"'e ses-
sary services. are
There il great deal Of ,fis innate
unsupported delicacy in ti,e hearts OF
the working poor. These rough and
uncouth, but kindly natures, tended the
graceless miser in his sickness. They
bought his food for him, they washed
his linen, and they asked for no pay
ment for anything they did. Asior the
unhappy mans gold, it was at their
mercy; but the thought of touching il
never seemed to cross their mind.
"Only,' said one, with naive accent,
81 think, sir, twill be better when he's
laid in the ground. His money might
be good, then, to some as would make
use of it.
"And the dog ?" l murmured, rehec-
lively.
"The dogs his friend, sir, was the
ueighbor's answer, "and he won't live
long when his masters gone"
And these words We're prophecy.
sent for doctor, for nurse, and foi
nourishing food, to battle against death
but our efforts were useless. The misei
lived n week, and upon each of the
seven days the dog went out according
to his habit, with his basket round his
neck, and remained out for ten or twelve
hours, till dusk. Sometimes ] followed
him from morning till evening seeing
which, and remembering my face as
that which stood daily by his masters
bedside, he wagged his tail at my APP
proach, and consented to walk at my
heels. One night the miser died, and on
the morrow jim did not go ont. He
had missed his master the night before,
and guessed that they had put him il
the long black box that stood in the
middle of the room. When the men
came to carry away this long black box
the dog went after them and cried. He
! followed the coffin to the cemetery
where he and were the only spectators
/ besides the curate, the sexton, and the
undertaker's men. When the earth was
/ thrown in, he looked at me plaintively
to know what it meant, and when the
burial was over, lie wished to remain
near the open tomb, waiting till his
master should rise / took him home
with me, but he would not eat, and next
morning at sunrise he howled for his
basket 1t was no use keeping him, 81
tied the basket round his neck, and
sent him ont.
That evening, foreseeing what would
happen, went to the cemetery. The
dog arrived at nightfall, with his basket
full of pence, and | turned them all out
upon the grave. "Come home, jim,
I said, with the tears rising to my eyes
but he whined mournfully, and tried tc
scratch up the earth. Twice more he
went out ike this all day, and brought
back money for his master; but on the
I third evening, finding that the pence on
the grave remained untouched, he sui
fered me, without resistance, to take of
his collar and laid down at his full
length near the miser's last sleeping
place.
The next morning he did not go OF
his rounds, for he was dead