American citizen. [volume] (Canton, Miss.) 1864-1890, 1875-07-03
THE STORY OF A DOG.
RYN. srRArroN BEERS.

THE STORY OF A DOG.
BY NJ. sTRATTON BEERS.
IT was a great, black dog, wet and be
draggled with mud and water, and shiver
ing with cold; it sat snug up in the corner
OF the porch, looking the picture of desc
lation and woe, of utter hOpelessness and
despair; q perfect emblem of wretchcd
ness and hunger, of want and misery.
This was what Uriah Click made out as
he hesitated, with one foot on the lower
step leading up on to the porch and peered
through the mists of the gray morning,
whose light was still dim and uncertain,
and lent him but feeble assistance in his
endeavor 70 make out the dark figure in
the corner He had just come in from
his faithful watch back and forth, to and
fro, before the great building of Small
was what they call " night-watch," and
night after night he kept up his ceaseless
vigil in front of the shadowy old pile of
granite mortar, faithful TO his employers
interests, and then went home in the early
morning to sleep until he felt himself re-
freshed.
Uriah Click was afraid of dogs; had
always been afraid of them since he could
remember, and long before that, as his
mother could have testified had she been
sworn by the court. In fact, the only real
terror that he ever encountered on his
night watches was when some stray dog,
lost by his master, would come sneaking
toward him in the vain hope of finding q
friend and now Uriah stood looking ut
the huge animal on his own porch with a
feeling of INDIGESTION as to whether it was
best to go round the house and enter the
back door or to put an end to what evil
IDENTIFY was n miserable existence, at the
best, with the fine silver-plated revolver
on which his hand had rested from the
moment The shrinking figure had caught
his attention.
The dog whined. 1t was whine that
excited pity in ,Uriah's heart. Then he
held up one of his fore paws, and the
light, which was growing stronger every
moment, showed the man that blood was
trickling from it to the floor; that there
were tracks Of blood all over the porch
floor.
al Poor fellow. I'll not kill you. I'll go
round to the kitchen and wake the little
woman 70 let me in
He raped ut the door with his cane, or
md lead loaded; then waited to hear the
quick stepping of his wife as she came
down the stairs to the we'll rap of
her husband.
"Why, Uriahl What made you come
to this door; did you forget your key?
Gracious! Where did you find that mon
ster of dogy'
Uriah sprang into the kitchen and would
have shut the kitchen door, in the fright
that came over him at the glimpse he
caught of the limping animal, which had
followed him round to the kitchen door so
nOiselessly that he had not noticed him,
fxx.ux hot Inff h. mt
sharing the Unborn fear of dogs, had
caught sight of the bleeding foot.
"Oh! ,Riah, do tell me what is the
matter with him." and the sympathetic
woman knelt down on the doorstep and
took the huge paw in her hand.
Don't! Hettie, for Gods sake, don't!
He may bite you. l found him on the
porch, and came round here because l was
afraid to pass him; he is some stray
brute -"
"Oh, look here! there is a great cut and
. piece-yes, piece of thick glass in it.
Do take it out, Uriah-"
The dog was licking Hcttic's hand and
his bleeding foot by turns, and whining,
half TO express the pain in his foot and
half the gratitude he fcltfor the sympathy
shown him.
"Ahl kick the dog out, Hottie. can't
take the glass out; besides, il we do, he'll
hang round here until shall have To kill
him to get rid of him; blast the whole
race of dogs, any way I wish they were all
sunk in the bottom of the Dead Sea. l
won't harbor one of the nuisances about
my place for an hour"
1t was u half howl the dog made now,
and the look in his great brown eyes as
he turned them full toward Uriah Click
WAS more human than canine, and
Weakened in Uriah's heart a feeling toward
one dog in particular, and before his
words had fairly passed out of his mouth
he had forgotten he had even thought
them, and he found himself endcavoring,
in his kindest, tenderest way, to extract
the piece of glass which still remained in
the dogs foot
In a trice the glass lay out on the
ground, and Hetfie had spread rug i'm
one corner of the kitchen, and escorted
the poor, dear old fellow" to it in her
most enticing and hospitable manner;
then she had kept Uriah all alone with
him while she ran upstairs fOr her bottle
of arnica; some of the latter she poured
ON cloth and then carefully wrapped the
foot.
II took the buxom, CHEEKY little Nine.
Click longer than usual that morning to
get the ham fried and the Omlet made,
with the odorous coffee and bit of grated
turnip for relish; for ever and anon she
was obliged to stop and pat the great
black head and express her syml athy for
his suffering with many n tender, caress-
ing word, which are always abundant in
the vocabulary of a tender hearted
woman Then her hands would require
a washing before she could return to her
breakfast getting; thus il was that over an
hour had passed before the meal was ready,
and Uriah began to get fidgety; his night
walks gave him grand appetite always
for his breakfasts; and, noticing that il
was the dog that made the time so I'M
usually long, his old aversion to all dogs
in general canls back and caused him to
say, rather impatiently:
T" Hettie, don't waste any more time or
on that brute. 1 shall empty
he contents of my revolver into his body
Is soon as / eat my breakfast"
No, sir! you won't; that dog is mine.
have adopted him into our home as an
member; haven't |, old fellow"
with a nod and smile to the dog in the
corner.
"a As an 'ornery' member, you mean,
Hett. What can you want of dog?"
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