Ottumwa weekly courier. (Ottumwa, Wapello County, Iowa) 1872-1899, 1876-08-23

OTTU
4 MISCEL1LANY.
~~-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
IAN UGLY DOG"
| "Splash--splash, went that wretch.
cd dog through the mud, his ear:
hanging down and his tail between
his legs.
"Ohl the ugly dogw cried two
young girls who were carrying home
clothes from the wash.
"Oh! the ugly brutcw shouted a
carter and he gave his whip loud
I crack to frighten him. But the dog
took no heed Of them. He ran pa.
tiently on, only stopping at the cross.
lngs when there were too many car.
riages for him to pass, but not seem
ing to busy himself at all as to what
people said or what they thought
about him.
| lie ran Oh so for. a long time.
He was lean and scrappy. His coet
was of dirty gray color and in many
places the hair was worn of in patch
es. Neither was there any token that
he had ever been handsome dog,
and that his present state of wretch
edness was owing merely to sudden
misfortune. He looked, on the con.
trary as though he had always been
an ill-fed dog, having desultory hab-
it's, no home to 60 to, and seldom any
thing better to eat than a chance
bone Or a crust picked up in the gut
ter. Yes, he was certainly misera.
BILE dog.
But wondered to see him run Sc
obstinately in the middle of. the road
when there was room in plenty for
him on the pavement. He was a
small dog and by trotting. close under
the shop fronts he could have slipped
unnoticed through the crowd, and
not exposed himself to be run over
by the cabs and whipped by the car
ters. But no !; he preferred the road
where the mud was, and he ran
straight before him, without looking
right or left, Just exactly as il he knew
his way.
might have Maid no moro atten.
t;on ~ tI,is dng for there arc nnnnub
Of whom r tafe nnnnt;ca hut a.
snrvad that he had . collar a round h;s
neck. and that Ia This collar was H.
tached a hasLet This set mo think.
;nC. for a dor whn carries q basket
Is either dog sent ont an an errond
or . r,1naw.y dno who has loft h;s
mastar and does not know whera IL
rn Now which conld this ono ba ,
7fho pass dor thot ron on srronSs
whv a;d not bis ownors food hin, hot
Tar on that h;s r;hs shonld look Lose
snare ? Rnt IF no was a doc that had
lafy h;s mo oetar and rnn ewav In 70
tho world 10 ,,faca careA and tronhio
aI~no' what hardsb;ns or What crna,S :
t;aa had 1ha ho1 ~ snffar +ho+ no
shnnld have taLen snch : sten in dess
no;r2 + falt that ohonid lilo 70
hove bow thasa "nast;on. @ - nuawa.ad I fou ~
thora wos eamath;nr of ,,,ys,ary +,
thon II therafora fe,,o NOD ,ha a.
W. ,vo,.a =, nrso.a st.o"4 ~ .be.
~. ~ os;. % wh;oh 1;as 10. 49,, - ,,,n ~ ,Tan
h1o H. A. Hrnh anI n,,to MI s%s ssran. 'n a,5 ~
Az. Az ~ nas rnnv;n =; .,,o 1 d;..oa.;on aH 'n1 ns
the Regent Circua. IL was n dun.
wet day in winter: the rain had been
falling. A gray fog was spreading
its yapors along the road and every
one looked cold and uncomfortable.
A few shops were being LIGHTED nm
here and there, for evening was set
ting i'm. But the contrast between the
glare of the gas and the occasional
glow Of the red-hot coal fires burning
cheerily in the CRATES of the ground
floor parlors only serving to make the
streets more dark and drcary. And
vet the dog went pattering on. going
at a sort of a quick ioe-trot pace.
keepine his ears always down. and
paving no attention either to the ON
nibusses that rolled by him. the cos
termoneers that sworc at him. or the
other dogs who stopped at times with
puzzled air, and gazed at him with
silent wonder. 1t Is astonishing how
that saualid dog could trot! was
afraid more than once. that he would
distance me, but, thanks to the knack
he had of always keeping to the mid
die of the road, l was prevented from
losing sight Of him.
Wo nossed Nor,b An5Ioy s,roat
aftor that nntn straot anI wo thon
come onnos;te small strcet which
farms a very narrow aud d;rtv thor
IN nghfare. af the end IF which ;s noor.
est Oxford street. Here The dog nans-
nd for = moment and annnored ~ hos.
;tatn as 70 what he shnnld Io Ua
made 4 few stems forward and then
rocoind. Int f;naIlv senmad 10 moi q
M h;s mind and a,,tered Tho stroat
| st;,l trott;ng Tbnrr was M ono thern
Tho aim Ic;,zl;nr 10; 4, ,,I,;oh had he.
amn 10 fail again The cold and tho fou
had ali scared away the hahitnal fre.
nmentrrs Of tho ono or two sord;d
cool. .sbons that line ho,b s;Jes of The
waw' Tbere was only a raaSond, hone
man man sorting hroLen Io,tias ~ his doo.
and comoh,no wheez;lv. from old oge
and m;serv The dnr want On T5e
street crows wider ne ono nrocaads
onS .ha honsos aIso hncomo mo bnttor on
cleaner asked myself wbether The
dog could possibly have his home
about here. and whether he would
lnot suddenly disappear down an area
In winch case the romance OF the Jnln
would have been ended, and should
have had my walk for nothing. But
no, he turned abruptly of at a news,
and after a few seconds of the same
apparent hesitation as before, slack
ened his pace and stopped opposite a
public house.
A news is never quite empty
There are always grooms loafing
around in door-ways, or stable boy,
going in and out Of wash-houses. Al
the moment when the dog and l ap.
lpeared, coachman was hafnessins
two horses to brougham, and 1
couple of men were helping him.
Opposite, and exchanging remarks
with them from the threshold of the
public house, stood a servant in
breeches smoking a long clay pipe
the dog was standing still, but all a,
once, before ! had had time to suspec