St. Johnsbury Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1867-1919, 1881-12-16
Faithful Unto Death.

wide chimney, up which it is my wont
to say you could drive a coach and
four. | draw my chair nearer to it,
with shiver. "What night, l say.
''Is it still showing 7" asks my wife,
who sits opposite to me, her books and
work on the table beside her.
east. You can scarcely see yard
before you"
"Heaven help any poor creature on
the moor tonight :" says she.
"WhO would venture outs 1t began
showing before dark, and all the peo-
pie about know the danger of being
benighted on the moor in a snow storm"
eyes. But | have known people
frozen to death hereabOuts before now"
''It is beginning to clear" l tell my
wife, and also inform her it is past
eleven O'clock. AS she lights her can
die at the side table, l hear a whining
and scratching at the front door.
"There is Laddie loose again." says
she. "Would you let him in, dear 2"
did not like facing the cold wind,
but could not refuse to let the poor ami
NAL in. Strangely enough, when l
opened the door and called him he
wouldn't come. He runs up to the
door and looks into my face with dumb
entreaty then he runs back a few
steps, looking around to see if am
following him, and, finally, he takes
my coat in his mouth, and tries to draw
me out.
"Laddie won't come in," | call out to
my wife. "On the contrary, he seems
to want me to go out and have game
of snow ball with him."
She throws a shawl around her, and
comes to the door. The collie was here
before we were married, and she is al
most as fond of him, tell her, as she
is of Jack, our eldest boy.
''Laddie, Laddie J" she calls, "cOme
in, sir" He comes Obediently at her
call, but refuses to enter the house, and
pursues the same dumb pantOmine he
has already tried on me.
81 shall shut him out, jessie" | say.
"a night in the snow won't hurt him"
and prepared to close the door.
"YOu will do nothing of the kind ="
she replies, with an anxious look, 'but
you will rouse the servants at once and
follow him. Some one is lost in the
snow, and Laddie knows it,"
| laugh. "Really, Jessie, you are
absurd. Laddie is a sagacions animal,
no doubt, but | cannot believe he is as
clever as that. How can he possibly
know whether any one is lost i'll the
snow or not 7"
Because he has found them, and
come back to us for help. Look at him
now"
cannot but own that the dog seems
restless and uneasy, and is evidently
endeavOring to coax us to follow him );
he looks at us with pathetic entreaty
in his eloquent eyes. "Why don't you
believe me ?" he seems to ask.
"COme," she continues, ''yOu know
you could not rest while there was a
possibility of fellow creature want
ing your assistance. | am certain Lad
die is not deceiving u.s."
What is a poor hen-pecked man to
do? | grumble and resist, and yield !;
as | have often grumbled, and resisted,
and yielded before, and as | doubtless
often shall again.
"Laddie once found man in the
snow before, but he was dead" Jessie
says, as she hurried on to fill a flask
with brandy, and get ready some blank
cts for us to take with us. In the
meantime rouse the servants.
'Dinna trouble yOursels," hear old
Donald say. "The mistress is right
enough. Auld Laddie is cleverer than
mony a Christian, and will find some
thing in the snaw this night"
"Don't sit up, JESSIE" say, as we
start; "we may be out half the night
on this wild-gOose chase"
"Follow Laddie Closely" is all the
answer she makes.
The dog springs forward with joy
Gus bark, constantly looking back to
see if we are following. AS we pass
through the avenue gates and emerge
on the moor, the moon struggles for a
moment through the driving clouds
and lights up with sickly gleam the
snow-clad country before us.
ats like looking for a needle in a
bundle of hay, sir" says John, the
coachman, cOnfidentially ''tO think as
we should find anybody on such night
as this. Why, i'll some places the snow
is more than a couple o. feet thick, and
it goes agin' reason to think that dumb
animal would have the sense to come
home and ask for help"
''Bide wee, bide a Vice." says old
Donald. 81 dinna ken what your En-
glish dogs can do, but collie, though
it has ma been pleasing to Providence
to give the creature the gift O. speech
can do mOny mair things than then
wad deride it."
81 amt a deridin' of 'em," says John
~ only says as how if they be so very
clever, I've never seen it,"
aye wull, though, We wull," says OLD
Donald, as he hurries forward aftel
Laddie, who has now settled down in
to swinging trOt, and is taking hi
way straight across the lOneliest par
of the bleak moor.
Suddenly hear a shout in front o
me, and see Donald, who has all tn,
time been keeping close to Laddie, drol
on his knees while the dog is digging
wildly in the snow with his paws. w,
all rush forward. Laddie has stOppe,
at what appears to be the foot of
stunted tree, and, after scratching an,
whining for a moment, sits down an,
watches, leaving the rest to us. Wha
is it that appears when we have shov
elled away the snow? A dark object
Is it bundle of Iagsq Is it-Or, alas
was it-a human being? We raise
carefully and tenderly, and wrap it il
one of the warm blankets with whicl
mywife's fOrethOught has provided us
''Bring me the lantern" | say, hus
kily, and John holds it over the pros
trate form of; not as we might have ex
pected, some stalwart shepherd of til
hills, but over that of a poor, shrivel
ed, wrinkled, ragged old woman.
try to pour little brandy down tn
poor old throat, but the teeth are 5
firmly clenched that cannot.
"Get her home as quickly as may b.