The Warner weekly sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1885, 1883-11-17
Do Dogs Understand Our Lam
guage?

FROM a Letter to the Boston Journal.
An article in a recent number Of the
journal on this subject was a reminder
to me of quite a number of incidents in
my experience with this useful and in
teresting animal. When quite young,
being very fond of hunting, | procured
a brace of fox hounds, calling n of
them Buck and the other Mountain.
They were both we'll trained for the
chase, and upon a frosty day in Deem
Der they had a fox on a large open
meadow of some fifty acres, oblong in
shape, and were pressing him hard
when | came up and got a good shot at
him, but failed to bring him down,
The fox, when hard pressed, will often
make a circuit around o hill or meadow
two or three times, and by his move
ments / thought he was going to do SO
in this instance. When the dogs came
up / said to Mountain: 'The fox is
coming here again; head him off across
lots" He at once stopped his baying
and started in q eross-lot course, while
Buck pressed him hard in the rear with
his usual noise and vigor. In a few
| ullull66 jill WAS ONCI WILL AeCy udIoJ nc
running almost directly into the dogs
mouth, who, IN good hound style. fin
ished him at once. During the winter
evenings following my neighbors would
| call in. When I would relate to them
the feat of this dog, Mountain would at
once Jump from the floor, putting his
paws into my lap, looking me in he
face, seeming to say, "Did I not do it in
| good style?" At the same time Buck
| did not pay the least attention to the
conversation, but lie quietly OF the
floor.
Later on in life it became my duty to
assist in taking the grand list in my n a
tive town, at a time when dogs were put
into the list at 81 each. / had taken the
list ola neighbor of mine, when / saw a
fne-looking dog lying on the floor, and
on inquiry found he owned him. / then
told him it was my duty to put the dog
into his list at 50. He said he was moi
able to pay the tax, aud was not aware
that there was such a law, and would
kill the dog that night. The dog left that
night and went to a son of his present
master in a neighboring town and could
never be persuaded to return to his form
er home. After this / owned a little
pet dog called Cass, who used to 60 with
me in my trips with a team from town
to town, until he got quite old, and ]
used to shut him up to prevent his go
ing with me, telling HIM he was too old.
but one morning no Cass was to be found
on the premises, and | started on my
trip over the hills. When
away about two miles / noticed some.
thing unusual under my buggy seat, and
on inspection found it to be my pet dog
Cass. / called him q very bad dog, and
told him TO come out and get a good
whipping. He left the carriage at nee
and through the entire day kept him
self at a good distance from me. The
next morning when / was getting my
team out to make n of my trips, Cas-
was not to be found on the premises.
started, but in passing q long row O
sheds attached to a church ediice neal
my place, out jumped the dog from hi!
hiding place, and with a few jumps
placed himself in the carriage beside me
Who says dogs do not understand oul
language?9