St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1884-03-15
THE CELEBRATED DOG .sBOB."


THE CELEBRATED DOG "BOB."
A Friend i'm Need, and Friend Indeed.
"Some people like dogs and some
don't. but | think that it is the few who
are nervous and unreasonable about
'em. Sailors ant nervous, and speak
ing as a sailor, | may say that you might
poll the whole body and not find fifty
men who would say they hated them in
telligent four-footcd creatures.
There are dogs and dorS-some bet
Ter than others, bet er tempered, clever
er and more useful-but you would
have to travel far and wide to find n
better dog than our Bob of the Ezra.
Look at him. There he is n curly
backed retriever, not what they calls
pure bred, tor he's got the foul mark
on his feet and chest. But mark or no
mark, there's nothing foul about Bob.
He is all open and above board, honest
and true. noble and brave
1--WE were all fond of him on board
the Ezra long afore we knew all that
was in him. and I'm free To say that we
don't know all that is in him now. by a
long wav Much as he's done. I'll war
rant that he's free and ready to do more
if he's called on so to do.
1T was nasty business that being
crushed in the pack ice off Franz Joseph
Land and if none of us showed fear,
which we didn't. dare say most of us
took a serious view of the situation. |
He kept his tail up. that's what he did,
and in his style bid us be of good cheer.
He seemed to say in his way: Don't
be f'urrled; things look bad, and may be
worse, but never fear I'll get you out
of your muddle. I'll take care of you
And bless the dear old dog, if such was
the real meaning of his kindly eye, he
kept his word.
1--WE had year of it in that bleak,
barren land, and in hut of twelve feet
by ten, twenty-five OF us mot counting
Bob lived as best we could 1t was
close work you may guess. but we
didn't care for that as much as we did
for the prospect of starvation. which lay
right ahead. and nothing seemingly in
the way TO Staye ii off.
"You see we hadn't time to save
many provisions. for in little over an
hour the Ezra was gone. 1t was crush.
crush. for that time, and the dear little
yacht was only so much match-wood
and broken timber. We took to the
boats and got safe to land, with Bob
one of the party, CHEEKY rs ever. laugh
ing Ike, with his tongue out and in,
seeming to say: Here's change for
us. my lads, and one not looked for;
but while there's life there's hope. so
bear up, my lads, bear up.
ave might have borne up without
the dog. as others have done. for God
Almighty gives strength to men in time
of trouble which they never dreamed
before was in them: but Bob was surely
a comfort TO us, and such a help as we
never dreamed he could be-more help
than any man could have been-as I'm
sure you will say with me when you
hear all.
ave had twelve months hard life in
that place. and wintered in the hut, with
only barren land and ice about us, an
awfu! time, sir, and the days longer
than most weeks in mems lives: and all
the time food for us VERY doubtful.
AloBe we could have done little, but
Bob took to the purser business and got in
the provisions, making no charge for his
service except sort of commission on
what he brought in; and no man or dog
ever earned or deserved all he got better
than Bob did.
I'VE had to live on walruses and
bears, and il wasn't always easy to get
near enough to shoot 'em. 1t was here
that Bob came in. He had the will to
capture 'em, but he wasn't big
enough, and strong enough. so
he makes a tempting morsel of HIM
self. and dances about the bears until
they think they will make dinner of
him. They followed up with the idea.
and Bob just keeps out of their reach
until the bears were in range of our
guns. and then we refiils our larder with
'em, and so has many dinners for our
selves, instead of Bob being one for the
bears.
ut is no use my trying to make clear
how he did it. You ought to have seen it
done. He pretended to be afraid of them
animals; but there he was, no fear in
him. Bob ran away. but he forgot to
put his tail down. and while a dog has
his tail up You may reckon he is not
afraid of much near him.
''What boobies them bears must have
been to be took in by little chap like
Bob. But Tn thankful it was so; for
if the bears had been half as clever as
Bob We should not, in my opinion, be
alive now. A bear could never have
imposed on him: and the way that dog
used 20 laugh-yes, laugh, say what
You hke-when we were skinning and
cutting up the bear. would have done
you good to see.
..Then. again. having done so much.
be wasn't proud. He didn't give him.
self airs when he found he was necessary
to us, or be rude. or strike for more than
his share of meat, or do anything disa-
greeable. Through all he was the same
dear old dog you see now-Bob of the
Ezra. and nothing more.
..And enough, too. He is a dog of
dogs king among them intelligent
creatures; and when his story gets well
known. he'll do something for other