The Abbeville press and banner. [volume] (Abbeville, S.C.) 1869-1924, 1885-09-16

of it-she could neither rest nor find
peace of mind; she thought aad planned
and devised necessarily, obstinately.
The dog, which slept at her feet, occa
sionally lifted his head with start and
howled at the empty air. Since his mas,
ter had been killed the dog often howlcd
like that, as if his inconsolablc animal.
soul was also haunted by memory
which nothing could eiface.
Now, one nj ght while Allegro was
howling, q sudden idea came TO his
molher-an idea worthy of vind!ctive
and ferocious savage. Size thought ovcl
it until morning, and, rising at the first
CLEAN of dawn, she hurried to the
church. There. PROSTATE upon the pave
ment, casting herself down before God,
she prayed Him to aid her, to sustain
her, to give her poor old body strength
to enable her to avengc her son.
Then she went home. She had an old
barrel in her yard. which she used to
collect the rain. water in. This she emp
tied, laid on its side, fixed firmly to the
ground by means of stakes and slaves.
Then she chained Allegro to this cxtcin'
porized kennel and went into the house.
She began to walk backward and for
ward in her room. without ever resting
-glancing from time to time at the Sar'
dinian coast. lie was thcrc-thc muir
! dcrcr
All that day and all the night follow
ing the dog howlcd. III the morning
the old woman brought him bowl ol
water, but nothing clsc-not even q BIT
of bread or Il drop of soup.
| Another day passed. Allegro, worn
out with hunger, slept. When morning
came his eyes glttcrcd, all his hair bris.
tied, and he pulled crazily at his chain.
Still the old woman gave him nothing
to eat. The brute became furious, and
barked hoarsely. Another night passed.
Early in the morning Mother Saverini
went to her nearest neighbor and begged
for some wisps Of straw. Then she took
some old othes that had formerly be
longcd to her husband and stuffed them
with the straw so as to initiate the form
of human body.
Planting pole firmly in the ground in
front of Allcgro's kennel she fastened
the mannikin upon it so that it seemed
to stand. Then she made head for it
out of some old rags fastened into q
ball.
The astonishcd dog stared at this man
of straw and stopped bowling, although
tortured with hunger.
Then the old woman went to the
butcher shop, and bought long, black
sausage, which she took home with her.
She kindled wood fire in the yard, near
the kennel, and began to cook the sau'
sage. Allegro, wild with expectation,
mad with the odor of the meat, that
entered his very cntrails, lcapcd and
howled, and fcamcd at the mouth.
Then the mother made a cravat for the
straw man ont of the smoking sausage.
She tied it very tightly around the neck
of the mannikin, as if to squeeze it into
the pole. When this was done she un.
chained the dog.
With one tremendous bound the dog
reached the throat of the maunikin, and
with his paws pressed against the
shoulders began to tear. He fell back
with o piece in his mouth, devoured it.
lcaped again, driving his teeth through
the strings, tore away another morsel--
and lcaped again, and tore away furi.
ously. He rent away the head with
frenzied bites; he tore the neck into
ribbons.
Silent and motionless the old woman
watched him, while her eyes blazed.
Then she chained up the dog again;
made him fast for two days more, and
recommended the strange lesson.
For three whole months she accus-
toned him 10 this sort of q struggle for
food-to repasts obtained only by the
strength of his fangs. Then she ceased
to chain him: for she had him so we'll
trained that he would leap at the man
nikin the moment she gave him sign.
She had trained him even to rend it,
to devour it. when there was no meat at
tached to it. AS his reward she always
gave him big piece of fried sausage.
Whenever Allegro looked at tie man
nikin his whole body would Quivcr with
excitement, aud he would turn his eyes
to the face of his mistress, wait for her
to hiss the words cat him!' with finger
pointing.