Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-04-26
THE TOPICAL TALKER.

THE TOPICAL TALKER.
A NobIeman Among Dog.-The English Mas
tiff Wade-He Knows When saturda,
Comes-The HIastiff as Guardinn-M.
Dog Blanco.
| A MoNG my canine acquaintance in this neigh
borhood is q large English mastiff,
Thoroughbred, who rejoices in the name o.
Wade. Our acquaintance is not intimate. fol
Wade does not care for the friendship of men
although he has IN Astounding love for womer
and children, especially little children. H,
seems to think that his mission in life is to pro
tect the weak and tender. A grand purpose il
life for man or dog. In his relations with hii
| own race the same sort of chivalrio feeling ap
| pears to govern him. He is not at all quarrel
| some, and though reserved toward most dogs
the dignity he always preserves is tinged with
good nature.
Sometimes his behavior to dogs smaller than
himself might seem to the uninitiated a little
overbearing. A visiting dog will attempt tc
leave the premises before Wade has concluded
a conversation with him, and then the great
paw of the English mastiff is apt to descend
upon the visitor. making him prisoner till
Wade has said his say. Wade does not mean
this unkindly, but occasionally the other dogs
feelings are hurt and he howls dismally.
=
THOSE who are wont TO dispute the existence
of reason in dogs are invited to consider
the following story:
Wade, the big English mastiff, mentioned
above is the actor. In the morning of six days
of the week you may see Wade solem My STROLL
ing about the lawn, or lying gracefully posed
with his grand head between his forepaws on
the porch. But on the seventh day-literally
the seventh of the week. Saturday-after
breakfast, at which meal he always on that
day refuses to participate. Wade invariably ac-
companies his masters man to the railroad
station. Every day by a certain morning train
the supplies of meat, groceries, ETC., come
down to the neighboring railroad station, and
the hired man goes to fetch them. On five
days-for Sunday is out of the count of course
he goes alone When Saturday comes he has
Wade for a companion.
Why does Wade eat no breakfast on Satur-
daysP Why does he on that morning alone and
then uninvited, 60 down to the railroad sta
ton?
On Saturdays the butcher puts into the bas-
ket for this household a piece of meat espe-
cially for the lordly mastif. Wade knows that
a neck of beef or some other choice morsel is
his every Saturday morning. He refuses to
spoil his appetite therefore by eating the usual
the departure of the hired man only on that
particular morning.
Wade must have done some deep thinking;
he must be able to count the days. Saturday is
like all other days in that household, yet Wade
knows it directly he wakes, and arranges his
programme in accordance with his foreknowl-
edge of the butchers provision for him. That
is to say the mastiff exercises the rational
power of which man would fain persuade him.
self he has the monopoly. To echo the passion
ate exclamation of many little child: 20, that
dogs could talkr' What startling revelations
they might make!
IN my scrap book have poem which was
written by someone whom know not who
must have loved and known the canine nature
well. Probably the poem will be new to most
of you, and have no scruples III giving it In
full:
ITO MY DoG-BLANCO."
My dear. dumb friend low-Iying there,
willing vassal at my feet
Glad partner of my home and fare,
My shadow in the street.
look into your great brown eyes,
Where love and loyal homage shine,
And wonder where the difference lies,
Between your soul and mine!
For all of good that have found,
Within myself or humankind,
Hath royalty informed aud GRO wned,
Your gentle heart and mine.
1 scan the whole broad earth around,
For that one heart which. leal and true,
Bears friendship without end or bound,
And find the prize in you!
1 trust you as L trust the stars:
Nor cruel loss, nor scoff of pride,
Nor beggary, nor dungeon bars
Can move you from my side!
As patient under injury,
AS any Christian saint OF old,
As gentle lamb with me,
Bnt with your brothers bold.
More playful than frolic boy,
More watchtul than a sentinel
By day and night your constant JOY,
To guard and please me well!
clasp your head upon my breast
And while you whine and lick my hand
And thus our friendship is confessed,
And thus we understand!
All. 'Blanco,' did 1 worship God
AS truly as you worship me,
Or follow where my Master trod
With your humility!
Did sit fondly at His feet
As you, dear 'Blanco, sit at mine,
And watch Him with love sweet,
My life would grow divine!'
IF you live in the country, and your house is
isolated and yet near any of the tramp
trunk roads, you cannot procure a better
guardian for your wife and children than one
of these big English mastiffs. They have
deep-rooted dislike fortramps and all disrepu-
persons.
Once tramp, masquerading as book agent
though the heavy cudgel he carried was more
impressive than his book, called at the country
home of friend of mine. A little daughter of
the latter opened the door, and the tramp. in a
gruf voice. asked to see the lady of the house.
Now it so happened that the lady>of the house
was sick, and she told her little girl to inform
the alleged book agent of the fact. The child
did as she was bid, and the cowardly brute of
tramp told her in filthy language that she lied.
Frightened out of her wits the child ran crying
to her mother, who was lying on svfa in the |
parlor.
go and tell Mary to send the man away" |
was the mothers suggestion, and the child ran |
back to the kitchen over which Mary, a strap |
ping Irish GIRL presided In the kitchen also |
was big English mastiff, and he went with |
Mary to the door. He growled menacingly |
when he saw the tramp. The man turned white |
when he saw the dog
Lave the placer said Mary. shortly.
Call off your dogr' shrieked the tramp. for |
the mastiff was backing him off the porch.
Lave the placer repeated Mary.
"Call that dog off," again yelled the tramp, |
getting ready to run; and this colloquy contin-
led till the tramp was back in the road-a few |
PAGES behind him the dog The way that tramp |
-an seemed to astonish the dog even.
Now. what might have happened had not the |
nastiff been on guard? Well. murder has be en-
lone in like circumstances. Tramps are i'm pu-
lent and threatening until the huge leonine |
,orm of the mastiff looms up. Then they turn
white and shuttle of with strange civlity upon |
l,a;- Linz Tho thara,,rahrad Ennlish |