The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1893-08-06
THIS WAS A NOTABLE LAMB.
Il Trained with a Sporting Dog and so
Gained Wide Fame on the Range.


associations.
One day a couple of years ago a cowboy
came riding over the trail that runs down
the Tulerosa creek and stopped at the
'dobe house of Harry Delgar, which is all
there is of Joseph postoftice, and asked
for his mail When he had got il he
turned to MIR. Degar's two little girls,
Inez and Juauita, about 10 and II years
old. and said.
"Girls, would you like pet lamb2"
The girls said they would, and then
he told them of seeing lamb near the
trail, where it had been left by the care
less herders who had driven a flock Of
sheep that way early in the morning. 1t
would surely die if left where ii was and
so, since no one would ever come TO claim
it. they could have it if they would save
its life. 1t was a hot day, but the girls,
with a bottle Of milk in hand, soon trav-
eled the mile or so of the trail and found
the lamb still alive 1t was brought
home in comfortable condition, and there
after fiourished as well rs ever any pct
lamb did that was brought up on bottle,
baby fashion.
At that time Mr.. Delgar was not in the
sheep business, and the only four-legged
animals about the ranch were two very
good bunting dogs. These dogs did not
have a good opinion of the lamb itself;
in fact, they resented the attention it got
at meal-time from the girls But after
two or three days they tolerated il, and
later, being young dogs, got TO playing
with il in dog fashion. Later still sin
gular attachment between the lamb and
one of the dogs called Spot was devel-
oped. They not only played together at
sunset, as all fTisky domestic animals are
likely to do. but they became companions
at all times of the day and night.
For several months this attachment
continued without producing any unusual
results and then, one day, Mrs. Delgar
started off with horses and buggy to visit
a neighbOr ten miles down the road. AS
she drove along she happened TO meet an
other neighbOr riding along on horseback.
This neighbor saluted her as usual, and
then began to laugh boisterously, as he
pointed under the buggy.
you've got a new style coach dog,
havn't youin he said.
Mrs. Delgar said she hadn't, but the
neighbor invited her TO look under the
buggy and see, which she did There
was the lamb trotting along close beside
its friend Spot, just between but clear of
the heels of the horses, which were
hitched up pretty wide apart That act
gave the lamb a reputation, and for
weeks every one who came to the post
office asked Mrs Delgar about her new
style coach dog.
However, the lamb was not done with
its imitation of the tricks Of its friend
Spot The lamb was adopted by the girls
in the spring, and by the middle of October
it had developed into a remarkably fine
specimen Of range sheep, because it had
been well fed and cared for In Septem-
Der it had been sheared, and in the middle
of October its wool had grown again SUM-
bientlY to cover its nakcdncss, and the
girls were prOuder than ever Of their pet,
when one day it disappeared. The calls
for il afer the family dinner brought no
response, and the girls in some wonder
discussed the matter all the afternoon.
The supper came and passed and stiu the
lamb was missing, nor did the search
which the girls began as soon as the
dishes were washed show any trace
of it. While they were feeling very sor-
rowful over the loss, Mr.. Delgar re-
membered that Spot had not been around
at any time during the afternoon. And
so bed time came without any solution of
the mystery Of the disappearance of the
two friends, and the girls cried them
selves TO sleep in consequence. They
were still without comfort the next night
at bed time, for, in spite of a much wider
and more careful search, nothing to show
the fate of the two animals was found
So the girls concluded that the lamb had
gotten into trouble with a mountain lion.
somewhere about the ravines south of the
house, "varmints,' as they are called on
the desert, being somewhat numerous in
the broken lands, and that Spot in an eff
fort to save his friend, had been killed as
well.
MIR. Dalgar was himself inclined to
think this might be the case, and next
day was preparing TO take turn with his
rifle in the region referred to, hoping to
settle the matter just to please the girls,
when what should they all see but Spot
come slowly up from a box canon that is
below the house. His head and tail were
down, and every movement showed that
he was a very tired dog. A moment later
came the lamb from the same direction
and 1t was still more weary and worn
than its hairy friend. Reaching the
house they both dropped down in the shade
and were almost instantly fast asleep
The lamb, when aroused with an offer Of
food, ate greedity and then dropped off
asleep again, but Spot refused food and
sought new place to sleep. When awak-
ened, Mr.. Delgar noted this and looked
the dog over carefully, the examination
making him smile at thought it sug-
gested, but what this thought was he re
fused TO tell to the girls, because he could
scarce believe it reasonable supposition
A week later the dog and the lamb dis
appeared exactly as they had done before,
and when on the next day they mad not
returned Mr.. Delgar mounted a pony and
started off across the country with his ri
fie He thought he might find Spot and
the lamb and he was not mistaken Ri
ding to a region which he and Spot had
often visited tOgether-a region where
many trails not made by either cattle on
sheep could be found-he selected IA famil-
lar clump Of trees and stopped TO rest
In less than ten minutes the cry of Spot
was heard, and then came a young doe
flying for life with the dog in close pur-
suit, while behind the dog was the lamb,
as full of enthusiasm as pup on its first
chase and doing its level best 10 help Spot
run that deer to its death. When Delgar
had examined Spot after his return from
the first expedition he found blood about
the dogs muzzle and thought IL possible
that he had chased and killed some kind
of game-perhaps a deer-but it seemed
so nearly incredible that a lamb should
have followed dog in such wild race
that he would say nothing of it until op-
portunity offered for further investiga-
ton. Thereafter, Mr.. Delgar says the
dog and the lamb went hunting together
several times, and the lamb acquired a
new fame throughout the region
1t was not very long after the lamb had
been found following the dog in the chase
that Mr.. Delgar bought flock of range
sheep as an investment, and they We're
eventually brought TO the ranch by the
herder. The lamb, for the first time
since it was old enough to know anything,
saw other members of its own species