The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1896-11-28

What scene that closet presented,
l can't tell you how many pieces were
broken, but l remember that mother
sat down on the floor at last and cried
over grandmother's big punch bowl
that had been in the family for fifty
years. felt bad for her, and very
bad for myself. She had lost her
china, but I had lost my precious dog
for, of course, he was gone forever.
never saw father SO angry as he
was that day.
Nov the question is" he cried,
"who put that strange cur therea He
didn't walk in and shut the door after
him, l guess. Larry, do you know
anything about it,"
81 didn't know he was a-goin' to
break up things" I sobbed. THE
man told me he'd kill all the rats,
and | thought I'd s'prise mother.
He's tarrier and l bought him to-
day."
swell, you have 's'prised mother.
as you call it, with vengeance" fa-
Their said. eff you were not such a
simpleton, I think I'd give you a
good whipping for bringing a dog on
the place without permission. Under
stand young man, if l ever get a
glimpse of that cur, I'm going to put
an end to his life.- Go right upstairs
and don't leave your room until
night"
| climbed the steps lamenting SO
dolefully that my mother begged fa-
Their to remit the punishment, but he
was firm. was not crying so much
about being prisoner fora few hours,
but my fifty cents were gone, my dog
was gone, and, instead of my grand
triumph, l had been abased to the
dust.
was sitting on my stool, with my
face buried in my hands, when I felt
something cold touch them. / looked
down and nearly shouted. There
was Snap with his paw on my knees,
and his dirty, doleful visage on line
with mine.
My tears ceased suddenly. What
if my father should come up and
slaughter him before my eyes! 1
trembled at every step on the stairs,
and at last coaxed Snap to lie down
on some clothes under the bed where
he had evidently secreted himself.
did not feel that | was disobed-
lent in trying to save him, for had
not father said he would kill him if
he came across him. He had not
forbidden me to have anything to do
with him, and l was not very rea-
soning individual at that age.
After thinking and thinking, until
my head ached, l matured my plans.
About dark crept softly down -stails s,
leading Snap by the string, and
carried him across the field to an old,
deserted, tumble-down cabin that
stood on the edge of the woods.
Under any other circumstances,
would have been terrified to have
gone to that dismal hut at such an
hour, but that evening l had forgot
ten fear.
tied the dog to post, made him
bed of moss, and hurried home as
fast as my short legs would carry me.
At daylight the next morning, | was
back with his breakfast; and often
stinted my own meals to carry Snap
some delicacy.
VI course, my parents soon de-
tected me, but my father had not the
heart to carry out his threat. He
only frowned, and told me as long as
| kept the cur off the premises he
would not touch him, but if he broke
bounds-and then he shook his head
and left me to imagine all kinds of
frighful things.
think the very happiest hours of
my life were spent in those woods
with Snap frisking around me. He
had learned to frisk and wag his tail
like other dogs, and was no longer
NANCY, though he was as ugly as
ever. He knew his own name now,
and seemed to me the most intelligent
dog that ever lived
Why, that dog never seemed to
think of passing the boundary that
had been prescribed to him. If |
was late coming to the cabin, he
would station himself on his hind
legs outside the paling of the yard
and howl until l made my appear
ance. No one could coax him inside
the gate. l can't say, though, that
he ever showed any disposition to
tree coon or kill rat, 80 that as a
hunting dog he was failure.
One beautiful spring morning Snap
and | set out for long walk. l was
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