Orleans County monitor. [volume] (Barton, Vt.) 1872-1953, 1896-09-28
THE CARRIER DOG.

OAdOI 10 educate her ten year Ola
boy, Hugh. When she told him about
her plans his eyes sparkled, and the
first question he asked was:
'sCan Shop go, too?"
"Well, no; Pm sorry,o his mother
told him, "but the city is no place for
dogs, and we'll have all we can do to
buy meat for ourselves, without the
dog"
''I'll give him my share, mother, if
you'll only let him go.'
Don't tease, Hugh. Wen have no
use for the dog; there'll be no COW to
drive to pasture"
'sBuS don't we want watchdog?"
''It's your bedtime; don't talk any
more about the dog to night,o his
mother said.
So Hugh went upstairs, carrying at
heart his first real sorrow. He cried
himself to sleep, and then dreamed Of
the dog. The first sound he heard
in the morning was Shop barking in
the yard, and the sound of the dogs
voice increased the weight which he
had felt on his heart all night.
When Hugh and Shop trotted down
the lane after the COW, Hugh did not
tell the dog about the sale of the farm
and the new home in the city, because
he did not have the heart to make the
dog feel badly. Shop skipped lightly
along the grassy margin Of the path,
but Hugh scuffed heavily through the
dirt with his bare feet, leaving cloud
of dust behind him.
All day Hugh pleaded with his
mother, but she still said that the dog
could not go. That night Hugh sat
out on the back porch with Shop be-
side him.
''Shep," he said, ''we're going away
and mother says l can't take you
along"
Hugh expected to hear Shep howl;
but the dog just looked up in Hugh's
face and thumped the floor of the
porch with his tail.
"We're going away, and you can't
CO." Hugh said, putting his mouth
close to the dogs ear.
Shop seemed to understand "can't
CO." for he hung his head and 10 ked
ruefully out of the corners of his eyes
at Hugh. When Hugh saw the look he
threw his arms around the dogs neck.
"Don't feel badly, Shep. I'll try to
get you good home somewhere"
Hugh said.
Hugh went to the farmers and ask
ed them to take Shep; but all the
farmers had dogs of their own, and
did not want Shep. The farmer who
had purchased his mothers farm had
a dog, so Shop could not remain there.
His mother said the dog must be
killed. So Hugh said: eff Shops got
to be shot, I'll kill him myself. don't
want any other Teller Airing dozen
shots into my dog. If he's got to be
killed, I'll do it myself, and then III
know if he suffered or mott
Hugh had never fired gun in his
life, but he thought he knew how to
handle one. He borrowed an old rus
ty weapon of a farmer and hid it in
the stone wall Of the pasture lot.
Every morning when he and the
dog drove the COW to pasture, he
glanced toward the place in the stone
wall where the gun was; but the gun
remained in covert and Shep came
home alive.
His mother did not say anything
more about the killing of the dog un-
til the day that she and Hugh were to
leave the farm to go to town. Then
she told Hugh that he must kill the
dog at once.
Hugh started down the lane, with
Shop bounding along by his side.
There had been heavy frosts, but
now the weather was mild and hazy;
again the crickets chirped in the stone
walls; crows cawed over in the woods,
squirrels and chipmunks raced in and
out of the rail fences; a robin fitting
on the topmost bough Of a hickory
tree whistled a midsummer song,
Hugh noticed all this. The lane had
been his playground every summer of
his life. He was much attached to it
as the birds and squirrels were. But
now it seemed a hideous place, for it
had suddenly become the battle
ground where he must kill, not his
enemy, but his dearest comrade. And
it was real battle; he never fought
harder one in all the rest of his life.
Chidren's sorrows are very intense;
they see nothing beyond. They feel
that they must obey, without reason
ing way out of the difficulty.
Hugh walked slowly, dragging his
feet after him. Shep hunted along