Omaha daily bee., 1896-08-09

W w ilbnNy,fNtp, ny o o. Ni'Niuif WI
boy in Winnipeg, the capital city of the
province of Manitoba, in northwestern Can
ada, who doesn't own dog is looked upon
by his fellows With suspicion. And a boy
who owns a dog above the size of pug or
fox terrier and doesn't train him to go"
as it is called in a sleigh in the winter
and small sulky in the summer is con-
sidered as being little better than a girl.
Like the game of lacrosse. the dog driving
has come to Canadian boys from the In
dians. In other days, before the settlement
Of the western prairies of Canada, winter
travel from Lake Superior to the Rocky
mountains and from Minnesota to the Arctic
ocean was carried on by means of dogs. Even
today In the western parts of the Canadian
west the dog train is the regular means of
conveyance of mails and travellers by the
Hudson Bay company and the fur traders
of the north. Dog driving, then, comes
naturally to the boys of Winnipeg where
twenty-five years ago winter journey with
horses was comparatively unusual.
ToUCHE TUPPER.
And 1t came particularly natural to little
Touohe Tupper, newsboy and general roust-
about For Touche loved dogs, and boy
who didn't love dog very seldom amounted
to much a dog trainer. Touches
parents had died and left him at 10 years
no kith or kin of his own to lavish any af-
fection uron, and being human, and accord
ingly finding 1t necessary to have an outlet
for his affections, he became devoted to
dog And such dog. 1t was an ugly,
i'll conditioned looking cur everybody said,
but that didn't make any difference to
Touche. He had found 1t as he crouched,
one bizzardy night in the doorway of the
postofice at the outset of his newsboy life
when he was in need of sympathy. as much
tt.N ila tl.I L.,
and licked his hand. Were travelling in
hard luck tonight, puppy" said Touche. as
he snugyled the shivering little thing under
his coat. This blizzard chased the people
from the streets and I'm stuck with my
papers and you're nearly froZe to death.
Well misery likes company, so come on"
And Blizzard, as he there and then chris
tened it, shared Touches corner in the half
breed shack and the ups and downs of
street Arabs life, until he grew to dog
hood.
AS neither Blizzard or Touche made any
pretense to pedigree, there was fellow feel
ing between them. They were both vaga-
bonds. And when TouChe requested Biz
zard to 'go" in sleigh at very early
stage of his career, he didn't exactly see
the drift of it until Touche pointed out
that every self-respecting dog in Winnipeg
went in for it and that it was not well to
be "out of de push" Blizzard then strove
to excel at itJ His long legs and lean
body placed him on equality in the sled
with the dogs which appeared at bench
shows and showed their arstocratic teeth
at him they passed Touche and him on
the street 2 ..
Yer better dog than ary of them, Bliz,"
said Touche, as he embarrassed him one
night after Blizzard had borne him from
the center Of the city to the little shack
on the prairie 0r'And We'll show 'em some
day. Yer mayn't be much looks, but
yer got the heart. Those small kids can
laugh at yerdibut' If we git chance We'll
show EN-" tiAnd the chance came
IA GREAT RACE.
In May. 1se4D the little prairie city of
Winnipeg was all agog with excitement.
The meeting of the Manitoba Turf associa-
tion was on. Westerners who are deprived
of amusement in the way of theaters, ex-
cursions, ETC., common to the east generally
take their vacation in strong doses. Rae
ing is high in favor Wand business is prac-
tically suspended during a race meeting.
Touche, who then 13 years old while
laboriously reading the events announced
on the flaming big posters of the Turf as
sociation's spring meeting, placarded on
Portage avenue saw an item which read
Dog race one-half. mile, purse 500 to first.
$50 to second, best out of three heats"
He looked down at Blizzard who seemed
to have one eye on his young master and
the other on the poster as II reading it
for Blizzard always tried to do what Touche
dld-and said: ''What dye say, Biz?
Shall we try turn at it?" Blizzard looked
as If running race before the people of
city was just what he mad been waiting
for. "All right, then, Biz" said Touche;
well show those dude dogs a thing or
two" And he went off and made arrange
ments for sulky that cost him winters
savings The making of dog sleighs and
dog sulkies is one of the branches Of Win
nipeg carriage building establishment and
the little sulky that finally met with
Touches approval just suited to Biz
zard. with a new collar / guess we'll
be fixed. Biz" said Touche he took him
for trial spin over the course of the Turf
association afternoon before he went
for his papers.
THE ENTRIES.
'I'm not going to drive yet with rens
from yer nose the way the swells does.
If you don't understand me now yer never
will" And Blizzard wagged his tail.
Twas the afternoon. The dog race had
Just been called from the judges stand
and the gaily dressed ladies and their es-
corts in the grand stand returned to their
places and the crowds surging against
fI7Zzz6zYIX lMZgXI MIzzZZ- n