The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1898-04-03
THIS DOG ALMOST HUMAN
LADY NORWOOD UNDERSTANDS
HER MAaTER's LANGUAGE.
Owned by J. n. Francis, of This City
Carries Notes so Different Peo-
PLEDGES Marketing.

Probably one of the most intelligent dogs
In the land is owned in this city by j. r.
FRANCIS 1t is beautiful. rough-coated ST.
Bernard named Lady Norwood, and was
presented to Mr.. Francis recently by Dr.
w. A Heckard. The dog is now five years
Old and has, it is claimed, vocabulary of
forty-five words, which she understands as
well as a human being That she knows
the words, rather than the tone or infection
Of the voice, is demonstrated by daily in
stances where she shows that she under
stands strangers, as well as those with
whom she has come in contact often. With
most trained dogs it is the gesture en-
ployed or the manner of speaking that indi-
Gates to the dog what is required of ii. A
command to close door is accompanied
by wave of the hand in that direction
Inc tricks accomplished by trained dogs
exhibited in public are done by rote. and the
cue Is given them, usually, by some gesture
or the emphasis Of expression.
with Lady Norwood it is quite different.
If her master desires her to close a door
he need not so much as look at either the
dog or the door. He may be reading a pa
per, and without taking his eyes from it
viii say: Lady close the door" and the
intelligent animal will do as hidden She
also understands the difference between the
grocery store and the butcher, and will go
to either place as commanded, carry a
basket and return with whatever may have
been ordered in the note she is given. In
the same way she will carry notes to diff
ferent people whose names she remembers.
Lady Norwood was raised in Columbus
by DR.. Heckarc, and the most of the COM
\ ri< Oh
trusted with notes for any one of half
dozen persons and would always deliver
them right. take this to Mrs. Johnson
she would be told, and there was never any
fear that Mrs Perkins or Mrs. Brown
would get the note In the summer months
Or. Heckard left the house open and the
screea doors hooked. Lady Norwood had
place indoors to sleep and she was careful
guardian. But she never made any of the
noises common to her kind, such as barking
or growing. If any person came to the
mousse at night she would go quietly into her
masters room and pull at his arm until she
awakened him.
OBEYED NEW COMMANDS
Lady Norwood seems to have a good men,
DRY and also to be a great thinker If sew
eral articles, such as a shoe, q hat, a brush
and book be placed together on the floor
she will obey any command given her re-
garding any one of the articles designated
Bring me the book" and she will pick up
the book. On one occasion she went with
her master to the home of a lady in whose
house she had never before been. She re-
mained near by during the time that dinner
was being served. The lady of the house
tossed her biscuit, which she greedily de-
voured, biscuit being a favorite morsel
with her. However, she will not eat other
bread. The lady tossed Lady Norwood a
piece of bread and at the same time threw
another piece into the fireplace. Lady Nor
wood picked up the piece thrown to her and
threw 1T into the fireplace also. To see
what she would do with it the lady threw
her another piece of bread and she started
don't she stopped. She was then com
manded to lie down and eat it, She Law
down and took the bread in her mouth and
pretended to swallow it. The lady, seeing
that the dog would not eat the bread, told
her in low tone to throw it into the
CRATE" and she did so. Lady Norwood had
never been taught to do this and she had
never heard the lady's voice before.
The average trained dog will bark and
run to door or gate as q sign that it
would like to- have it opened. Lady Nor
wood goes much further than this. She can
open some doors and is Independent in this
line. On an occasion when she was thirsty
she brought an empty pail to her master
Since she has found a new master Lady
Norwood spends considerable time about j.
N. Hurty's drug store, where Mr.. Francis
is employed. She has learned considerable
in this time Anything that is lying about
the floor she will pick up and throw into
the waste basket or carry out to trash
box on being told
HOW SHE GETS BREAKFAST
She has learned to go to a neighboring
restaurant for her morning meal. young
man in the store will tell her to get her
basket and she will go into rear room and
get a two-handled split market basket and
carry it to the restaurant. She never stops
en- her way, but brings the basket contain
ing her breakfast to the store and eats what
is given her from it. One morning recently
the handles of the basket were turned down
at the ends and she could not loosen them.
She carried the basket into the store and
looked for the young man. lie had gone
out, and she set the basket at the feet of a
stranger who happened to be in the store.
He released the handles, and Lady Nor
wood went for her breakfast. One morning
Lady Norwood failed TO get the command
to get her basket, and she went without
breakfast. About 1 o'clock she became so
hungry that she went to the restaurant
without the basket The clerk sent her
back, telling her she e9uid not get AWNING any
utes later with the basket and was re-
warded.
Lady Norwood is very particular as to
what she eats. One day she was given a
small pail of beef broth She did not like
it, and carried it into the yard and emptied
it and brought the pail back. A short time
after that she was caring for seven little
puppies, and her master again offered her
beef broth, telling her that it would be good
for her and the pups She partook of it and
continued to do so daily until the pups were
weaned. Since then she has refused to
touch it,
Lady Norwood has a pedigree as long as
some of the proudest Britons. She was
born at the Norwood Kennels. Norwood, o.,
May l, 1893. She was sired by Duke OF Nor
Her ancestors were originally from the
Alps and she can trace her lineage directly
her ancestors, Champion carry, had a rec
ord OF saving fifty-seyen people from per-
ishing In the snow of the Alps. Lady Nor
wood was bred when she was two years
old to the famous Little Rock St Bernard,
Belvidere, a picture of whom ornaments the
lobby of the Grand Hotel. Belvidere died
little over year ago, and his DEAN was
reported by the Associated Press ano given
more space than some men or natlonal rep