Lexington gazette. [volume] (Lexington, Va.) 1871-1962, 1899-09-13
him along, Of course'"
al was kiad OF whistling, but not
to him in particular.

land--a royal beggar.
E"She was helping father of with
his wet coat.
We've no use for him. Why, an
animal like tnat will eat as much as an
OK.
.'Oh, father. I'll support him myself
out of my own spending money. Only
let him stay said I.
".Let Neddy's dog stay, said little
Ben, his lip a-quiveiing.
'.virgie hal got father into his arm
chair in The dining-room and brought
him his warm slippers. And pretty
soon she clma ont, and, don't you
think, she said might make the dog y
bed of straw in the woodshed, and We
would give him q square meal at din
ner time.
"And Ann she kept growing abou
giving notice; but Virgie didn't care.
"And virgie said he looked like \
dethroned monarch wandering at the
mercy Of the storm.
"Virgie reads in Shakespeare. and
she said that we would name him Lear
He's the one who says: BLOW, wind,
and crack your cheeks
"And that's the way Lear came to be
my dog.
I'VE went down 10 the river, as I
was saying, that twentieth OF Decem-
Der, when was ten years old. The
skating wasn't prime, and there WASH
another fellow out; bat I tried to er !
joy it pretty well.
"And Lear no ran up and down and
around on the bank, seeing what he
could find interesting.
"Therc were two men on the other
side. cutting and loading ice. 1 thought
I would skate over toward them.
ri hadn't got half way over when
there was great cracking, and / was
never go scared
"In an instant I plunged into cold
water. and went under I tried to
grab the ice, but it broke up, and
wouldn't hold; and I remembered every
bad thing ever did, and, oh, dear! |
thought Of mother, and didn't care for
no birthday party
"Somebody seemed to be rubt ing
and humping me awful, and then ,aftsr
an age, it seemed like, I opened nay
Q, es, and saw mothers own face clsse
to niue, and she kissed me quite con-
siderable. was on the old settee in
the kitchen There were Aannels and
hot water bottles all around me They
fed me some Cruel with spoon, and
l felt nice and warm an happy; and
l heard them say that the ice men had
brought me home, but it wasn't the
ice men that got me out They couldn't
get to me, all they could do
at was Lear, my Lear, that got me
out--drew me upon dry land
1.-THE current was swift there, said
one Of the men, iand he must have
bsen q gonsr if that there dog hada't
jumped after him like fash, and
tugged him out in no time"
d"Then mother, all OF q sudden, she
run to Lear, and she Rugged him
around the neck and cried.
"virgie she followed suit.
".The blessed baster said Ann.
"Then little Ben ran up. and kissed
Lear on the forehead. rr
Good dogp said be. Got Neddy
out Of river
"And Dear he just Tapped the Cruel
virgie gave him, and stretched out.be
fore the FIRE, and shut his eyes, as if he
hadn't done anything worth speaking
of.
"By and by, when they had stopped
making such q fuss. he got up, Lear
,hl, aud came aud put his paws on the
edge of the settee, and looked me
ri hit III the face. I tried to lift my
han | to pat his moss. but couldn't, I
W.. SO weak, so just said: cts oil
r ht, old fellow-a'l right and set
fled buck.
"Then mother huggsd him again
and virgie cried, and Ann she saids
THE blessid bastsl' again, and wiped
her eye with her apron; and Lear and
little Ben kissed each other, like David
and Jonathan.
III am all right again. I notice they
don't call him Nsds dog 20 much.
they say 'our dog now, and father has
bought him collar with Lear on it.
and thetdats Of my last birthday; and