Evening star., 1899-06-03
CANINE CHARACTERISTICS

dogs as they await their respective fates in
| the big. all-inc.osing cages at the pound.
| is study in pathos. The conduct of the
dogs is SO startlingly human, so extraordi-
narily like the conduct of captured and pen
! ned-up human beings, that one is inclined.
with respect to himself ard his kind, to
| muse rather too connectedly for complete
| comfort upon that unsatisfactory subject,
| the reversion to ancestral types. Here are
| all sorts and conditions of dogs. reduced to
| the common grief and humiliation of cap
| tivity. big, black and yellow mongrel,
with a long tail covered over with burrs.
an ear that has palpably been gnawed and
shortened in combat, and a general appear
[ ance of quite hopeless canine depravity-a
| veritable hobo of dogs by his appearance
| lies close up to the front of the big barred
cage, his head resting between his muddy
| paws, and oTiy jaGnGiced eye open
| upon misgoverened world
| We'll, it's all to me what they do
| with me- his appearance and manner seem
| to say. I've got the worst of the whole
game of life from the very beginning.
was born plebeian, and I've been one OF
| the ugiest of all living whelps ever since l
was born. In fact, the only kind treatment
| L ever got at any hand or paw was from
| my poor old bat-eared mother. and she
| lost long ago that / can hardly re-
member how she looked; but can remem-
| Der her washing me, and feeding me, and
| like TO have another lcok at the old girl
! before they finish me off, at that Wen,
| since l left her and got mixed up with the
| push I've had the bum end OF 1t rlght
| along and I've never known for a minute
| what it was like to have homo IKE some
| of these whiinpering little NUTS around
me. I've had to hustle for every mouthlul
| [ got to eat and I've frozen during long
| winters enough. They've tied tin cans to
my tail and shot of firecrackers under me.
! and thrown rocks at me, and half-drowned
| me, and chased me up hill and down dale,
and triedsto shoot me under the supposllon
| that l was mad (when l was only starVlng),
| and I'll tell you what, l haven't had any
! picnic at any stage Of the journey. L don't
| know what kind of d game this is that m
| up against now, but l guess it's my finish
| All right. Let 'em bring on their finish
| It's all one to me-.
| The big, kindly eyed. sensible-faced mas
tiff sitting up solemnly in the rear OF one
| of the cages, listening with apparent SYM
pathy to the nervous whining of some OF
| the little, restless chaps, seems to be out
| of place in the captive cage, as does lndeeu'
many another of the gathered-in dogs He
appears to regard the whole business as
one horrible, blunderng, bad job.
Il really don't know what the deuce that
master of mine can be thinking of to per-
nit me to stay in this blasted place for this
| length of time his reproachful manner
seems tc say. Il can't imagine what's got
| into him. To think OF the way I've watched
| out and cared for that family all these
| years, and then to be treated like this! L
| give it to you straight, it, enough to make
| any dog growl. Surely my master has
| enough sense to know that L am not the
| kind of dog to get lost. [ never got lost in
| my life, and he knows it. He ought to
| know that the only thing that would keep
| me away from home is the power of the
| law, and here I've been languiShing for
| three days simply because that idiotic
! youngest kid in our family took my collar
| and tag off the other morning to clean EN-
pe1ore went out for my morning walk.
And then the black minion of the law came
along, catching me unaWdreS. and gathered
me into this terrible nest It's a bad Job,
I that's what it is. and don't know what's
| going to come of it. 1 had thought to pass
| my old age in peace and quiet, instead of
| being reduced to such mortifying captivity
| as this 1t makes me dead sore, that's what
| II does, and if.something doesn't happen
pretty soon, why-bow-wow- wow
And the big mastiff joins the chorus with
few deep-throated barks.
The tiny pug, with something of the tight
| curl already taken out of his little screw
| or tail. and an expression of deep-seated
resentment on his tip-tilted countenance,
| takes hysterical view of the whole bust
ness, II his appearance and manner count
| for anything.
| This jokes about played out" he seems
| to be musing. "A good things good thing
ana enough's enough. L don't intend to
| stano much more Of this indecent treat
neht, and you hear me a-talking. Why the
! IDEA! L haven't had my bath in two whole
| days, and l haven't so much as claimed
eyes on my mistress, let alone getting a
| sohtary caramel from her! And yet she
hasn't enough ordinary intuition to feel thai
m prisoner down here in this miserable
piace! know she's just worried TO death
;tpout me, ana Wringing her hands and ad-
; IT,itIsins -, ts IN the newspapers. and making
an Kinds of hullaballoo. when. If she ontS
| khe" II, she could just jump on her hike
| ana ride over here in fifteen minutes and
pan me out OF this! Why, I'm in a really
udnserous hole, too! l saw them leading a
! or my race out to execution vastorJa,1
| afternoon, and they're quite capahIe of
making some awful mistake and leading
me-me-out if something doesn't tIr,o Is ,,
| soon ON, why didn't | stav in INV f-ont
yard while | had my collar and fag orr
! Why didnt | listen to my kind mistress and
80 ue d soou uog' and then l wouldn't be in
| such a-ow-ow-bow-wow!"
| ANA the pug subsidies into A dismal
| whine. uiShidi
The tiny. brown-eyed Japanese s1,aniet
| seems to take the confinement worst Of ali
| ne runs increasingly up and down in front
! OF the cage, sticking his little head through
| leased. ~ "e ie
Please, mister dog man. turn me loose
won't you, sir?" his pitiful little wbines
! seem TO say. II haven't done anything and
| want to go home l want to go home! |
! must go home! It's a sin and a, shame for
you TO Keep me locked up in here when |
| haven't done anything. And I'm getting
IuIl OF heas, associating with all these hor-
| fld bruteS in here. and please, mister dog
| man, turn me loose, | can't eat the awful
| coarse meat you feed to these common dogs
| IN mere, and I'll go crazy, that's what I'll
| 90! II you won't turn me loose lust let
me out there in the yard, and give me a
| plock start. and let me have a chance
| mats all. Oh, no. 1 wouldn't run away
on no! Ia just stand still, like a
| Stoushton bottle! Well, if you won't let
me go, III just set You crazy by yelling
50 there!-bow-wow-w -wow-wowr'
Then the little Japanese spaniel relapses
| into shriI barking that is so ear-rending
| that one of the darky pound men comes
| out OF the poundmaster's office at the en-
| trance to the inclosure and gruffiy orders
| the dog to shut up. At his coming all of
| the dogs cease their whimpering and bark
| and make a rush for the front of the cage
| They have reason to think that he is going
| TO turn one of their number loose and their
| curiosity over which of them is to be the
| lucky dog seems to make them breathe fas-
ter The common, outcast ours exhibit very
| little curiosity over the comings and goings
Of the pound men, but the ours are in a mi
| nority. Their apparent knowledge. how
| ever. that no one is sufficiently interested
| IN them to come after them is pathetic