Greene County herald. (Leakesville, Miss.) 1898-current, 1905-01-20


to their great satisfaction.
Old Pard developed into a great
worker with stock. He was always
too swift. too impetuous to suit me,
but he was a big help. Many thou
sands of lambs he has helped pen, al
ways he was in place when it was
time to put the feeding lambs In the
barn or to drive them out at feeding
time. He would speak to them"
when they were tame and stubborn,
barking fiercely as long as you wished,
subsiding at command. He knew what
| wanted Of him always, but would
not always do it. / never knew what
perfect sheepdog he was capable of
being until one day when I was up
on a barn roof the lambs got gate
open and 500 of them came racing
into the road. Pard saw them before
| did and stopped them. / was about
to go down to his assistance, but to.
my establishment he began doing ex-
actly what l had long been trying to
teach him. going from side to side, his
white brush high in air, waving to
and fro, gently, quietly; slowly he
drove them back, never one mad rush,
never bark save when it was need
ed. 1t showed to me that he had
sense enough, that is, brain enough,
he knew, but the fierce impetuosity
of some alien blood made it very diff
cult for him to curb himself and
when was there he laid the burden
of restraint entirely upon me.
/ never knew dog with more con-
science, though it was hard for him
to use it sometimes. He hated swine
and was very rough with them. We
hardly dared set him to driving them,
for ne killed one or two shotes in his
impetuosity He would catch and hold
the largest SOW. One day neighbours
little pigs got into a cornfeld where
l was husking. We drove them out
and l had hard running to keep him
from injuring the fat little rascals.
This kept up for several days, each
time the same difficulty from Old
Pard's too great willingness. Finally
one day did not go to the field and
was dismayed to hear his excited
barking down there and the frantic
squeal of an infant pig. | ran as fast
as | could to save their lives, for my
neighbor was a good old man and
friend, but when l got to the crest
of the hill whence | could look down
and see the skirmish it was a most
curious and amusing sight. The big
dog was hurrying the pigs out, but
doing it in new and original man
ner for him. He would run with force
against them, knocking them endways,
then stop without biting at all, and
tail aloft and mouth open and eyes
dancing watch their recovery and lis
ten to their frantic squeals. Present
ly he would make another rush. |
said not word to-him and he escort
ed them thus harmlessly clear out OF
the field He had reasoned to him.
self: Now Joe is not here to pull
me off these little pigs. l can't bite
them, but must restrain myself. Hang
it all, but l will have some fun, any
way,"
Speaking of his conscience again,
here is an illustration. When we
killed hogs l always gave him the
kidneys. One day we butchered but
finishing late did not do more than
carry the carcasses into an clubhouse
and lay them on bench. Next morn
ing, coming down to see about mat
tiers, | was annoyed to see the door
ajar and yet more vexed when as l
stepped up Old Pard came out. He
looked up at me in friendly and con-
fding way, quite fearless, as though
to say Nov Joe, don't look so in
formally cross, know my place 1
guess" and l went in to see what ne
had eaten. He had without putting his
paws on the carcasses reached over
and torn out and devoured the kid
neys, leaving the rest untouched!
But one of the most marvellous acts.
showing reason and knowledge of
proportion, was when l was trying one
lay to catch tiny sucking lamb, just
old enough to run like john rabbit.
Old Pard joined in the chase and be-
tween us we caught the darting mite,
but Pard did his part by first running
into it full tilt, knocking it over, then
holding it down by putting his feet
upon it, he would not touch it with
his teeth.
The rascal was born scrapper. He
was terror to every dog that passed
he place, and no beatings would de-
ter him in the least from assailing
passing CANNES, great and small.
could set him on dog in a distant
field, If he got one glimpse he was off
like a shot and the intruder rued the
day he set foot in that field. He was
singularly lacking in gallantry, for he
would run females away as readily as
males. While he was first fighting his
way to acknowledged supremacy there
was big, fierce yard dog between our
house and the village that was wont
to make a terrific bluff every time
Pard passed with me, raging UP and
down the fence as though he would
burst blood vessel if he could not
get at Pard to tear him up. | had no
idea but he could whip our dog, but
one day to my establishment Pard
cleared the fence at a bound and at
tackled the enemy on his own soil! It
was terrible fight but Pard gained
the victory and came grimly on after
a time, on three legs. Thereby was
illustrated curious side of dog ma
ture. The two dogs had neither had
a racial friend before, my neighbours
dog had never been known to leave
his house, yet in a day or two found
fraternizing very amiably with Old
Pard! He was the only dog not be-
longing on the place that Pard ever
made friends with, and he was killed
soon after, how never knew. 1t was
strange that no one. ever killed Old
Pard He was hated by good many
and did in fact have some lead in
him; he was annoying to passers-by