Evening star., 1905-08-26
COULDN'T LOSE TOOTS
Fox Terrier Followed Owners
to Atlantic City.
THE PLAN THAT FAILED
LEFT THE PUP IN WASHINGTON
WITH A DOG KEEPER.
How One Mans Vacation Was Spoiled
by a Little Mutt, Greatly Be-
loved by His Mistress.


determinedly and tossing the butt of his
after-dnner cigar out Of the window
there's not bit of use talking about 1t,
my dear. l have spoke. And. this time
what l have spoke goes. If you're bound
to take the mutt 10 Atlantic City you may
go along with him as your solitary and ex-
elusive companion. l remain behind. But
If / so the mutt stays behind, and that's
all there is to It.
I've always yielded hitherto in every
thing appertaining to Toots. I've let you
drag him all over the country. and per-
| mitted you to risk your life In walking
from coach to baggage car to water him
and feed him and comfort him and monkey
over him. I've lied like a pirate to hotel
clerks who've known that l was lying when
l told them that 1 never owned dog in
my life, while at the same moment Toots
was chewing the hall carpet on the third
foor OF the hotel I've curtailed summer
vacations. Cancelled winter trips and aban-
doned the few leisure hours of busy life
all on account of Toots.
Now. this is a case where it's either
Ioots or your spouse. If you elect to go
down to Atlantic City for these couple Of
weeks that I've sehemed to grab out Of the
summer for vacationizing purposes go
ahead and enjoy yourself and I'll stay right
with my little job and send you the checks
with my accustomed punctuality. But If
you want to spend these couple Of weeks
| on the boardwalk with your two-legged
friend-the same being me-all right. and
IN like 1t better. But in that case It's
Toots to stay along with a care-taker right
here in little old Washington. So It's up
to you. my dear. You needn't hand me
your ultimatum right now. Sleep over it.
Lemme know in the morning. I'm going
out for an hour or SO now
This was pretty long speech for Getbye
to make, but he felt that the situation JUS
titled it.
10 tho 60
More properly. he was-and is-Mrs Get
byes fox terrier. for. after Getbyes horizon
began to be darkened by the eccentrici-
ties of Toots. Getbye passed him UP and
him. Getbye had brought the pup home
to Mrs. Getbye when 1t was in the cum
min. two-weeiHs-od stage of its career.
Getbye estimates that while the pup was
shedding it's milk teeth and developing it's
grown-up molars-that is, while Toots was
drawing toward the completion of his sec
ond year-it cost him S14S for millinery
shoes, slippers, rugs, rubber plants, uphol-
stery. etc, all of which Toots gnawed to
fragments. TIE dog Invariably committed
these offenses during the absence OF the
Getbyes from their home. and when they
returned they always found him peacefully
and innocently sleeping upon the wreckage
he had made, looking so cute and like a
tired child" as Mrs. Getbye expressed it.,
that no one could have the heart to wallop
him for his destructiveness
Developed Habit Of Getting Lost.
When Toots began to let up on chewing
everything around the house that wasn't
nailed to the walls. he developed the habit
OF getting himself lost. Getbye figures 1t
up that in advertising for the dog and in
paying rewards for his recovery Toots cost
him $97.
Then, from his earliest infancy, Toots had
| to be taken on any and all journeys en-
| barked upon by the Getbyes. Mrs. Getbye
| invariably insisted upon this. She would
never hear of leaving him behind in charge
| of caretaker. She knew that caretakers
| of dogs extracted a ghoulish glee in starry
| ing pet dogs to the very verge of death. and
! that they were happiest when beating ten
| derly-reared dogs with big gnarled clubs.
| No. she would never hear OF leaving Toots
| behind under any circumstances, and Toots
always won out and went along. Getbye
hasn't got the exact figures. but he claims
| that Toots' fare in baggage cars and tips to
baggage masters and rides in cabs-the dog
| not being permitted to ride in street cars in
| some Of the cities-has set him back about
| 500, more or less.
At breakfast on the morning following the
| delivery Of Getbye's pronunciamento anent
Toots in connection with the Atlantic City
expedition, Mrs. Getbye sighed heavily.
| WELL she said, "aS long as you're so
| contrary about it, suppose-do you know
| Of any reliable person with whom you feel
You bet I do-the nearest soap manufac-
| turer!" said Getbye to himself.
''Just the man exactly" he replied aloud
There's young chap heard about few
| days ago who makes business Of taking
| care of dogs during the summer absences of
| their owners. dropped by there last night
and the kennels the young fellow has fixed
up up are til the real thing, His place is over in
feed dogs scientifically. and It's altogether
too easy-s5 month per dog
Became Resigned to the Situation.
every well. as you WILL" said Mrs. Get
bye, in the tone of a martyr. Il know that
I shall not enjoy myself one Bit and that
| I shall not sleep wink for thinking of
poor little Toots being beaten and starved
by a coarse. brutal ruffian. But need a
change and a rest, and II you persist in
being so hard-hearted'-and hereupon Mrs.
Getbye gazed into her coffee cup very sor-
rowfully. indeed. But Getbye was deter
mir ed not to fall into melting mood.
| he had So often before when the question of
hiking TootS around the United States
came up.
"An right" said he: 'Ill have the young
fellow come up for Toots this forenoon and
Wen take the afternoon train
The young man who was to have charge
OF Toots' destinies during the ensuing fort
night rang the basement bell a little while
before luncheon. Mrs. Getbye, looking as
IL she had been ordered to the tower and
saw the block staring her In the face, led
the recalcitrant Toots by a chain to the
basement door where he was given over to
the care or the dog keeper.
The Getbyes took the afternoon train that
day for Atlantic City. Mrs. Getbye was far
from cheerful the journey. and only
smiled wearily and wanly at Getbye's wit
ticisms.
yours. my dear" said Getbye to himself.
as he regarded his wife, ''s a sad, sad
story; but I've won out, all right, this trip,
SO far as that peace-destroying NUTS con-
cerned, and 1t just isn't me to feel even
a little bit dismal over the situation. I'm
sorry. but it just isn't"
Mrs. Getbye frightened up considerably
when they reached the Boardwalk and she
saw after a careful inspection of some tens
of thousands of women. that she was In
danger of being outclassed as to her cos
tunes.
Toots Was Behaving Scandalously.
Meanwhile Toots was behaving himself so
scandalously that he brought two or three
sound wallopings upon himself before he
had been twenty-four hours in the hands
of his temporary keeper. not to mention
several sound cuttings at the paws Of larger
and wiser dogs in the yard. whose food
Toots attempted to collar for his own pur-
poses. Toots was pretty well subdued by