The labor world. [volume] (Duluth, Minn.) 1896-current, 1908-11-14

$500
running his less we're like lightning. Il you were
happy. he was mad with delight. II" your were
sleepy, he would browse, too {. !
( In bed at night, though he was but
mixed blessing. Undenlably = companion and
. charm against burglars, nevertheless as q
bedtellow INDUCED In certain thoughtlessnesses
which YOU could gladly have dispensed with. For
instance, his initial dream was always about cats
and ne would chase them not only with agon1zed
whispered oarks but with frantic running motion of
his h1nd legs, which members being invariably
plastered against your tender young stomach, all
but v1v1sected YOU. Waking, very much ashamed Of
himself, he would wety dab an apologize kiss up
on your cheek and drop to sleep again. Lulled,
you slept too; then the next thing you knew you
were on the moor, for Pat, getting hot had braced
his feet against the wall and showed you into space
Tnat difficulty adjusted, along toward the middle of
the night Pat used to make point OF remember
Ing an ancient burr between his toes and
sitting heavily upon some portion OF your
anatomy he would shuttle and snafhe and humble
those toes for hours at q time keeping you from
due and desired slumber. And always at four
O'Clock In the morning he heard robbers and would
50 bark himself Oft his feet as to tumble the entire
length Of the stairs, from top to bottom yelping all
the time and too excited to know that he had fall
en-, glad Of the miracle Of being at the front door
under which he could snih and whine to his hearts
content Next, he would come bounding back In
high glee to let you in the joke, too standing
ecstatically over you to tell you it was only the
usual milkman after all. -
Not but what Pats idiocy: could be a blessing at
times. You remember of course the muscular
spasn, fatally resembling grin, which elected to
attack your miserable face when you were being
scolded and were actually frightened stir? This
spasm was good for box the, eur nine days in
the week In the anti period; but after he ar
rived ne always had the celestial kindness to see a
cat or sneeze approximately at the very moment
you we're catching 1t the worst, thus giving you a
pretext for an anguished smile aud preserving you
from being stigmatized as brazen criminal who
took amusement in his own vileness. +.
e And then. when YOU were out of the danger belt
and were on for the uninhabited safety Of vacant
lot, what actua! relief glowed from his honest facet
The snugsle OF his cold nose into your palm was
the signal OF release for all your black and bitter
fancies, and with :whoop and jump you answer
ed to his pressing Invitation to throw dull care
away. How long did you have hi1n?z You cannot
possibly say. Those boyhood days stretched like
fairy tale from one long advenureato another and
time: was measured not by hours but by experiences
which came four million to minute. You can
remember Pat and snoWballs, Pat and spring pic
MICS Pat and school, Pat and vacation; conseuuent-
~ you had him for the length OF good round life
time and you felt that he belonged to existence as
Inevitably as night and day. You drew your breath
without effort and without effort there was. Pat
always bounding beside you; you analyzed no fur
Their and took him everlastingly for granted. ..
Then one day-w1ll you ever forget 1t?-you went
schoolWard as far as your garden gate and woke up
to the fact that you we're alone. There was no
oxAtSn
from decreasing distance, no commotion in the
near underbrush, to signify that the rest Of you
was hurrying to catch up. You recalled with a
cold sinking Of your heart that Pat had not am
pushed under the breakfast table that morning. so
you wh1stled and called and wandered, worried,
back toward the house a little. Then he skunk
languidly out from under the bed; his head hang
Ing his legs dragging, but his loyal stump 81 tail
essaying to wag, striving to say; NEVER mind me-
old fellow; I'm not very fit this morning. Just 70
along without me for once, won't you old chap?'
You patted him and shook hands with him, heart
ening him so that he crawled to the gate only to lie
down there his nose in the grass his eyebrows
moving anxiously his brave bit Of tail blufink IL
right royalty. - ~. - <.*l. *- 4:
That interminable day at school is ! horror that
that will 80 with to the grave. Missed lessons
and accommodating punishments usually the domf-
nant factors in your Of daily suffering, faded
into trivalites SO anxiously did you keep listening
for the sound Of q Joyous bark. -Four o'clock, the
hour OF repr,eve for the pure In heart meant moth
ing FOR YOU. You always had to stay 1t least hail
an hour and write = have whispered" two hundred
times; and then you had to stay another half hour
and put in the HI i D .s5s- z@s1 & sS. %s
But once released how you flew down the road!
Yet the very fear which spurred you on seemed
to pull you back. Generosity. your nrst mad dash
r%~~@ 49, 49, n
try shelf where you hungrily bolted down eyery-
thing which might be egitimately called yours, and
gnawed illegitmately around the edges OF such
thinsa as were Intended FOR temperance on the
ifaatly table. But to-day you had no thought Of
! Food You dreaded to reach home. for all the