Los Angeles herald., 1910-05-01

to keep to the house. But Duke had
gone back to an outdoor life. No more
would he lie under the kitchen table;
he would go out, no matter what the
weather was, and come back wet and
muddy. And he would Immediately
seek his friends room as though by
right. Ella, sitting at her work, would
hear a clapping and a screeching
downstairs, Mrs. Still and Ethel, the
maid-of all work, vainly endeavoring
to dissuade Duke from going upstairs.
Then the thump of the big paw at the
door.
THAT there dog" said Mrs. Still, "he
despises us, thinks we're common folk,
he do. He just looks at me an Ethel,
an walks up. No bolting for him!
That girl Ethel, she says she took four
dustpans of mud from the hearthrug
yesterday. Yes, I'm a-talkin' about
you, sir Fred says he'd break every
bone in your body before he'd let you
do it. Fred has a nasty temper, he
has. I'm not surprised the dog never
took to him. 'Floggin' doesn't win
love says 1, neither from dog nor hu-
man. l wouldn't like to be Fred s
wife, not me, for all I'm his mother
After Mrs. Still had taken her depar-
ture Ella found herself contemplating
look for her and not find her. She was
leaving him to the memories of bru-
tai master, only restrained now by the
fact that she was visitor at
the inn, and by a certain fear of
his mother. There were moments
when her remorse was very, very
heavy. What a betrayal-to win
such heart only to break 1t!
Duke had taken four years before he
could be happy again after that early
loss-a great slice out of dogs life
He would probably live four years more
in which to grieve for her. The thought
was intolerable to her, of the grieving
brooding eyes as she had first seen
them. What was she going to do?
The storms passed, and there was
beautiful golden September weather. A
few weeks more of the exquisite coun-
try before she must return to her ut
tie fiat up the stone stairs, looking
out over the District railway, view
her friends congratulated her upon,
since it meant space and sky. She mad
loved her fiat, had loved to shut the
door behind her and feel that she had
a solid spot of earth in the shifting
world She had been proud of its pref
tiness and daintiness, of the things
that showed taste the few good pieces
of furniture which had belonged to the
old days of prosperity, of all her little
treasures.
Now the thought of the yellow au-
tumn sunshine in the London streets
sickened her. She remembered the
smell of the sewers it was always bad
after hot summer-the exhausted air,
the iaded London faces. How was she
going to go back to it, to live pent up
there for another ten months?
She avoided the dogs eyes by this
time as though he would read her
thoughts. Perhaps he did, for he was
uneasy. In the Greetings garden he
came and laid his head on her skirt,
moaning and trembling, as though he
foreboded their parting, his being lett
alone.
Roy would let no other dog approach
her. He was a selfish little beast very
greedy, very senseless in his ideas of
an autocracy. 1t was not so much at
lachment for herself. She had never
cared much about Roy, and ne mad
been well content to stay with the
friend who had taken her fiat for the
summer months Only she had ON
ised her mother to keep Roy, and the
little yapping creature had a sacred
ness because he had been her mother
dog. He was insstent on his priv
ileges, one of which was that no dog
should approach anything that be-
longed to him. He had escaped being
slain by the righteous anger of other
dogs many times. She was pretty sure
that Duke would not be able to stand
him. Duke would be jealous, too OF
her. He would kill Roy some day.
August turned round goldenly, ano
thew were always together 1t had beer
good time for Ella in body and
mind. She had a comfortable feeling
L.- obsoIu+aIv rested refre Hed