Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1915-10-05

and he felt her sweet warm touch.
In those moments Kazan did not
move. He scarcely breathed 1t
seemed long time before the girl
lifted her face from him. And when
she did, there were tears in her blue
eyes, and the man was standing
above them, his hands gripped tight,
his jaws set.
Il never knew him to let any one
touch him-with their naked hand"
he said in tense wondering voice.
Move back quietly, Isobel. Good
heaven-look at that"
Kazan whineds softly, his bloodshot
eyes on the girls face. He wanted
to feel her hand again; he wanted to
touch her face. Would they beat him
with club, he wondered, If he dared!
He meant no harm now. He would
kill for her He cringed toward her,
inch by inch, his eyes never faltering.
He heard what the man said-"Good
heaven! Look at that.n.-and he shud-
dered. But no blow fell to drive him
back. His cold muzzle touched her
filmy dress, and she looked at him,
without moving, her wet eyes blazing
like stars.
"See!" she whispered. "See!"
Half an inch more - an inch, two
inches, and he gave his big gray body
a bunch toward her. Now his muzzle
travelled slowly upward-over her
foot, to her lap, and at last touched
the warm little hand that lay there.
His eyes were still on her face; he
saw a queer throbbing in her bare
white throat, and then trembling of
her lips as she looked up at the man
down beside them, and put his arm
about the girl again, and patted the
dog on his head. Kazan did not like
the mans touch. He mistrusted 1t, as
nature had taught him to mistrust the
touch of all mems hands but he per-
mitted it because he saw that it in
some way pleased the girl.
"Kazan, old boy, you wouldn't hurt
her, would your" said his master
softly. 1--WE both love her, don't we,
boy? Can't help 1t, can we? And
she's ours, Kazan, all ours! She be-
longs to you and to me, and we're
going to take care of her all our lives,
and If we ever have to We'll fight for
her like hell-won't we? Eth, Kazan,
old boy?"
For long time after they left him
where he was lying on the rug, Kaz-
ans eyes did not leave the girl. He
watched and listened-and all the
him the craving to creep up to them
and touch the girls hand, or her dress,
or her foot. After time his master
said something, and with little laugh
the girl jumped up and ran to big,
square, shining thing that stood cross
wise in a corner, and which had a
row of white teeth longer than his
own body. He had wondered what
those teeth were for The girls
fingers touched them now, and all the
whispering of winds that he had ever
heard. all the music of the waterfalls
and the rapids and the trilling of birds
in spring time, could not equal the
sounds they made. It was his first
music. For a moment 1t startled and
frightened him. and then he felt the
fright pass away and a strange ting
ling in his body. He wanted to sit
back on his launches and howl, as he
had howled at the billion stars In the
skies on cold winter nights. But some
thing kept him from doing that. 1t
was the girl. Slowly he began stink.
ing toward her. He felt the eyes OF
the man upon him. and stopped. Then
a. little more-inches at time, with
his throat and jaw straight along the
floor, He was half way to her-half
way across the room-when the won
derful sounds grew very soft and very
low.
go on" Inc heard the man urge in
a low quick voice. go on! Don't
stop!"
(To Be Coptinued.)