The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1915-01-31


to run at large that would possibly have
to kill him, DIR. Coulbourn then advised |
me that if the dog could be kept up it |
would certainly be a mistake to kill him; |
and that any danger could only occur by |
the dog running at large
The statements of these two physicians |
and the notice from the city authorities
to Keep the dog up, absolutely relieved |
my anxiety, as / felt sure the order of |
the OFFICER would be carried out, but to |
my surprise, when l arrived at home that |
evening l found not only my children, |
out some OF the neighbor children, shut |
up IN the house playing. fearing to ven- |
ture out as the dog had been out all day. |
eonsoled them with the idea that pos |
sloiy the gentleman had not been home
since the notice was served and felt
sure that the dog would not be allowed
to run out after that day.
You can imagine my disappointment the
next evening when l returned home and
learned. from one of my neighbors that
the dog had been running out all day
and had attacked his mother when she
went out on the walk to get the evening
paper. and that since the attack on his
| mother by the dog he had tried his best
| to kill 1t.
The next day stayed at home until
| about o'clock, for the purpose of getting
hold of this dog. IL he was allowed to
come out, but up to that time he had not
been let out. 1 then came to the city to at
| tend to some business and when L re-
turned, about dark, my son told me that
the dog had just passed through the
| yard. l secured a shotgun and went to
| the yard just as the dog reached the
street, and 1 shot him. fully intending to
kill him, but I only wounded him and he
dragged himself away.
At this moment the lady came out on
the porch and said: well, you have killed
| my dog, have your and I told the lady
| that was afraid that | had not, but if
| l could get another shot at him I would
| finish him. She then said: THE only
thing in the world that keeps me from
killing you now is that 1 have not got
| gun. 1t would be the delight of my
life to kill YOU 1 told the lady that I
was surely glad she did not have a gun.
| However, the next day she was very par
| ticular to have me informed that a very
| prominent real estate agent of Birming
ham had brought her out a loaded gun
and advised her to use it, also giving the
agents name.
The next day. not hearing anything of
| the dog, I felt sure I had killed him, and
no further danger could come to my FAM
| lily or others and that l would be able.
shortly, to secure the head of this sup
posedly dead dog and ascertain positively
| IL my bitten child was in need of the
IdSleuf treatment, out Oh the udy 1OliOW-
| ing 1t leaked out, very unintentionally,
that this vicious and dangerous dog was
harbored in the home of these people
and that they were having him treated
\ by a horse doctor, as they said. in oroer
| that he might be sufficienly cured up to
| remove where "Mr. Allen would never
get him again."
Upon this information I decided. fully,
| to secure this dog for at least time enough
| for the proper authorities to say whether
| my child was in or out of danger, and
/ I at once asked for the placing under
| bond of both of these people for har-
| boring dangerous dog knowingly and
instructed the officer that before serving
| the papers to say to this people that If
| they would allow me to keep the dog
would place him anywhere that they
would suggest and no papers would be
these people and the husband and wife
or had to be killed I would pay them as
much as $50 for their dog.
| The officer made this proposition to
thtse people and the husband and wife
then came to my house, for the. first time
since the biting of my child, and on my
| front porch. In the presence of six or
eight witnesses, he stated to me that he
had come over to say that he had made
| up his mind to do right and was per-
fectly willing for me to take the dog,
but that his wife objected.
| The lady then said that she would never
agree to give up this dog, because it did
not belong to them, but their brother-in-
law in North Birmingham. The gentle
man said that it did not belong to their
| brother-in-law, but he would go to the
phone and ask him to come out and pos
| sbly the whole matter could be settled.
He went to a neighbor's phone, and in the
| presence of this neighbor and an officer
| who accompanied them stated to his
| brother-in-law that unless he, the brother
! in-law, would agree to give up this dog,
which would settle all of the trouble,
that he, the brother-in-law; would have
| to come out and sign their bonds to keep
them from going to Jail.
! The brother-in-law soon arrived and
said the dog did belong to him and
that he would not give him up, because
| he had raised him from a pup and that
| they were very much attached to each
other.
or course this brother-in-law overlooked
| the fact that I had raised my daughter
! from a baby and that there surely must
be some attachment in my case. However,
| he refused to give up the dog or to
agree to keep him confined, ordered by the
city authorities, and of course the papers
| were served on both the gentleman and
| lady, and this brother-in-law signed both
bonds, and the horse doctor was EN-
played to administer to this valuable dog
and so improve his condition that he
!, could be removed; so that no record could
/, be kept of his condition.
| In the meantime the wound on the
| child's face had improved very little, al
though almost continuous treatment had
| been applied
| AS well as I remember now this was on
| Tuesday night, and on the following
Thursday morning I noticed the lady
leaving home rather early and l decided
that in the absence of this lady, and her
| loaded gun, and with the consent of her
| husband for me to have the dog, l would
| go to their house at once. fully expected
| to- be able to coax this wounded dog
| away to some place of safety for all par
| ties concerned, and believed. absolutely,
| that If the gentleman was at home he
would assist me in gettin gthe dog with
out any trouble. but finding no one at
home and a window open / sent a boy in
| to open the front door, through which
| entered and located the dog tied in va
| cant rear room. tried for some time to
| get close enough to him to unite and lead
| him away, but the more / coaxed the
more vicious he got and II he had not
been tied he would have quite likely been
hard to handle.
| Being unable to secure any other way
shot him and took him to the rear yard
| and decapitated him and after the nee
essary preparations expressed his head
to the Pasteur institute at Montgomery
| for examination, and later received no.