The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-09-28

good society. 1t may have been
on account of her color, for she
was very black. 1t may have been
on account of her education, for
she hadn't any worth speaking Of
and it may have been because her
mother or her mothers mother or
ever so many great grandmOthers
didn't move in good society. They
we're very common family of
dogs, who would lick the bones
they ate, and make a noise with
their mouths when they drank.
Pedro was born in barn. That
was against him and 1t was a rag
dealers barn at that His mother
had five other little puppies to
look after and SO she couldn't
wash and dress him properly. or
tie his tail up in papers to make it
curl gracefully. or do any of those
things that well-bred dog-mOthers
are in the habit of doing for their
puppies.
Pedro opened his eyes one morn
ing and looked about him. What
do you think he saw? A boy with
a basket and six stones In it. The
boy took a stone and began tying
it to Pedro's neck with a piece of
| cord. He did the same thing to
all of his brothers and sisters.
| Did Pedro think it strange? Not
a bit of it. He was so young and
! ignorant, he knew no better. But
Pedros mother, poor thing, she
F! knew what it all meant. She had
lost seventeen of her darlings that
, way. She kissed her precious chill
dren and they were taken away.
! She hadn't enough strength to wag
/ her tail goodbye"
! The boy took them all one by
one and sent them down, down,
| down, to the bottom of the river.
Pedro didn't like it because it
made him dizzy going down, and
| the weight of the stone made the
! cord cut his neck. He might have
drowned there like the rest if the
cord hadn't broken and he found
he could swim and he made for the
shore.
! He was cold, wet, and discour-
aged. He didn't want to go back
where the boy was, and besides he
! didn't know the way. He was a
little fellow, but he grew in spite
| of the kicks and cuffs that he re-
ceived, and being only half fed he
grew to be a big shaggy dog. with
a kind eye, and one OF the most
friendly. waggins tails you ever
saw. Could he swim? "You bet"
He just plowed along in the water,
winking and blinking at the waves.
But he had no home. poor dog!
1 He would sleep in the byways,
wagon sheds. and elsewhere. Two
years passed this way and he was
getting to be shiftless-once he
was getting to be almost miser-
able when a nice gentleman
passed. This cheered Pedro up,
and he was wishing he had such a
master as he was. when behind him
came a weil-combed, weii-kepted
/ little skye terrier. to whom the
gentleman spoke kindly. The gen
tieman at last walked home. Pc
dro stood at the garden gate and
watched them 60 in.
Two pretty children came to
meet him and carried him into the
house outside the door was a sau.
Ger of milk and dainty bits Of cold
chicken.
"My!" said Pedro, If they give
him milk and chicken. they surely
can give me q BONE"
So saying he pushed open the
gate, crossed the elegant flower
bed. to the kitchen door. There
was a bone, a meaty bone to be
sure. So he took it. He began tt
gnaw biissfully when the Kitchen
door was flung open by a red-faced
cook. who bounced q pan Of dirty
water into his face and cried:
go long wild We. yer black fel-
ler!" Pedro was SO surprised that
he put his tail between his legs
and turned to leave. when out flew
the skye terrier. barking and snap
ping at his heels. The gentleman