The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1918-04-02
MEN, WOMEN
AND THINGS

A boy and his dog. 1 am sorry tor
ldosless boy. A boy without dog is miss
ing something out of mis- life that moth
ing else can replace.
\ Mine have had procession OF canine
of every color, size and pedigree They
have been stolen, wandered away, died
or exiled because they became a null
sance to the neighborhood.
! In a moment of evaporation l salo
when the last dog had about given the
grown-ups in my household nervous
iprostration that dog days" were over
at my home. and that II any more got
inside of the house it would be through
the kitchen door as sausage, or some
other camouflaged homeless canine del
| icacy.
And meant it, but a month or more
ago when I went home on bitter cold
night, cuddled UP by the fire was the
cutest little dog that 1 ever saw In the
dim freight as he lay at the foot Oh
my boys grandmother he looked like .
roll of wool just waiting to be knitted
into socks for the boys over there.
let my voice register anger, as with
stern authority I asked gruffly: VINO
brought that dog here?'' And then the
tongues of my two boys were unloosed,
and such flood of appeal floated out
for the helpless puppy as would have
touched the heart of Boche on The
eve of bayoneting a Belgian chiid-that
is in the days before it had become afro
phied by the blight of Prussian militar-
ism.
Here is the story of the derelict as II
unrolled in excited and pathetic tones
as they besought me not to banisn IL
from my hearthstone- 1t seems trey
were on their way home from school
when they met little boy on the way
to the lake to drown the puppy, not be-
cause he wanted to, but for the reason
that there were too many at his house
and the paternal edict had gone forth
THAT some of them must be gotten rid OF
at onceA
The boy had no stomach for his JOB
so begged my offsprings to save him the
trouble and the sorrow of consignirg one
of his pets to watery grave. 1t didn't
take much persuasion on his part to get
them to aid in rescuing the little beauty
from an untimely death. He was handed
over and homeward trotted two happy
lads with their new-found treasure.
There was just one low note to DIS
turb their tone of JOY, for it kept sound
ing in their ears with an insistence that
could not be got rid of will daddy let
us keep him." That was the question
which puzzled their young minds more
than did the thoughts which clouded the
melancholy Dane in his soliloquy, which
comes down to US as wonderful bit OF
soul searching.
The issue was put up to me in most
diplomatic way, in manner known
only to ones own ingratiating flesh and
blood, and with all the dramatic fervor
of deeply interested actors. whose whole
happiness hung on the fate of home
less outcast pup. I made show of be-
ing set against his adoption. I was play
ing for position, for 1 wanted to make
terms in the beginning.
They saw 1 was weakening and pressed
their case. "All right" said I; 1.-The dog
remains on one condition, and that is he
is never to put his foot inside the door
on peril of Punishment, for if he makes
a nuisance of himself l am going to get
in touch with the dog catcher and there
will be one less puppy in the Mountain
Terrace district" 1t was a compact
somemnly made, but put aside as lightly
as German treaty.
But what is the use to tell the sequel?
Every indulgent parent already knows
what happened, and smiles indulgen.ly
at my undoing. The first night I was
made to understand that If I required
them to put the wee little doggy out
under the house to freeze to death /
would be meaner than a constituencies
Hun and hard-hearted enough to fight
for the Kaiser against helpless old men,
defenseless women, and innocent chill
dren.
What did I do, You ask, oh, father
Well. | did just what you would have
done. I tried to save my face by tenn
porizing, and made a concession with the
provision that it was Just for the night,
as they had brought him in at shutdown
and, of course. 1t was too late to ar
range a suitable place for him under the
house. Sure there is where I made a
mistake. but life without mistakes would
be mighty undressing thing.
WE'LL I might as well admit nv fun
shame. The cold days gave way to
balmy ones. Winter has practically been
wooed and won by spring, but 'sWooly''-
+, that's the name of the little beast who
| caused my downfall-owns the house
and roirps and barks at will through ev.
cry room in the house. and hardly even
knows that there is such a place as OUT
doors.
Gass.kztl<x4Aa.xll
P. S.; If there is any moral to this
dog yarn. it is, Don't be so doggone