“‘High in pedigree,’ Frank, means nothing but that he had a veryrespectable grandfather and mother.”
“Then, Mother, we are high in pedigree; for I’m sure thatgrandfather and grandmother–, at the farm, are the very best andmost respectable people in the world, and send us the best butterand cheese. But what are nymphs?”
“There was, in olden times, Frank, before the birth of Christ, andamong many people since there is a belief in a sort of fairies, orfanciful existences. They thought that in each stream, and wood, andgrotto lived a beautiful young woman, invisible to common eyes, andthese lovely fairies were called nymphs. So it became common to callany beautiful young woman a nymph.”
“The best line in it,” said Harry, “is, ‘And, puzzling, set hispuppy brains.’ That I can quite understand.”
“Now,” said Mrs. Chilton, “it is time to light the candles, and forlittle boys to go to bed.”
“I have still a little more to say to you about animals,” said Mrs.Chilton, one evening, to her two boys, “as you seemed pleased withwhat I told you, some time ago, about dogs and cats.”
A friend told me, the other day, that, when she was at Hopkinton,where she went for the benefit of the baths, the mistress of thehotel told her that their cat understood language; for that agentleman, who was there and was going fishing, told the cat to goand catch him a frog. The cat disappeared, and, a little whileafter, brought in a frog. She added, that the next day he told thecat again to go and catch him a frog. The cat again set off on thesame errand, and brought in two frogs; but she had bitten off thehead of one of them, as if to pay for her labor.”
“Do you believe that story, Puss?” said Harry. “See, Puss shakes herhead. Do you believe it, Mother?”
The authority was very good. I could not easily disbelieve it. Themore we notice animals the more we shall be astonished at them, andinterested in their history; the more we shall see in them evidencesof the wisdom and the goodness of the Power that created them.
I knew a good, great man who would never tread upon the meanestflower he met in his walks; who would not wantonly destroy a shellupon the sea shore.
When I was very young, I was walking in a garden with one of thetrue lovers of God in His works: suddenly he bent his head very low,and bade me bend mine also. “See,” he said, “that beautiful web: donot break it; the little creature who made it has worked very hard;let us not destroy it.”
This lesson was given many years ago. I have forgotten many thingssince then; but this will last me through life, let it be ever solong.
Who does not love good Uncle Toby who, when a troublesome flytormented and tickled his nose and sipped his wine, put him tenderlyout of the window, saying to him, “Go: there is room enough in thisworld for thee and me”? But to my stories. One is a sad one, but itis true, as are also all the others.
A gentleman was once travelling in France, on horseback, followed byhis dog; presently the dog began to show great uneasiness, and runand jump up at him and bark violently. The man saw no one near, andcould not understand what was the matter.
The dog persisted in barking. At last, the man scolded him. This didno good. The dog still barked and jumped up trying to get hold ofhis master’s legs; the man scolded the animal repeatedly, but all invain. The dog barked louder and louder. At last, the man struck himwith the butt-end of the whip harder than he intended; for he onlywished to silence the dog.
The thoughtless man went on satisfied. After a while, he found thathe had lost his purse. He went back some miles, till, at last, hesaw his dog lying dead in the road with one paw over a purse.
The poor creature had staggered back to the place where he had seenit fall, and, faithful to the last in spite of his master’s cruelty,even in death, guarded his property.
A knowledge of character, comprehension of language, or some otherfaculty, beyond what we can explain, is often discovered in dogs.
There was a family who had given leave to two poor men to come andsaw wood, do chores, &c. One of these was very honest; the otheroften took what did not belong to him.
The family dog took no especial notice of the honest man, andtreated him in a friendly way, but the thief he watched all thetime, to guard the property of the family.
Another dog was on board a vessel bound to some place in Europe. Thevessel was driven in a storm against a rocky coast, and struck undera steep, perpendicular cliff perfectly inaccessible. It was evidentthat if relief was not soon given, the vessel must go to pieces, andthe men all perish.
The dog leaped into the angry sea, and with some difficulty swamashore. He ran on till he came to the dwelling of a poor man, andthen barked loudly, till the owner was roused and came out.
The dog showed great joy at seeing him, ran towards the shore andthen back to him, and leaped upon him and licked his hands; this hedid repeatedly till the man followed him.
It was some distance to the shore; and, after a while, the man wastired, thought it was foolish to go after the dog, and turned to gohome. The dog immediately showed great distress, and tried the samearts to entice him on; but the man seemed resolved to go home.
At last, the dog stood upon his hind legs, put his paws upon theman’s shoulders and looked him in the face, with such a humanmeaning, such a piteous expression, that the man determined tofollow him.
The dog led him, not to the cliff under which the vessel was lying,as there she could not be seen, but to a distant place on a pointwhere she was visible.
Ropes were immediately obtained, the crew were all hoisted up. andevery life saved; and this was by the intelligent love of thisfaithful fellow-creature–we cannot call him a brute.