"Well, now! if that wasn't knowing of him!" said Felix. "But I wonder how he knew which train to take, and how the conductor came to let him stay on, and how he happened to know just what station to get off at?"
"But you've always heard tell, Felix, that dogs are mighty knowin' creatures," returned Oliver, smiling from ear to ear.
"But they're not quite so knowing as that, after all," said Johnny: "there's some other explanation, if we could only find out."
"I'll tell you just how it was, boys," said Mr. Le Bras, as soon as they were all stowed in the roomy two-horse carriage, and Oliver had started off, with Clyde following behind, wagging his tail joyously. "I think I must confess, now"—
"Oh! you did it, did you?" interrupted Sue. "Before I'd have thought"—
"Hush, Sue!" said her mother: "you must not interrupt papa."
"Well, the long and short of it is, Felix, that it was unpleasant for us to have such a great, warm-hearted dog as Clyde rushing into a city-house, with his feet dusty or muddy, and jumping up on our clothes, and on the furniture, to say nothing of his tracks on the carpets; and so I concluded, after a little observation of his mischief, to send him down to the cottage. But as I didn't know you as well as I do now, and wrongly supposed, you might be vexed with me, and not get over it very easily, if I told you Clyde must be banished from the city, I took him down to my office one morning, wrote a note to Oliver, which I tied to his collar, and then accompanied him to the depot, and put him in charge of the conductor, who agreed to hand him over to the conductor of the other road, with instructions to put him off at this station, where I was certain, if he did not find his way to the cottage himself, some one would carry him there; since I knew Oliver would be well known all about here."
"So that's the trick you played on me!" replied Felix, looking at his uncle with more of an expression of admiration than indignation. "You're a pretty fellow, ain't you? Now, I'll bet I'll play you as good a trick as that before you go home!"
"But I thought conductors would not allow dogs on board the cars," said Johnny.
"The conductor said he would have him tied up in the baggage-car; but I didn't stop to see what disposal he made of him, beyond the fact that he gave him in charge to one of the baggage-men, who said he would see that it was all right. I offered either to buy Clyde a half ticket, or pay his way as freight; but the conductor, who is a friend of mine, said it was unnecessary, and that the other conductor would be glad to oblige him. So Clyde came as a deadhead."