"What is that yellow dish by the laundry door?" said the boy's uncle, looking about the pleasant yard.
"That is Chum's water dish," said Edward. "It is hard to keep tin or iron clean, so mother gave me that. It is in the shade, you see. Chum likes cool water as well as I do. You have always found it there, haven't you, old fellow?"
The dog looked up gravely into the boy's face and panted a little from the heat.
"Why does a dog pant like that?" asked Edward.
"He perspires through his tongue," said his uncle. "That is why it is so cruel to put a muzzle over a dog's mouth. When he is overheated he suffers very much. I hope you never take Chum with you when you ride on your bicycle."
"No, sir!" said Edward with emphasis. "Chum knows that when the bicycle goes he must stay at home. I would never let him tire himself out by trying to keep up with me. But we have long walks together after tea."
Chum pricked up his ears at the word "walk" and laid his head lovingly on his master's knee.
"There is another reason for not letting him follow your bicycle," said Uncle Frank. "It might seriously injure him to run so fast. I am glad his ears are not cropped. Sometimes a dog is made deaf when his ears are cropped. They are very sensitive, and it hurts him to have them pulled or roughly handled in any way."
"I wouldn't have his ears or his tail cut off," said Edward indignantly, "and no one has ever struck him. He knows by my voice when I am displeased with him, and he will beg to be forgiven by wagging his tail as hard as he can. Chum shall not be hurt if I can help it.
"The other day a great bulldog got hold of him. We tried almost everything to make the fierce dog let go, but it was impossible to separate them. A man came out of a house with a pail of water, which he threw over the bulldog's head. The dog immediately let go and ran away. "A sudden dash of cold water," the man said, "will almost always break up a fight."