DOG LANGUAGE
Our Towser is the finest dog that ever wore a collar,
We wouldn't sell him—no, indeed—not even for a dollar!
I understand his language now, 'cause honest, it appears
That dogs can talk, and say a lot, with just their tails and ears.
When I come home from school he meets me with a joyous bound,
And shakes that long tail sideways, down and up, and round and round.
Pa says he's going to hang a rug beside the door to see
If Towser will not beat it while he's busy greeting me.
Then when he sees me get my hat, but thinks he cannot go,
His ears get limp, his tail drops down, and he just walks off—slow;
Though if I say the magic words: "Well, Towser, want to come?"
Why, say! You'd know he answered "Yes," although at speech he's dumb.
Marion Hovey Briggs.
A DOG'S LOYALTY
Many a good
And useful quality, and virtue, too.
Attachment never to be weaned or changed
By any change of fortune; proof alike
Against unkindness, absence, and neglect;
Fidelity that neither bribe nor threat
Can move or warp; and gratitude for small
And trivial favors lasting as the life,
And glistening even in the dying eye.
Anonymous.