“‘Yes, sir; and I am very thankful. When do you wish me to commence?’
“‘Stay with Mr. Bramlett until he starts to New Orleans, then bring your sister to my house, and we shall go to work.’
“When Harry came back his handsome face was beaming with pleasure; and while relating what had occurred, he did not fail to congratulate Lottie on the chances which she would have of securing an accomplished education. Fortune seemed to have made up her mind on this occasion to shower her brightest smiles on us all at once. Had she not provided us with good homes, kind friends and all we could expect or wish for? And right here I feel it to be my duty to express my thanks to old bob-tail Robert; for it was all brought about by him. What a slice of good luck it was that caused him to take a fancy to Lottie on that eventful night when he came to our camp and began to lick her hand! I suppose Madame Fortune had prompted him to do it. We never knew who was old Bob’s master before he concluded to cast his lot with us, but from his ‘lean and hungry look’ we inferred that he had been serving a cruel master, and that he was out on a foraging expedition when he happened to come upon our camp. The night was dark, and I suppose he came near enough to see Lottie’s sweet face, as she sat gazing into the fire, and here is the substance of what I imagine passed through old Bob’s mind as he peered into Lottie’s face with his one eye:
“‘I am very hungry; the fact is, I am about to perish for food; my master is unkind and cruel; instead of giving me food, he gives me nothing but blows and curses, and I believe I shall run away from him, and seek me another master. That little girl has a beautiful countenance, and I expect she has a kind heart, and I think she would have compassion on a poor old hungry dog like me; I believe I’ll venture up to her, and lick her hand, and maybe she will give me a bone to gnaw on. Oh! how I wish I had a beautiful tail to wag, in order to make her pity me. I am afraid my ugliness will frighten her, and if it does, I shall be driven off, and then shall get no bone; but my poor stomach is so empty, and my mouth waters so, that I shall venture up at all hazards. If she drives me away it can’t make matters worse, and if she is kind and gives me a bone, I’ll follow her, for her sweet face leads me to think she’ll do to tie to.’
“Immediately after having the unuttered conversation with himself, old Bob ventured up and licked Lottie’s hand; the result was he got a medium supper, and found that the favorable opinion he had formed as to the kindness of her heart was by no means too extravagant. We know what followed—at least we know that Bob followed Lottie, and we further know that his fondness for rabbits led us to the gravel pit, which led us to the gravel train which carried Harry to the embankment, where he saved the life of Viola, whose father caused Mr. Rockland to give us good homes, and this proves that it is better to give a poor dog kindness than kicks. Now who knows what might have happened to us if old Bob had not trusted to Lottie’s kind face that night, or if she had taken a stick and beaten him? I dare say we should have been wandering about the streets of Memphis, friendless, houseless, and penniless; working for our daily bread, and sleeping in some filthy, sickly den, while dear Lottie would have been dressed in rags. But now, through her kindness to poor old one-eyed, tailless Bob, she has got a splendid home, good friends, fine clothes, and bright prospects unfolding themselves for the future. Who will venture to deny that old Bob was possessed of good judgment? Who will say that he did not make a good selection, when he concluded to take Lottie for his mistress and protector?
“‘Well, here we are. Ah, ha! Eddie,’ said Doctor Dodson next morning, when he met me at the door of his new drug-store. ‘I suppose you are ready for business? Ah, ha!’
“‘Yes, sir.’
“‘Good, my boy, good!’
“Then he began to instruct me as to the duties I was to perform, and teaching me the names of the various kinds of drugs. I went to work with the determination to succeed, and to please my kind-hearted employer. It was but a few months before I knew the names of all the drugs, and could make up the prescriptions with skill and safety; I was very proud to find that the doctor was pleased with me. The doctor’s wife was as kind to me as if she had been my own mother, and, all things considered, I had a happy home, and was contented.
“Harry and Lottie were delighted with their new situations; but I did not see them as often as I wished, though I went with Lottie to church occasionally, and sat in the same pew with her, and read my prayers in her book, and then mixed drugs and built air castles the remainder of the week. But I am getting tired of talking about children, and I expect my hearers are tired of it, too, and I shall therefore say but little more about it. If I have bored you with too much talk of dogs and children, I beg pardon, and promise to make a long leap over the space of seven years. They were years of happiness to me—so were they to Lottie and Harry. Lottie is eighteen, and more beautiful than ever. The large dreamy eyes are the same, but the tall, queenly form has filled out, presenting a model that an artist would delight to paint from. The stamp of intellect was sparkling on her white brow, and she was (as I thought then, and think now) the most charming girl that my eyes had ever looked upon. Harry had made rapid progress in his legal studies, and would be ready to enter on his professional career by the time he was twenty-one; while I was an overgrown, awkward young man, rather shy, and sneaky when in the presence of strangers; though I had studied closely, and Doctor Dodson said I would some day be a great physician. It was arranged that I should attend the lectures in Philadelphia, and I thought it best to have an understanding with Lottie before I left. I had never asked her to be my wife. I became jealous and unhappy because Lottie was surrounded by devoted admirers, many of whom were men of wealth and high social standing; and I was alarmed lest I should after all lose the great prize. But let us rest a while, and I’ll tell more about it in the next chapter.”