Evening Republican, Volume 16, Number 148, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 20 June 1912 — Jimmy Gets a Dog [ARTICLE]

Jimmy Gets a Dog

In a heedless moment the Kingthornes yielded to Jimmy’s ardent and vociferous pleas and admitted that It might be possible to permit him to have & dog to play with. Up to that time they had been able’to match his teasing by a succinct and comprehensive “No!" But now life was vastly different Every homocoming of the elder members of the family, if not greeted by “Didyuh bring my dog?" was hailed with the wail, “When kin I have my dog?” or “Wbut kind of a dog is it I’m going to get?" until the Kingthornes reached the stage where their opinion on dogs as a whole was so intense that it was wordless. The situation led to dissensions also, for both Kingthorne and his wife accused the other of having been the one who said the fatal word of assent; The peace of the family was gone, and the more they argued the worse it grew. Of the lot Jimmy was the most injured, for with all the bickering because of a dog there wasn’t any dog. “You said I could have a dog!” he . invariable ended in the plaintively accusing tone before which all well brought up parents shrink. When the Klngthornes had time to look for a dog they never could find an attractive one, and if they did see a possibility they lacked the time. Sitting in her living room one afternoon conversing with visitors about green tomato pickles. Mrs. Kingthorne' after staring from the window, gave a little shriek. “Just the thing!” she cried. “How did it get there?’ * , “What?” demanded her caller. “There aren’t green tomatoes growing out there!” “Pickles?” repeated Mrs. Kingthorne, dreamily. “No, it’s a dog. It doesn’t seem to belong to any one, either!” Everybody looked. The dog was most apparently youthful, because it still wabbled slightly when it walked, or, rather, rolled'. For it was fat and globular, made still more so by a thick coat of woolly brown fur. From one end of the brown mass a pink nose stuck, out and from the other end protruded a tiny plumed tall. He really was too much like an Ideal puppy to be quite true. “There isn’t a soul in sight,” asserted Mrs. Kingthorne. “And nobody would let a puppy like that go for a walk alone, bo it must be lost. It’ll get stepped on or stolen or something, and to own it would send Jimmy into hysterics of joy, so, really, I think it is my duty to rescue the puppy, don’t you?” Everybody wanted to see the puppy at close range, so everybody said' “Yes.” Mrs. Kingthorne went out and brought the animal in. ‘.‘Don’t dogs ‘have germs and things?” demanded one of the visit ors. “It is likely to give Jimmy something, isn’t Itr “ That was why everybody followed Mrs. Kingthorne down into the laundry to see her give the waif a bath. He was very little and the tub was very big and the soap was exceedingly fluffy, so it took four of them to wash and dry him. Afterward he frisked in front of a grate fire and Mrs. Kingthorne admireA herself extremely for finding him. Jimmy, for some reason, was late, but presently Kingthorne arrived. He seemed a little dazed at the chorus of Joyful shrieks and the bundle ol brown wool that was thrust at him. “Well!” he murmured in a puzzled tone. “That doesn’t look a bit like the one ”

“The one!” cried Mrs. Kingthorne. "What one, and what is it?” The bell rang* just then and Kingthorne went to the door* When he rejoined them he was leading by a leash an Airedale pup. A grown-up Airedale is without doubt the ugliest dog yet invented, but an Airedale pup transcends by a hundred degrees the ugjiness of the grown-up Airedale, There is no use in trying to tell what KingthOrne’s pup looked like, because if adequate words could be found nobody would believe the description anyhow. Kingthorne spoke into the immense •ilence almost defiantly. "He’s a bench dog," he said. "All my life Fve wanted an Airedale—and I am sure Jimmy will be crasy about this one. So will you when you get used to his looks and appreciate his noble nature. That brown, woolly thing hasn't any class, my dear.” “Well, I like him!” cried Mrs. Kingthorne, indignantly. Jimmy slammed into the houße just then. Something slammed in with him. It was an overgrown, calflike meatnre, all legs and tail and tongue, with a great ugly head, and its style of architecture was a combination of everything from early Greek down. “He's mine!” Jimmy cried, proudly. "An ashcart man gave him to me, an* he’s goin’ to sleep hi my room an’ everythin’! An’ you said I could I have & dog!” He gave a passing> glance of disinterested scorn at the blooded Airedale and the ter woolly Ml .. ft Is always difficult to argue with sae who refuse* to talk back. t-'