Rensselaer Union, Volume 9, Number 1, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 September 1876 — A Smart Horse. [ARTICLE]

A Smart Horse.

Thomas Bell, the boss grocer of Fairfield, owns a horse that is entitled to the blue ribbon. He is something like twenty years old, and was for many years employed by the express company at Fairfield. A gentleman in this city wlio recently spent a few days with Mr. Bell, tells tire following among other remarkable evidences of sagacity given by this equine, and says the story is well vouched for. The horse was left standing as usual one day after having cast a shoe. He was never tied, being perfectly trustworthy. After standing a short time, he deliberately walked away with the wagon to the blacksmith shop, and there he remained, stamping with his shoeless foot, and holding it up in such a significant way that his desire to be shod was quite plain. The blacksmith thought perhaps he had been driven there and left to be shod, and put on a shoe for him, when the horse walked back to his place and stood as was his custom.

■Hub is undoubtedly veiy wonderful for a horse, but it is nothing to a horse our grandfather had when he lived on a farm. That horse was so smart that he used to send him to school with an uncle of ours, because if Doc. went to school the horse remained with him until night, but if Doc. went off into the woods old Charlie would break his halter and go home, and grandfather always knew whether Doc. was playing hookey or not. But that wasn't anytiiing. Grandfather had a walnut grove on his place that he prized very highly, and every fall he gathered in the nuts regularly. The boys used to feed the kernels to old Charlie, and he developed quite a taste for them. One fall grandfather noticed that somebody was disturbing the walnuts, the hulls of which were found in great abundance under the trees. One night he determined to watch, and about ten o’clock, with two of the boys, went out to the grove for that Surpose. As he drew near it was evient that somebody was at work. There was a terrible thrashing around going on, and it did not take long to locate the tree. But how can you imagine their surprise when they looked up m that walnut tree with no branch nearer the ground than twenty-five feet, and saw old Charlie with his tail wrapped around the trank of the tree reaching out with' a fence rail for the walnuts on tne ends of the branches. And he was only a colt then, too. All they did to him for |t was to take him to the bam and lock him up. Old Charlie is dead now, but we never hear of a smart horse without thinking of him.—^ Berriington, HatekrSfe. Except a man rise shore, and go he youd himself, he te exceeding small.