EARLY DAYS.
I was not born in this city of Caneville, but was brought here at soyoung an age, that I have no recollection of any other place. I do notremember either my father or my mother. An old doggess,[A] who was theonly creature I can recal to mind when I was a pup, took care of me. Atleast, she said she did. But from what I recollect, I had to take mostcare of myself. It was from her I learnt what I know about my parents.She has told me that my father was a foreign dog of high rank; from acountry many, many miles away, called Newfoundland, and that my motherwas a member of the Mastiff family. But how I came to be under the careof herself, and how it happened, if my parents were such superioranimals, that I should be forced to be so poor and dirty, I cannot tell.I have sometimes ventured to ask her; but as she always replied with asnarl or a bite, I soon got tired of putting any questions to her. I donot think she was a very good temper; but I should not like to say sopositively, because I was still young when she died, and perhaps theblows she gave me, and the bites she inflicted, were only intended for mygood; though I did not think so at the time.
[Footnote A: I have preferred adopting this word in speaking of femaledogs, as it comes nearer to the original, _zaiyen_.]
As we were very poor, we were forced to live in a wretched kennel in thedampest part of the town, among dogs no better off than ourselves. Theplace we occupied overhung the water, and one day when the old doggesswas punishing me for something I had done, the corner in which I wascrouched being rotten, gave way, and I fell plump into the river. I hadnever been in the water before, and I was very frightened, for the streamwas so rapid that it carried me off and past the kennels I knew, in aninstant. I opened my mouth to call out for help; but as I was almostchoked with the water that got into it, I shut it again, and made aneffort to reach the land. To my surprise I found that, by moving my pawsand legs, I not only got my head well above the water, but was able toguide myself to the bank, on to which I at length dragged myself, verytired and out of breath, but quite recovered from my fear. I ran over thegrass towards the town as fast as I could, stopping now and then to shakemy coat, which was not so wet, however, as you would suppose; but beforeI had got half way home I met the doggess, hopping along, with her tongueout of her mouth, panting for breath, she having run all the way from thekennel, out of which I had popped so suddenly, along the bank, with thehope of picking me up somewhere. She knew, she said, that I should neverbe drowned. But how she _could_ know that was more than I could thenimagine.
When we met, after I had escaped so great a danger, I flew to her paws,in the hope of getting a tender lick; but as soon as she recoveredbreath, she caught hold of one of my ears with her teeth, and bit it tillI howled with pain, and then set off running with me at a pace which Ifound it difficult to keep up with. I remember at the time thinking itwas not very kind of her; but I have since reflected that perhaps sheonly did it to brighten me up and prevent me taking cold.
This was my first adventure, and also my first acquaintance with thewater. From that day I often ventured into the river, and in the endbecame so good a swimmer, that there were few dogs in Caneville who couldsurpass me in strength and dexterity afloat.
Many moons came and passed away, and I was getting a big dog. My appetitegrew with my size, and as there was little to eat at home, I was forcedto wander through the streets to look after stray bones; but I was notthe only animal employed thus hunting for a livelihood, and the bitsscattered about the streets being very few and small, some of us, as maybe imagined, got scanty dinners. There was such quarrelling and fighting,also, for the possession of every morsel, that if you were not willing tolet go any piece you had seized upon, you were certain to havehalf-a-dozen curs upon your back to force you to do so; and the poorweakly dog, whose only hope of a meal lay in what he might pick up, ran asad chance of being starved.
One of the fiercest fights I have ever been engaged in occurred upon oneof these occasions. I had had no breakfast, and it was already past thehour when the rich dogs of Caneville were used to dine. Hungry anddisconsolate, I was trotting slowly past a large house, when a side-dooropened, and a servant jerked a piece of meat into the road. In thegreatest joy I pounced upon the prize, but not so quickly but that tworagged curs, who were no doubt as hungry as myself, managed to rush tothe spot in time to get hold of the other end of it. Then came a strugglefor the dainty; and those who do not know how hard dogs will fight fortheir dinner, when they have had no breakfast, should have been there tolearn the lesson. After giving and receiving many severe bites, the twodogs walked off--perhaps they did not think the meat was worth thetrouble of contending for any longer--and I was left to enjoy my meal inpeace. I had scarcely, however, squatted down, with the morsel between mypaws, than a miserable little puppy, who seemed as if he had had neitherdinner nor breakfast for the last week, came and sat himself at a littledistance from me, and without saying a word, brushed the pebbles aboutwith his ragged tail, licked his chops, and blinked his little eyes at meso hopefully, that, hungry as I was, I could not begin my meat. As Ilooked at him, I observed two tears gather at the side of his nose, andgrow bigger and bigger until they would no longer stop there, but tumbledon to the ground. I could bear it no longer. I do not know even now whatailed me; but my own eyes grew so dim, that there seemed a mist beforethem which prevented my seeing anything plainly. I started up, andpushing to the poor whelp the piece of meat which had cost me three newrents in my coat and a split ear, I trotted slowly away. I stopped at thecorner to see whether he appeared to enjoy it, and partly to watch thatno other dog should take it from him. The road was quite clear, and thepoor pup quite lost in the unusual treat of a good meal; so I took myway homewards, with an empty stomach but a full heart. I was so pleasedto see that little fellow enjoy his dinner so thoroughly.
This sort of life, wherein one was compelled either to fight for everybit one could get to eat or go without food altogether, became at last sotiresome to me that I set about for some other means of providing for mywants. I could not understand how the old doggess used to manage, butthough she never had anything to give me, she did not seem to be withoutfood herself. She was getting so much more cross and quarrelsome, perhapson account of her age and infirmities, that I now saw but little of her,as I often, on a fine night, preferred curling myself up under a doorwayor beneath a tree, to returning to the kennel and listening to her feeblegrowls. She never seemed to want me there, so I had less difficulty inkeeping away from her.
Chance assisted me in the choice of my new attempt at getting a living. Iwas walking along one of the narrow streets of Caneville, when I wasstopped by an old dog, who was known to be very rich and very miserly. Hehad lately invented a novel kind of match for lighting pipes and cigars,which he called "a fire-fly," the composition of which was so dangerousthat it had already caused a good deal of damage in the town from itsexploding; and he wanted some active young dogs to dispose of his waresto the passers-by according to the custom of Caneville. As he expected agood deal of opposition from the venders of a rival article, it wasnecessary to make choice of such agents as would not be easily turnedfrom their purpose for fear of an odd bite or two. I suppose he thought Iwas well fitted for the object he had in view. I was very poor--one goodreason, for his employing me, as I would be contented with little; I wasstrong, and should therefore be able to get through the work; I waswilling, and bore a reputation for honesty--all sufficient causes for oldFily (that was his name) to stop me this fine morning and propose myentering his service. Terms are easily arranged where both parties arewilling to come to an agreement. After being regaled with a mouldy bone,and dressed out in an old suit of clothes belonging to my new master,which, in spite of a great hole in one of the knees, I was not a littleproud of, with a bundle of wares under my arm and a box of the famous"fire-flies" in my paw, I began my commercial career.
But, alas! either the good dogs of Caneville were little disposed tospeculate that day, or I was very awkward in my occupation, but no oneseemed willing to
make a trial of my "fire-flies." In vain I used themost enticing words to set off my goods, even going so far as to say thatcigars lighted with these matches would have a very much finer flavour,and could not possibly go out. This I said on the authority of myemployer, who assured me of the fact. It was of no use; not a single"fire-fly" blazed in consequence, and I began to fear that I was notdestined to make my fortune as a match-seller.
At length there came sweeping down the street a party which at onceattracted me, and I resolved to use my best efforts to dispose, at least,of one of my boxes, if it were only to convince my master that I had donemy best. The principal animal of the group was a lady doggess,beautifully dressed, with sufficient stuff in her gown to cover a dozenordinary dogs, a large muff to keep her paws from the cold, and a veryopen bonnet with a garden-full of flowers round her face, which, in spiteof her rich clothes, I did not think a very pretty one. A little behindher was another doggess, not quite so superbly dressed, holding a puppyby the paw. It was very certain that they were great animals, for two orthree dogs they had just passed had taken off their hats as they went by,and then put their noses together as if they were saying something aboutthem.
LADY BULL]
I drew near, and for the first time in my life was timid and abashed. Thefine clothes, no doubt, had something to do with making me feel so,but--I was still very young. Taking courage, I went on tiptoe to thegreat lady, and begged her to buy a box of "fire-flies" of a poor dog whohad no other means of gaining his bread. Now, you must know that thesematches had not a pleasant smell--few matches have; but as they wereshut up in the box, the odour could not have been _very_ sensible.However, when I held up the article towards her ladyship, she put her pawto her nose--as though to shut out the odour--uttered a low howl, and,though big enough and strong enough to have sent me head over heels witha single blow, seemed on the point of falling to the ground. But at theinstant, two male servants, whom I had not seen, ran to her assistance,while I, who was the innocent cause of all this commotion, stood like asilly dog that I was, with my box in the air and my mouth wide open,wondering what it all meant. I was not suffered to remain long inignorance; for the two hounds in livery, turning to me, so belaboured mypoor back that I thought at first my bones were broken; while the youngpuppy, who, it appears, was her ladyship's youngest son, running behindme, while I was in this condition, gave my tail such a pull as to causeme the greatest pain. They then left me in the middle of the road, toreflect on my ill success in trade, and gather up my stock as I bestcould.
I do not know what it was which made me so anxious to learn the name andrank of the lady doggess who had been the cause of my severe punishment,but I eagerly inquired of a kind mongrel, who stopped to help me collectmy scattered goods, if he knew anything about her. He said, she wascalled Lady Bull; that her husband. Sir John Bull, had made a largefortune somehow, and that they lived in a splendid house, had aboutthirty puppies, little and big, had plenty of servants, and spent agreat deal of money. He could hardly imagine, he said, that it was theodour of the "fire-flies" which had occasioned me to be knocked down forupsetting her ladyship, as she had been a butcher's daughter, and wasused to queer smells, unless her nose had perhaps got more delicate withher change of position.
He said much more about her and her peculiarities than I either rememberor care to repeat; but, imagining he had some private reasons for sayingwhat he did, I thanked him for his trouble, and bid him good day.
Whatever the cause of my failure, it seemed that I was not fitted for thematch-business. At all events, the experience of that morning did notencourage me sufficiently to proceed. So, returning the unsold"fire-flies" to old Fily, I made him a present of the time I had alreadyspent in his service, and, with a thoughtful face and aching bones, tookmy way towards the kennel by the water-side.