1. HUNGRY.

1. “I think that we shall have a heavy fall of snow before long,” said the landlord of the little wayside inn, at which I had called to get a morsel of bread and cheese.

2. “Very likely it will snow,” said I, giving a glance at the dark heavy clouds, and stopping to listen for a moment to the moaning wind.

3. “And in that case the sooner I start the better, for I have a long distance to go, and the light will fail early, in such weather as this.”

4. The landlord turned and looked at me, as I began putting on my great-coat. “Do you think that it is wise of you to venture across the moor, when it is likely to be so stormy?” said he.

5. “It is a rough road at the best of times, but on a bleak night with snow there is real danger. The trap will take you over in no time when it comes in, or as soon as it is light in the morning.”

6. “My friend,” said I, “do not think of such a thing. I would not be away from home to-morrow for all the world. It is the birthday of my only little girl, and she would think the day quite spoilt if her father were not there.

7. “I shall step out briskly, and be at home long before dark. It is not three o’clock yet,” I added, pulling out my watch.

“Well, I wish you a safe journey, sir,” said the landlord. “And also, many happy returns of to-morrow.”

8. “Thank you, landlord,” replied I, in the same hearty tone. I shook hands with him, for his face was a beaming and kindly one, and I had known him since I was a boy.

9. As I went towards the outer door, the landlord just behind me, his man darted forward from a dark corner, and began to bustle out in front of me.

10. “Get out, you brute!” he said, in an angry voice, as he made a savage kick at something which was crouching in the shadow of the doorstep.

11. An instant after, with a dismal yelp of despair, a forlorn dog slunk away from the door, and ran to hide under an empty waggon which stood in the middle of the road.

12. “Get out! Be off!” again shouted the man, and he made a pretence of stooping with great fury to pick up a stone. The wretched dog, wild with terror, left his hiding-place.

13. With his drooping tail between his legs, he crept to the gate of the yard, where he again lay down and blinked his great sad eyes at us, licking his hungry mouth as if to beg for food.

14. I was deeply touched at the sight of this poor creature’s distress, and I could not help thinking how warm and well fed I was myself, as well as the other two men, while this wretched dog, for no fault of his own, was starving.

15. “Poor thing!” I said, and turning to the landlord, added, “Do pray let some one bring him a few scraps and bones from the kitchen. I will gladly pay for one good meal for him.”

16. “Oh no, oh dear no!” cried the landlord and the man, both in a voice of horror. “If we gave him food in this yard we should never get rid of him.

17. “We should have a bother with starving dogs here, all the year round, sir. Pray do not give him food here, I beg.”

Write: A man saw a hungry dog at an inn. He wished to feed him, but the landlord said that he should never get rid of the dog if he had food there.

Questions: 1. What sort of weather was it when the man was at the inn? 2. What did the landlord advise him to do? 3. What did the man answer? 4. What did the traveller see outside the inn door? 5. What did he wish to do for the starving dog? 6. What did the landlord and his man say?

2. A KIND MAN.

1. I now felt that this landlord was not a truly good and kind man, or he would have taken pity on the outcast dog. As I passed through the gate, the poor creature huddled close against the wall.

2. He had been taught to expect a kick or a blow from each person who passed. I stopped for a moment to look at him, and said, “Poor fellow!” in a gentle tone.

3. In an instant all the love and grief in his doggish heart welled over, and with a sharp cry of pain, which was like a prayer to me, he drew himself along the ground to my feet, yelping and wagging his tail at the same time.

4. He began to lick and fondle my feet, and made the shining polish on them quite dim with his muddy paws.

“Poor old fellow!” I said again. “Come, you shall have one good meal if money can buy it.”

5. I walked out into the street, and called him to follow. He thought it was too good news to be true, and only came for a few steps, then stopped to look with a timid gaze into my face as if to question me.

6. “Come along, doggie,” I replied, “do not be afraid. I shall not hurt you. I mean to be good to you, though you can hardly believe it. Come and get some dinner.”

7. Made bold by my tone and manner, the dog stuck close to me, and we went along the High Street. All the shops were gay and smart, but at first I could not see one which the dog would have thought a good shop.

8. At last I found one where food of all kinds was sold, and I walked in, my humble friend at my heels giving a joyful sniff at the pleasant smells.

9. Whole crowds of men and women were eating at the little tables of which the shop was full. I pushed my way up to a counter, and said to the master of the shop,

10. “Just look at this poor dog. I want him to have a good meal of meat. Give him plenty of scraps, and I will pay you for them.”

11. The man looked at me as if he doubted what I meant, and he seemed to think that I must be crazy to wish to buy a dinner for a dog.

12. But when he saw that I was in earnest, he quickly fetched a great heap of scraps and bones, which he put down outside the door.

13. Upon these my dog friend fell, as if he had been a starving wolf, but he did not forget to glance up at me before he began with such a grateful look, and to give his tail one quick wag of thanks.

14. I could not wait to see him eat as much as he liked. “I must be off,” said I to the man.

15. “Here Johnny,” called the master of the shop, when I was going away, “just come here, and keep your eye on this stray dog; see that he is not driven away till he has eaten all he wants, and fetch him a drop of water.”

16. I thanked the man for his kindness and paid for the meat, and I did not forget to leave a penny for the little boy who was keeping guard over the poor dog.

Write: The poor dog was taken to a shop and well fed. The kind man who bought him a meal took care that he was not driven away till he had eaten it.

Questions: 1. How did the landlord show that he was not a truly kind and good man? 2. What did the poor dog do when the traveller passed out at the gate? 3. Where did the kind man take the dog? 4. What did he give the dog in the shop? 5. Why could not he wait to see the dog eat? 6. Who watched while the dog ate his meal?

3. LOST ON THE MOOR.

1. As I went along, more than one person who passed me on the way said, “We shall have a wild night, sir, I advise you to hurry into shelter.”

2. As I set foot upon the first part of the wide, open moor, where the narrow path could hardly be seen in the twilight, a few flakes of snow began to fall.

3. For a moment I began to wonder whether it would not be better, even now, to turn back and stay in the town for that night.

4. But thinking that my wife and dear little girl would be both sorry and anxious when I did not appear, I put a stout heart into the matter, and strode boldly forward.

5. The snowflakes came down thicker and faster, my beard and the front of my coat were quite white, the great brown moor changed first to a grey, and then to pure dazzling white too.

6. The whirling flakes blinded me, I felt giddy from the cold. The storm was now upon me with full fury, the wind almost lifted me from my feet.

7. I trusted that the sudden gale would soon pass over, and folding my arms close to my body, tried to struggle forward still. But so far from getting better, the weather grew worse each moment.

8. With a dreadful feeling of despair, I found that I could no longer find my way. I did not know where my home lay, nor how I must turn my face in order to reach it. I cried to God for mercy.

9. I now felt that I had been very foolish in trying to get across the moor on such a night. Perhaps I might never see my wife and dear child again.

10. The bitter wind seemed to pierce through my clothes, I was fast getting drowsy and ready to fall down. Then the snow would soon have buried me, and no one would have seen me alive again.

11. A groan broke from my lips as I looked around at the waste of snow, but I was at the same instant startled to hear a low, plaintive whine close at hand.

12. I turned and saw a large, thin, starved-looking dog sitting close behind. He gazed in a troubled way into my face, when I turned round. It was my poor fellow of the inn door!

13. As he crept along over the snow to my feet, he seemed with the same humble love to say, “Do not send me away, let me come with you. You are the only person who has shown me mercy.”

14. I stooped and patted him on the head. “Good dog!” I said, “have you found me out? Come now, I wish you could show me the way home, or else I am afraid we shall both be frozen to death.”

15. He seemed to know what I meant in some strange way, and just then I heard far off a church clock strike, which I knew must be in the town I had left behind.

16. This was a help, for I now knew that if I turned my back on the place from which the sound came, I should be right in keeping straight on.

Write: The storm grew worse. When the man had lost his way on the moor, he saw the dog which he had fed at the inn sitting behind him.

Questions: 1. What did more than one person say as the man began his walk? 2. As he began to cross the moor, what did he see? 3. Did the weather grow any better? 4. What did he see sitting close to him when he turned round? 5. What did the dog seem to say? 6. What did the traveller hear far off?

4. TRUSTY FINDS THE WAY.

1. I pointed out to the dog the way I wished to go, and with a wag of his tail, the wise creature trotted on slowly in front. He seemed to feel that he had the charge of me and had been trusted.

2. We had not gone far before he gave a whine, and coming quite close to me, stared in my face, and changed his course. He seemed to beg me to turn aside to the right.

3. I went as he asked me, and as I was going, I tried with my stick to poke the ground from which the dog had wished to turn. I wanted to know why he was not willing to let me tread just there.

4. I found that a deep pond, over which a slight cover of ice and snow were spread, was close beside us. It was an old pit in which water had frozen.

5. Had I set my foot on it I must have sunk down and I never could have risen. “A few inches closer to the edge and I must have been drowned!” cried I aloud, and did not forget to thank God for the escape.

6. The dog now stopped a few feet off as if to watch whether I was coming, and again trotted forward as I praised him and began to follow.

7. Soon he gave a second whine, and again seemed to wish me to turn aside. I trod in his footprints, and again was safe. I was now nearly ready to faint from cold.

8. “Go on, good dog,” said I to my faithful guide, “lead me home quickly, or I shall die.” He gave a hoarse bark in reply, as if to bid me keep a good heart.

9. I was just falling down, for I could walk no further, when he gave a short, eager bark of joy; at least it seemed like joy, I thought, but my ears were deaf, and my eyes dim.

10. I gave one last hopeless glance around, and saw something large and dark in front. It was a wooden shed, the black inside of which showed plainly against the whiteness all around.

11. I knew that it must be one of the huts which the men used who were digging peat on the moor, and the thought filled me with terror, for I knew that these huts were very far away from my home.

12. But all other feelings went from me now; I had a strong wish to rest, and that was all. I crept into the hut and lay down, thinking that I would wait there till the storm was over.

13. The dog came in after me, and laid himself down close to my side. I felt more sleepy than I had ever done in my life before, my eyes ached, and bright lights seemed to be flashing in front of them.

14. I thought of my home, wife, and child, and then sleep stole upon me. Once I woke with the hoarse bark of the dog ringing in my ears. He was doing his best to wake me from the sleep which must end in death out there on the bitter moor.

15. A second time he roused me, and I felt that he had now crept very close to my breast, and with his fore paws resting on my shoulders, was licking my face with his warm tongue.

16. In the act of stroking him and speaking a kindly word, I again sank to sleep, and after that I forgot all about the dog, the shed, and the cold moor. I dreamt of home, my little girl, and my dear wife.

Write: The dog led the man to a hut. On the way there he saved him from falling into a deep pit. The dog did his best to keep the man from falling asleep.

Questions: 1. What did the man point out to the dog? 2. What did he do to take care of the man on the way? 3. Where did he lead the man? 4. What did the man feel before he was in the hut? 5. How did the dog try to keep him awake? 6. If he had been allowed to sleep in the snow what would have happened to the man?

5. SAVED BY TRUSTY.

1. I knew nothing more about myself until I slowly waked in a warm room, and saw many strange faces round me.

“Oh, thank God!” cried a voice near me, “the poor man is getting better.”

2. “What is the matter?” said I, for I seemed not to know what all the fuss was about.

“Here, my dear sir, drink this,” said a voice, and a cup of steaming hot coffee was placed at my lips.

3. I drank it slowly, and then all that I had gone through rushed into my mind. “What is the time?” I asked of the person who had given me the hot coffee. He held my pulse, and I thought that he was a doctor.

4. “Within ten minutes of midnight,” was the answer. “And it has taken hours to bring you round. I was almost giving you up for dead.”

“You found me on the moor?”

5. “Yes, half buried in the snow. You may thank your dog for your life.”

“My dog? I have no dog,” said I, for I did not think of my poor friend at the moment.

6. “Yes; if it had not been for his faithful barking and howling, we should not have set out to seek you. My wife heard him, and she said that some one must be lost on the moor.

7. “The dog guided us to the shed. He had kept your face clear of snow by licking it, and had kept a little warmth in your body by lying on it; if he had not, you would now have been dead. We dug you out, and brought you here.”

8. I thanked the doctor for his goodness, but my mind was chiefly fixed on that other friend, who was not dumb, for he had spoken for me after his own plan.

9. How great a reward he had given me for a few bones and a friendly word!

“Where is he now?” I asked in an eager tone.

“Who? the dog? Oh, he is tied up in the stable.

10. “He was so much in the way, and did so much to hinder us by his attempts to show his fondness for you, that we had to shut him up. Hark! Do you hear him?”

11. As the doctor spoke, a long, doleful howl was borne past the windows of the room. It seemed to speak of pain, longing, reproach: all feelings that a dog who had been ill repaid for his love could put into the sound.

12. “Oh, let him out, please! let him out, do!” cried I. “I cannot bear to hear him howl like that.”

I then told them the story of the dog. And in the midst of the surprise which all felt at hearing it, he came in.

13. At a word from me, he jumped up by the side of the bed, and barked out all his joy at seeing me again. You may be sure that the dog was not left behind when I started that next day for home.

14. And you may guess what my wife and little girl thought of him. They gave him the name of Trusty, which he had well earned.

15. He had a share of the birthday feast, which took place a day later than the right one. No one at the table enjoyed a taste of each dish more than Trusty.

16. The fruit was the only thing which he did not care for. His looks improved day after day. He is my friend and the dearly loved playmate of my little girl.

17. I often look back with a most thankful heart to the day that I met him at the inn-door, and my wife has always a pat, a loving word, and a treat in the shape of some nice bone, for our Trusty.

Write: When the poor man waked from his sleep he found himself in a room. The dog had been tied up in a stable, but was soon let loose.

Questions: 1. Where did the poor man find himself when he woke? 2. Where had the dog been tied up? 3. What did the man say when he heard the dog howling? 4. What did the doctor tell him about the dog? 5. When was the birthday feast held, and who enjoyed a taste of each dish? 6. What did the dog become, and what was he named?