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wished we could go home and have our dinners, and come back again into the fields and woods, but we were all of us afraid of making the experiment, for fear we should be caught and kept at home for the remainder of the day. Tip suggested going into Dover, where he thought there were so many humans, somebody would take compassion upon us, and give us our dinners; and as Tip generally gave sound advice, off we set. When we arrived there we walked steadily down Bench Street, giving an occasional bark at any pleasant-looking humans we met, and Jack became sentimental again with his eyes.

Jack was the first to succeed in his appeal (the first time I ever saw any good in sentiment!) for a nice little human began to pet him, saying, "Oh! you beauty! where do you live, you little darling? I must give you something to eat ;" and she coaxed her mother to go into a shop and buy her some biscuits.

Jack looked round at us, and said very triumphantly. "Anyhow I have won this race." And so he had, for the little human gave him biscuit after biscuit, which Jack was greedy enough to eat without thinking of Tip and me.

I stood this for some time, but at last I remonstrated, and the little girl's mother saw the justice of my remark, and said, “Effie, dear, you must not give all the biscuits to one; there are two other dogs who are asking you to attend to them also." And at the same moment this very sensible human gave me a large bun all to myself, and a smaller one to Tip. Effie too gave us some biscuits, and so on the whole we did pretty well, though a dog of my size and position, requires animal food, and nothing comes up to a bone in my opinion.

After sundry last caresses bestowed upon Jack by Miss Effie,

we resumed our way, determining to try the same plan a little longer, as it had been so succcessful, and our appetites were not yet satisfied.

We walked all along Snargate Street, making the same appeal, and finally sat down in front of a famous eating-house there, where we saw plenty of humans enjoying themselves.

Vulgar dogs would have gone in and helped themselves to the biscuits and things we saw there, but we were all of us above stealing, and we remained quietly outside, hoping our principle would be appreciated.

We had not to wait long, for in a few minutes a human came out, and he called to another human still eating in the shop, and said, "I say, Jack, come here; just look at this."

Our Jack, thinking there was but one in the world of that name, immediately stepped forward to know what the human wanted, and he got rather snubbed; for the man said, "Oh! you think you are No. 1, do you, with your fine silky coat, and your languishing sentimental eyes. No, my little fellow, you are not my sort of dog, so much as your two friends over there. Come here, old fellow, Crusoe, Nelson, or whatever you may be," he said, addressing me.

I took no notice of his remarks, as I was nothing so low as a Crusoe, or a Nelson, and Tip barked back his opinion on the matter pretty freely.

Just then the human Jack appeared in the doorway, and I must say that as to appearance our Jack had the best of it; but he seemed a very good-natured human, and he and his friend laughed very much at seeing us all sitting down together in front of the eating-house. They said we looked like paupers

come for out-door relief, and then they laughed again. We did not understand what they meant, but we supposed it was some good joke, and we forgave them for being so silly, as they brought us a lot of biscuits and buns, and they presented Tip and me with a mutton-pie each, which were really excellent I remember the taste now, and I often wonder why humans do not feed dogs upon mutton-pies, as well as bones.

We very soon finished our meal, and really we felt very grateful to our unknown friends, and we tried to make them understand we wanted some water; but as they were dull of comprehension, we thought it better to go home, and look out for a pond on our way. We barked our thanks, and as we no longer required to act the part of beggars, we tore off as hard as we could, and didn't stop until we came to a small pond on the roadside. When we had satisfied our thirst, we ran on home again as fast as we could, all of us feeling a little uncomfortable as to what our reception might be, but we agreed that we had had a most delightful and successful holiday, and that after a little more "Duty" we would treat ourselves to another.

After this arrangement we sent Jack on home by himself, and Tip and I came back leisurely, as we thought it better we should not be seen together, for fear our future intimacy might be stopped. I went quietly into my kennel, and lay down as if I had been there all day, and Tip finding the front door open, and the drawing-room door too, and no one in the room, curled himself up comfortably on the rug in front of the fire, and soon was fast asleep, dreaming of racing, and begging, and mutton-pies.

CHAPTER IV.

ALARMING NEWS.

THE next morning Tip came out early to see me, and we walked round the kitchen garden together, talking of the adventures of the previous day, and congratulating each other that so little fuss had been made of our absence from home.

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Tip said that when Miss Kate came in and found him on the rug, she seemed pleased to see him, and yet she called him a naughty dog, and asked him where he had been all day, and for once he felt glad that she could not understand his language, so that he could give her a very truthful statement, and yet she would be none the wiser for it. However," said Tip, "she fancied she understood me, for she said, 'That was it, was it, poor old fellow? and you are very sorry, and will never do so again,' and then she fetched me some biscuits, and began to play with me. Now I had no objection to the biscuits, or the play, but I had a strong objection to her misrepresenting my words, and I had never said that I would not do the like again, for I fully intend to repeat the fun, whenever I get a chance,-don't you, Rex ?"

"Yes; of course I do," I replied, "I consider it is good for my health to have occasional holidays, and I also consider it is good for Miss Kate not to be dependent on us. Well,"

I said, "I escaped without any scolding at all. I heard the humans discussing as to where we had been all day, and one of them suggested that we must have been hunting, and that we should get caught in traps some day, and then there would be an end of us, upon which the cook, who is a superior kind of human, said, 'Oh, poor things, I hope not,' and that reminds me that if they have not been poaching, they must be hungry, and I must give poor old Rex some bones; Miss Kate is sure to look after Tip.' She suited the action to the word, and brought me out a beautiful supper, and though I was not hungry, I could not do otherwise than eat it to oblige her, so you see 'All is well that ends well,' and I think, Tip, that we are lucky dogs, and I hope poor Jack has fared as well."

Tip said that he had not yet seen Jack, and perhaps on the whole it would be as well to avoid him for that day, and to give our attentions more to our young mistress, "But," he said, "I was very much struck with the sensible remark made by the cook about hunting; why should not we have a day's hunting, the next time we take a holiday, and invite Jack to join us?"

I told him that I had no objection whatever, though I was not very much of a sporting dog, but that perhaps it was from want of practice; and so we settled that the first day when there was "a southerly wind and a cloudy sky," we would have a "hunting morning."

Whilst we were busy making our arrangements, Miss Kate called us both, and said she would take us for a walk, as she was going to visit some friends. How seldom humans express themselves accurately! Strictly speaking we take her, for a walk; if she takes us at all, she takes us for a run.

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