THE YOUTH’S CABINET.

 

My Early Friend.

  

rar reader, let me
chat with you
a moment or
two, about an

old friend of
mine, one to
- whom I was
much attach-
ed. I can re-
call very distinctly, though more than
twenty years have passed since then,
the days when I used to ramble through
the fields and groves of my native place,
searching in every nook for the early
violets, or gathering raspberries and
whortleberries, many times at the risk
of tearing my clothes, or scratching
my arms and hands. I had no little
brother or sister to accompany me, as the

younger of my two brothers was older

than myself; but I used to have one com-
panion, who was always kind, faithful and
gentle, and under whose protection I
was never afraid to trust myself. This
was a dog, named “ Venture,” who was
a favorite with the whole family, par-
ticularly with my youngest brother and
myself. Venture came to my father's
when I was asmiall child; and as I grew
older, he seemed to consider himself as
my guardian, and I seldom left the house,
without the company of this tried friend.

Venture was rather a small dog, with
light gray hair, and a white spot on his
breast, and another on his forehead. I
used to think he had a finely-formed
head and mouth, and very expressive
eyes; and I have never since seen a dog
who looked so handsome to me, as my
good Venture. He did not appear re-
markably sagacious, but he was exceed-

 

ingly attentive to what he considered the
rules of etiquette, and he was gifted
with a sense of right and wrong which
seemed almost human. He would never
pass before any one , and if the room
was full, and the company seated so far
back that he could not get behind them,
he would crawl through the rundles of

° 105 >

the chairs, or squeeze himself through the —

smallest. space possible, rather than be
guilty of so gross a breach of politeness
as to go before any person. He was
very fond of the family, and rejoiced
when any of them came home after being
absent; yet he never leaped upon them

with his dirty feet, but as he met them,

he repeatedly threw his fore feet forward,
and nearly touched his mouth to the
ground. This we used to call Venture’s
bow. After making a number of these
bows, he would hold his head to be pat-
ted, and then bound away toward the
house, as if to inform the family of the
return.

Venture was never known intentionally
to touch anything that did not belong to
him; and when, occasionally, he med-
dled with something which he supposed
his, he was much mortified when he was
told of his mistake. At one time, he
was shut up accidentally in an out-build-
ing, where a quantity of beef had been cut
up; and the next morning, when he
was found, it was ascertained that he
had not taken a single mouthful, though
the poor fellow had eaten neither supper
nor breakfast.

Venture met with several very narrow
escapes. At one time, we were much
annoyed by rats, which finally became
so bold that they scampered about

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