82 The Dog.

will fail him, and he will be so confused as to make him
most likely to do wrong. An animal, or boy either,
living in constant fear of ill-usage, whether he deserves it
or no, will get either so stupid or so careless as seldom to
do what is required. Think a little, and you will under-
stand this. An angry tone and hard words agitate a dog
very much. Mr. Blaine, who wrote a book about their
diseases and cures, says that he has often known a dog,
weakened by illness, to go into convulsions on hearing
another dog violently scolded. I tell you this to explain
why some dogs are hard to manage: they are frightened
out of their senses; to say nothing of the cruel pain that
they are often made to suffer, I have seen a person beat
a dog one day for not following him when he wished it, |
and the next day for following when he was not wanted.
I have seen a dog set at another to fight, being encouraged,
and irritated, and made savage on purpose; and soon
after beaten for flying at some person or thing that
he was not wanted to attack. No wonder if the poor
creature loses all his fine qualities under such treatment.
All that he wishes is to be allowed to love you, and
follow you, and serve you. He wants the help of your
reason to keep him from doing wrong; and he wants you
to explain to him how he may please you. It has made
my heart ache many a time to see a poor dog obey his
master’s call, coming up to him in a crouching, crawling
way, trembling with fear, and seeming to say, “Pray,
pray do not hurt me! I am ready to do what you wish,
and to lay down my life for you; but you are going to
beat or to kick me, and I am a poor creature, without any
one to take my part. I could bite you, I coudd seize you