Beautiful Joe [89]
pig's neck. Harry, my boy, let us go and look after them again. I
love a dumb brute too well to let it suffer, but in this case I'd give two
hundred dollars more if I could make them live and have Barron know it."
They left the room, and Miss Laura sat turning the sheet of paper over and over,
with a kind of horror in her face. It was a very dirty piece of paper, but by-
and-by she made a discovery. She took it in her hand and went out-doors. I am
sure that the poor horse lying on the grass knew her. He lifted his head, and
what a different expression he had now that his hunger had been partly
satisfied. Miss Laura stroked and patted him, then she called to her cousin,
"Harry, will you look at this?"
He took the paper from her, and said: "that is a crest shining through the
different strata of dust and grime, probably that of his own family. We'll have
it cleaned, and it will enable us to track the villain. You want him punished,
don't you?" he said, with a little, sly laugh at Mist Laura.
She made a gesture in the direction of the suffering horse, and said, frankly,
"Yes, I do."
"Well, my dear girl," he said, "father and I are with you. If we can hunt Barron
down, we'll do it." Then he muttered to himself as she turned away, "She is a
real Puritan, gentle, and sweet, and good, and yet severe. Rewards for the
virtuous, punishments for the vicious," and he repeated some poetry:
"She was so charitable and so piteous,
She would weep if that she saw a mouseCaught in a trap, if it were dead or
bled."
Miss Laura saw that Mr. Wood and Mr. Harry were doing all that could be done for
the cow and horse, so she wandered down to a hollow at the back of the house,
where the Englishman had kept his pig. Just now, he looked more like a greyhound
than a pig. His legs were so long, his nose so sharp, and hunger, instead of
making him stupid like the horse and cow, had made him more lively. I think he
had probably not suffered so much as they had, or perhaps he had had a greater
store of fat to nourish him. Mr. Harry said that if he had been a girl, he would
have laughed and cried at the same time when he discovered that pig. He must
have been asleep or exhausted when we arrived, for there was not a sound out of
him, but shortly afterward he had set up a yelling that attracted Mr. Harry's
attention, and made him run down to him. Mr. Harry said he was raging around his
pen, digging the ground with his snout, falling down and getting up again, and
by a miracle, escaping death by choking from the rope that was tied around his
neck.
Now that his hunger had been satisfied, he was gazing contentedly at his little
trough that was half full of good, sweet milk. Mr. Harry said that a starving
animal, like a starving person, should only be fed a little at a time; but the
Englishman's animals had always been fed poorly, and their stomachs had
contracted so that they could not eat much at one time.
Miss Laura got a stick and scratched poor piggy's back a little, and then she
went back to the house. In a short time we went home with Mr. Wood. Mr. Harry
was going to stay all night with the sick animals, and his mother would send him
things to make him comfortable. She was better by the time we got home, and was
horrified to hear the tale of Mr. Barron's neglect. Later in the evening, she
sent one of the men over with a whole box full of things for her darling boy,
and nice, hot tea, done up for him in a covered dish. When the man came home, he
said that Mr. Harry would not sleep in the Englishman's dirty house, but had
slung a hammock out under the trees. However, he would not be able to sleep
much, for he had his lantern by his side, all ready to jump up and attend to the
horse and cow. It was a very lonely place for him out there in the woods, and
his mother said that she would be glad when the sick animals could be driven to
their own farm.
CHAPTER XXVIII THE END OF THE ENGLISHMAN
IN a few days, thanks to Mr. Harry's constant care,
love a dumb brute too well to let it suffer, but in this case I'd give two
hundred dollars more if I could make them live and have Barron know it."
They left the room, and Miss Laura sat turning the sheet of paper over and over,
with a kind of horror in her face. It was a very dirty piece of paper, but by-
and-by she made a discovery. She took it in her hand and went out-doors. I am
sure that the poor horse lying on the grass knew her. He lifted his head, and
what a different expression he had now that his hunger had been partly
satisfied. Miss Laura stroked and patted him, then she called to her cousin,
"Harry, will you look at this?"
He took the paper from her, and said: "that is a crest shining through the
different strata of dust and grime, probably that of his own family. We'll have
it cleaned, and it will enable us to track the villain. You want him punished,
don't you?" he said, with a little, sly laugh at Mist Laura.
She made a gesture in the direction of the suffering horse, and said, frankly,
"Yes, I do."
"Well, my dear girl," he said, "father and I are with you. If we can hunt Barron
down, we'll do it." Then he muttered to himself as she turned away, "She is a
real Puritan, gentle, and sweet, and good, and yet severe. Rewards for the
virtuous, punishments for the vicious," and he repeated some poetry:
"She was so charitable and so piteous,
She would weep if that she saw a mouseCaught in a trap, if it were dead or
bled."
Miss Laura saw that Mr. Wood and Mr. Harry were doing all that could be done for
the cow and horse, so she wandered down to a hollow at the back of the house,
where the Englishman had kept his pig. Just now, he looked more like a greyhound
than a pig. His legs were so long, his nose so sharp, and hunger, instead of
making him stupid like the horse and cow, had made him more lively. I think he
had probably not suffered so much as they had, or perhaps he had had a greater
store of fat to nourish him. Mr. Harry said that if he had been a girl, he would
have laughed and cried at the same time when he discovered that pig. He must
have been asleep or exhausted when we arrived, for there was not a sound out of
him, but shortly afterward he had set up a yelling that attracted Mr. Harry's
attention, and made him run down to him. Mr. Harry said he was raging around his
pen, digging the ground with his snout, falling down and getting up again, and
by a miracle, escaping death by choking from the rope that was tied around his
neck.
Now that his hunger had been satisfied, he was gazing contentedly at his little
trough that was half full of good, sweet milk. Mr. Harry said that a starving
animal, like a starving person, should only be fed a little at a time; but the
Englishman's animals had always been fed poorly, and their stomachs had
contracted so that they could not eat much at one time.
Miss Laura got a stick and scratched poor piggy's back a little, and then she
went back to the house. In a short time we went home with Mr. Wood. Mr. Harry
was going to stay all night with the sick animals, and his mother would send him
things to make him comfortable. She was better by the time we got home, and was
horrified to hear the tale of Mr. Barron's neglect. Later in the evening, she
sent one of the men over with a whole box full of things for her darling boy,
and nice, hot tea, done up for him in a covered dish. When the man came home, he
said that Mr. Harry would not sleep in the Englishman's dirty house, but had
slung a hammock out under the trees. However, he would not be able to sleep
much, for he had his lantern by his side, all ready to jump up and attend to the
horse and cow. It was a very lonely place for him out there in the woods, and
his mother said that she would be glad when the sick animals could be driven to
their own farm.
CHAPTER XXVIII THE END OF THE ENGLISHMAN
IN a few days, thanks to Mr. Harry's constant care,