characteristics of this or that particular breed 

 of dog. Not but what, like Bob Jakin, I like 

 a bit o' breed myself, but the essential thing 

 about a dog is, not his pedigree, but his soul. 

 My heart warms to the faithful clever mongrel 

 no less than to his colleague of the untainted 

 descent who has all the show-points to his 

 credit. Who cares what was the pedigree of 

 Pomero, the joy and solace of Lander's old 

 age, or of Nero, "the little Cuban (Maltese? 

 and otherwise mongrel) shock, mostly white," 

 who shed a ray of sunshine on the household 

 of the Carlyles, "poor little animal, so loyal, 

 so loving, so naive and true with what dim 

 intellect he had?" To me, too, there was 

 granted in early youth a sort of Cuban-Mal- 

 tese. He was purchased in Pau, a small but 

 delicious ball of white wool, and on account 

 of his infinitesimal size he was called by the 

 name of Chang, a Chinese giant who was at 

 that time exhibiting his star-y-pointing height 

 to all who cared to pay for the spectacle. 

 Given in derision, the name soon became in- 

 9 % verted 



