228 Daniel Pratt 



A little lame boy a mite of a fellow, whose 

 name even to this day I do not know came by 

 my house daily, probably on his way to school. He 

 hobbled along on crutches, and seemed very much 

 afraid of the big dog that he saw out in my yard. 

 I observed that Daniel watched the little chap with 

 great interest, and finally one day went up to him, 

 wagging his tail meanwhile. The little boy turned 

 pale with fear. There they stood eyeing one another. 

 At last Daniel put his nose against the child's hand 

 where it was holding the crutch, and licked it as if 

 with sympathy. The boy seemed to understand that 

 this meant kindness ; and so he patted Daniel's head 

 with his other hand. Such was the beginning of 

 what proved a true and eventually a tragic friendship. 

 The lame boy evidently had few playmates. The 

 other boys, who romped and shouted, could not come 

 down to the quiet ways of the little invalid. To 

 find a companion and a playmate in the form of a 

 large dog was certainly unexpected, but was just what 

 he desired. He showed his joy in all his actions. 

 So did Daniel. I have seldom seen anything more 

 remarkable than the friendship of those two creatures. 



