THE "CALL OF THE WILD" 127 



that above all things she loved a bone to gnaw 

 at. She sometimes growled quite angrily over 

 a leg of rabbit, and if I persisted in interfering 

 she would carry it away and hide it. Though 

 now able to eat well, nothing would induce her 

 to lap milk, and I still had to give her her bottle 

 every four hours, it being some time before she 

 took the milk from a saucer. She would rush to 

 meet me, trying to climb up my skirt, and the 

 minute I sat down she was upon my knees. Of 

 course her bringing up had done away with fear 

 she did not know what the word meant, and was 

 not even timid or nervous with strangers ; indeed, 

 they always interested her. She would sniff their 

 boots and legs, and find out all she could about them, 

 for her curiosity was great. She knew the different 

 members of the family, and had a special form of 

 greeting for my mother. She would run to her, 

 smell her hand, then open her mouth, as if in a 

 wide grin, at the same time making a panting, 

 hissing noise, and then with ears laid flat to her 

 head race round and round the object of her 

 attentions. She would continue this for two or 

 three minutes, until my mother picked her up 

 and played with her. It seemed to be a demon- 

 stration of delight, especially as she was devoted 

 to my mother and would follow her about. She 

 never followed me; she seemed rather to expect 

 me to follow her ! 



I never succeeded in instilling the slightest idea 

 of obedience into her. As said before, she was 

 not only tame but perfectly fearless; she had 



