MEMORIES OF GLENAUGH. 83 



the comparison. Still, to paraphrase an ac- 

 count of another animal in c Tristram Shandy,' 

 he went through his performances with such a 

 gravity of demeanour that you were constantly 

 sold by him. He would trot in a solemn, wise 

 manner into a field, put his head up in good 

 style to sniff the scent, look round and invite 

 you to follow ; get gradually, as it were, more 

 anxious, until at length he stood steady as a 

 rock pointing at nothing. You might forgive 

 him if birds had been there, but as a rule Tom 

 would just as soon as not put you through the 

 above figures without the slightest, the scantiest 

 grounds for his exhibition. I once saw him 

 come to a dead point on an asphalte pavement, 

 where there wasn't even a blue-bottle. He was 

 beautiful to look at, and evidently proud of his 

 proportions. He would give his life for a piece 

 of sweet cake, and would follow children about, 

 doing everything but asking for some, half the 

 day. When he was in good luck he always 

 spent a long time over the morsel, and I 

 suspect that his mind was so demoralized by 

 confectionery that he was unable to bring it to 

 bear upon his business. He was an utter dis- 



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