THE STBIKE AT SHANE'S, ft 



*' Little do I care if he dies," said Tom, as he 

 ungraciously assisted in extricating him. *' Here it is 

 comin' night, an' this load stuck here in the middle of 

 the road all on account of that old brute.'* 



"It's the fault o' yer feyther, it is; for if he'd be 

 doin' the right thing by old Dobbin he'd give 'im the 

 run o' the pasture for the rist of his days widout a bit 

 of the work to do. It's goin' on twinty years since he 

 was broke to the harness, an' that's afore you was 

 borned," said Mike. 



" Come, old fellow, get up ;" and he assisted the old 

 horse to his feet. 



"Hello, there, what's up?" shouted the driver of a 

 team that had come up behind. 



" Sure, an' it's stuck in the mud we are," said Mike. 

 "An' it's glad we are to see ye, Mr. Tracy, if ye'll 

 give us a pull at the ind o' the tongue wid thim beau- 

 tiful horses o' yourn." 



" Ah, it's Shane's team ! " said Mr. Tracy, "and old 

 Dobbin has been down. Shane never will learn when 

 a horse is used up. He's had twenty years good ser- 

 vice out of that horse and isn't satisfied yet. That's a 

 good load for four horses over such roads as these." 



"That's thrue," said Mike, '•''hut Shane niver slnds 

 four horses to do the ivork he can get out of two.'* 



j\Ir. Tracy's team was soon hitched to the end of the 

 tongue, and the four horses easily pulled the wagon out 

 of the mud. 



"The old horse is winded," said Mr. Tracy, " and 

 can never pull that load home. It's a shame to treat 



