people used to ask what breed the puppies were I 

 suppose it was because poor cross faithful old Jess was 

 not much to look at, and because no one had a very 

 high opinion of yellow dogs in general, and nobody 

 seemed to remember any famous yellow bull- terriers. 

 They used to smile in a queer way when they asked 

 the question, as if they were going to get off a joke ; 

 but when we answered " Just like their father 

 Buchanan's imported dog," the smile disappeared, 

 and they would give a whistle of surprise and say 

 " By Jove ! " and immediately begin to examine the 

 five yellow puppies, remark upon their ears and noses 

 and legs, and praise them up until we were all as proud 

 as if they had belonged to us. 



Jess looked after her puppies and knew nothing 

 about the remarks that were made, so they did not 

 worry her, but I often looked at the faithful old thing 

 with her dark brindled face, cross-looking eyes and 

 always-moving ears, and thought it jolly hard lines that 

 nobody had a good word for her ; it seemed rough on 

 her that every one should be glad there was only one 

 puppy at all like the mother the sixth one, a poor 

 miserable little rat of a thing about half the size of 

 the others. He was not yellow like them, nor dark 

 brindled like Jess, but a sort of dirty pale half-and- 

 half colour with some dark faint wavy lines all over 

 him, as if he had tried to be brindled and failed ; and 

 he had a dark sharp wizened little muzzle that looked 

 shrivelled up with age. 



Most of the fellows said it would be a good thing to 

 drown the odd one because he spoilt the litter and made 



55 



