CHAP. III. LOVE OF ANIMALS. 31 



rapid, and, with a willing heart and mind, he soon 

 became well advanced in arithmetic. Indeed, Andrew 

 Robertson became somewhat proud of his scholar ; and 

 shortly afterwards, when the Water-row Pit was closed, 

 and George removed to Black Callerton to work there, 

 the poor schoolmaster, not having a very extensive con- 

 nexion in Newburn, went with his pupils, and set up 

 his night-school at Black Callerton, where he continued 

 his instruction to them. 



George still found time to attend to his favourite 

 animals while working at the Water-row Pit. Like his 

 father, he used to tempt the robin-redbreasts to hop and 

 fly about him at the engine-fire, by the bait of bread- 

 crumbs saved from his dinner. But his favourite animal 

 was his dog so sagacious that he performed the office 

 of a servant, in almost daily carrying his dinner to him 

 at the pit. The tin containing the meal was suspended 

 from the dog's neck, and, thus laden, he proudly walked 

 the road from Jolly's Close to Water-row Pit, quite 

 through the village of Newburn. He turned neither to 

 left nor right, nor minded for the time the barking of 

 curs at his heels. But his course was not unattended 

 with perils. One day the big strange dog of a passing 

 butcher espied the engineman's messenger, ran after 

 him, and fell upon him with the tin can about his neck. 

 There was a terrible tussle and worrying between the 

 dogs, which lasted for a brief while, and, shortly after, 

 the dog's master, anxious for his dinner, saw his faithful 

 servant approaching, bleeding but triumphant. The 

 tin can was still round his neck, but the dinner had 

 escaped in the struggle. Though George went without 

 his dinner that day, when the circumstances of the 

 combat were related to him by the villagers who had 

 seen it, he was prouder of his dog than ever. 



It was while working at the Water-row Pit that Ste- 

 phenson first learnt the art of brakeing an engine. This 

 being one of the higher departments of colliery labour, 



