COMMUTER'S WIFE 95 



continually sneaking away from Tim, with whom he 

 has always lived at the stable, and nosing me out. 

 Then when I am found, he stands with his body 

 drawn backward, one ear cocked and the other 

 lopping over, a grin on his homely, hairy face, as 

 with a sort of twinkle of the eye he gives a few 

 short barks, as much as to say, "Did you think 

 you could hide from such a thing as a red-haired 

 Irish terrier by the name of Pat?" 



He is a respecter of dog law, however, and never 

 ventures to lie on my feet when Bluff is by. Senior- 

 ity rules in dog-land, where the oldest resident, be he 

 great or small, strong or feeble, quarrelsome or easy- 

 going, is King and the final authority on matters of 

 etiquette. No one disputes his rule, that is, no full- 

 grown dog of gentlemanly instincts ; of course the 

 gambols of puppies do not count. Sedate old dogs 

 always tolerate them, sometimes administering a very 

 mild cuff when awakened from after-dinner naps by 

 having their ears chewed by the restless pups. But 

 quite as often they sit blinking and gratified with the 

 antics, wearing very much the same expression as 

 a big human whose hair is pulled and mouth pried 

 open by a rollicking pink-fisted baby. 



Bluff's field companion, Lark, though only half his 

 age, is lying almost under the stove ; his soft white 



