HOW THE DEACON BECAME A HORSE JOCKEY. 



343 



than described when this intruder was 

 given his own place in Ashwind's stall, and 

 he was forced to look for shelter wherever 

 he could find it. He was jealous; wildly, 

 insanely jealous. Many were the tales of 

 his relentless ferocity toward the dogs of 

 the neighborhood and he could have made 

 an end of the collie in a short time ; but he 

 was too much of a gentleman to attack a 

 guest under his master's roof. He could 

 not, however, conceal his feelings ; his 

 crestfallen bearing on every occasion when 

 Collie was placed on the driver's seat spoke 

 volumes of protest against his undeserved 

 separation from his friend, and the usurpa- 

 tion of his privileges, so dearly prized, by 

 another. 



Poor Collie was a sorry driver. Per- 



perseverance and lack of another trick dog 

 led him to try again and again to educate 

 poor Collie to sit up and look and act as if 

 he enjoyed the sport. 



"Look a here," said Tom one morning to 

 Jim, the groom who rode Ashwind's run- 

 ning mate. 'What are we goin' to do with 

 this fool Collie? He ain't no good for this 

 business, it's late in the season and I'm 

 tired foolin' with him." 



"Give him another trial," said Jim, "an' 

 if he won't work, throw him over the 

 fence an' let the old horse go it alone." 



"Reckon we can't do no better. Put on 

 them hopples and we'll hook up, but be 

 sure and ketch that Collie first or you'll 

 never see him to-day." 



Jim snapped a chain in Collie's collar, 



DEACON DRIVING ASHWIND. 



fectly at home among the sheep and lambs, 

 kind, obedient, and attentive to the work 

 in which he took delight, the wild excite- 

 ment of the race course completely cowed 

 him. He had to be fairly dragged into the 

 driver's seat, and lost no time in seeking 

 a more stable footing whenever the oppor- 

 tunity presented itself. Thus some weeks 

 wore on, the most miserable weeks in Dea- 

 con's life; weeks of longing to be revenged 

 on his unworthy rival ; of hoping Collie's 

 unfitness might suggest a change in his own 

 favor. 



To tell the truth, Tom was tired of his 

 bargain from the first day, but his habitual 



and after adjusting Ashwind's hopples, the 

 4 proceeded around the corner to where the 

 sulky stood in the shade of a tree. 



What a sight met their eyes ! There on 

 the seat of the vehicle sat Deacon, his mouth 

 stretched from ear to ear, his one eye fair- 

 ly scintillating with delight and his head 

 bobbing up and down, as much as to say, 



"Yes ! I know your troubles ; why don't 

 you give me a show? I won't lie down and 

 skulk. I can drive a heat to a finish." 



In his frantic endeavors to make himself 

 understood he toppled off his seat, only to 

 scramble up again and^renew the demon- 

 stration. Tom looked at Deacon a full 



