fter she had seated herself
in a piazza chair he tried to climb into her lap as in his fuzzy
puppyhood, and succeeded, too, though he hung over her knees like a
yellow festoon, his feet touching the floor on either side and his
plumy tail fanning her face. Yet when she went away, he made no effort
to follow. He watched her intently from the piazza steps as she passed
down the hill and turned the corner. When she was out of sight, tail
and ears drooped and he came in of his own accord, soberly lying down
on the Thunder-and-Lightning Rug, beside his leash. Feelings were all
very well in their way, but duty was supreme. He had a house to guard
from beetles and other bugbears of the night.

Sigurd was so big and strong that he needed plenty of exercise. Before
he came, a spacious "run" had been provided for him on the wild bank,
hardly yet redeemed from the forest, back of the house, but this he
promptly repudiated for all purposes of frolic. He seemed to regard it
as a singing-school, for, dragged out there "to play," he would sit on
his haunches and practice dirge-music in howls of intolerable crescendo
until a decent respect for the opinions of the neighbors obliged us to
bring him in. We called him our gymnasium, walking and romping with him
all we could, but our utmost was not enough. So we would drive out,
once or twice a week, along the less frequented roads, though
automobiles were not so many then, to give the boy a "scimper-scamper."
He delighted to accompany the carriage, running alongside with brief
dashes down the bank for water or into the woods after a squirrel. When
he was tired, he would run close and look up, asking for a lift, but
after a few minutes of panting repose, lying across the phaeton in
front of our feet, nose and tail in alarming proximity to the wheels,
he would want to scramble out and race again.

The first time that we took him back to Cedar Hill was a thrilling
event for Sigurd. He had been running most of the way and jumped in
just before we reached familiar landmarks. As soon as these appeared,
all his weariness vanished. Standing erect, eyes shining, ears pricked
up, nose quivering, his tail thumping the dashboard with louder and
louder blows, he sent his lyric cry like a bugle through the air,
heralding our approach so well that all his kindred yet remaining on
the estate, as well as his original mistress, her guests and her maids,
were drawn up on the lawn and steps to receive us. Si