A Gentleman
I own a dog who is a gentleman;
By birth most surely, since the creature can
Boast of a pedigree the like of which
Holds not a Howard or a Metternich.
By breeding. Since the walks of life he trod,
He never wagged an unkind talk abroad.
He never snubbed a nameless cur because
Without a friend or credit card he was.
By pride. He looks you squarely in t
Unshrinking and without a single trace
Of either diffidence or arrogant
Assertion such as upstarts often flaunt.
By tenderness. The littlest girl may tear
With absolute impunity his hair,
And pinch his silken flowing ears the while
He smiles upon her--yes, I've seen him smile.
By loyalty. No truer friend than he
Has come to prove his friendship's worth to me,
He does not fear the master--knows no fear--
But loves the man who is his master here.
By countenance. If there be nobler eyes,
More full of honor and of honesties,
In finer head, on broader shoulders found--
Then have I never met the man or hound.
Here is the motto of my lifeboat's log:
"God grant I may be worthy of my dog!"
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A Friend
"Your invitation, sir, to dine With you to-night I must decline Because to-day I lost a friend-- A friend long known and loved;" thus penned The good Sir Walter, aptly named The Wizard of the North, and famed For truest, gentlest ... A Gentleman
I own a dog who is a gentleman; By birth most surely, since the creature can Boast of a pedigree the like of which Holds not a Howard or a Metternich. By breeding. Since the walks of life he trod, He never wagged an unkind talk abr... An Extract From Inscription On The Monument Of A Newfoundland Dog
... "In life the firmest friend, The first to welcome, foremost to defend, Whose honest heart is still his master's own, Who labours, fights, lives, breathes for him alone." "Near this spot Are deposited the Remains of on... An Old Dog
Now that no shrill hunting horn Can arouse me at the morn, Deaf I lie the long day through, Dreaming firelight dreams of you; Waiting, patient through it all, Till the greater Huntsman call. If we are, as people say, But the ... Cluny
I am quite sure he thinks that I am God-- Since He is God on whom each one depends For life, and all things that His bounty sends-- My dear old dog, most constant of all friends; Not quick to mind, but quicker far than I To Him whom ... Davy
Davy, her knight, her dear, was dead: Low in dust was the silken head. "Isn't there heaven," (She was but seven) "Isn't there" (sobbing) "for dogs?" she said. "Man is immortal, sage or fool: Animals end, by different... Dodo
1903-1913 Here lies a little dog who now Asks nothing more of man's goodwill Than the grey stone that tells you how She loved the friends who love her still. Sir Walter Scott's translation of Lockhart's epitaph for "Maida's grave"... Fidele's Grassy Tomb
The Squire sat propped in a pillowed chair, His eyes were alive and clear of care, But well he knew that the hour was come To bid good-bye to his ancient home. He looked on garden, wood, and hill, He looked on the lake, sunny and s... Frances
You were a dog, Frances, a dog, And I was just a man. The Universal Plan,-- Well, 'twould have lacked something Had it lacked you. Somehow you fitted in like a far star Where the vast spaces are; Or like a grass-blade Which ... Geist's Grave
Four years!--and didst thou stay above The ground, which hides thee now, but four? And all that life, and all that love, Were crowded, Geist! into no more? Only four years those winning ways, Which make me for thy presence yearn, ... Hamish A Scotch Terrier
Little lad, little lad, and who's for an airing, Who's for the river and who's for a run; Four little pads to go fitfully faring, Looking for trouble and calling it fun? Down in the sedges the water-rats revel, Up in the wood there a... Laddie
Lowly the soul that waits At the white, celestial gates, A threshold soul to greet Beloved feet. Down the streets that are beams of sun Cherubim children run; They welcome it from the wall; Their voices call. But the War... Leo
Over the roofs of the houses I hear the barking of Leo-- Leo the shaggy, the lustrous, the giant, the gentle Newfoundland. Dark are his eyes as the night, and black is his hair as the midnight; Large and slow is his tread till he sees his ... Lufra
The Monarch saw the gambols flag, And bade let loose a gallant stag, Whose pride, the holiday to crown, Two favorite greyhounds should pull down, That venison free, and Bordeaux wine, Might serve the archery to dine. But Lufra,--w... My Dog
He's just plain yellow: no "blue-ribbon" breed. In disposition--well, a trifle gruff Outside his "tried and true." His coat is rough. To bark at night and sleep by day, his creed. Yet, when his soft brown eyes so dumbly plead For one... My Dog
The Curate thinks you have no soul: I know that he has none. But you, Dear friend! whose solemn self-control In our four-square, familiar pew, Was pattern to my youth--whose bark Called me in summer dawns to rove-- Have you gone... Remarks To My Grown-up Pup
By rules of fitness and of tense, By all old canine precedents, Oh, Adult Dog, the time is up When I may fondly call you Pup. The years have sped since first you stood In straddle-legged puppyhood,-- A watch-pup, proud of your ren... Rhapsody On A Dog's Intelligence
Dear dog, that seems to stand and gravely brood Upon the broad veranda of our home With soulful eyes that gaze into the gloam-- With speaking tail that registers thy mood,-- Men say thou hast no ratiocination; Methinks there is a cle... Roger And I
Well, Roger, my dear old doggie, they say that your race is run; And our jolly tramps together up and down the world are done; You're only a dog, old fellow, a dog, and you've had your day; But never a friend of all my friends has been tru... Sir Bat-ears
Sir Bat-ears was a dog of birth And bred in Aberdeen, But he favoured not his noble kin And so his lot is mean, And Sir Bat-ears sits by the almshouses On the stones with grass between. Under the ancient archway His pleasure ... Six Feet
"My little rough dog and I Live a life that is rather rare. We have so many good walks to take And so few hard things to bear; So much that gladdens and recreates, So little of wear and tear." "Sometimes it blows and rains, B... The Bath
Hang garlands on the bathroom door; Let all the passages be spruce; For, lo, the victim comes once more, And, ah, he struggles like the deuce! Bring soaps of many scented sorts; Let girls in pinafores attend, With John, th... The Power Of The Dog
There is sorrow enough in the natural way From men and women to fill our day; But when we are certain of sorrow in store, Why do we always arrange for more? Brothers and sisters, I bid you beware Of giving your heart to a dog to tear...