xiii

huntingto please old dog spot johnnie green had only to ask him this question, "want to go hunting, spot?"

when he heard that, spot would leave anything he happened to be doing, or give up anything he had intended to do. perhaps he had expected to dig up and gnaw a choice bone that he had buried somewhere. it might be that he had been planning to chase the cat, or tease turkey proudfoot in order to hear him gobble. there wasn't one of those pleasures that spot wouldn't gladly forgo for the sake of going hunting with johnnie green.

when johnnie green's father first gave him a shotgun spot went almost frantic with delight. and they lost no time in starting for the woods. johnnie green trudged up the lane with the gun on his shoulder, while spot ran on ahead of him, returning now and then as if to urge johnnie to hurry.

they hadn't been long in the woods when spot suddenly stood still and pointed ahead of him with his nose.

try as he would, johnnie couldn't see what spot was pointing at. so he took a few steps forward until he came abreast of the old dog. then all at once there was a rumbling whir that sounded to johnnie green almost as loud as thunder. a brownish streak flashed from the ground just ahead of him.

he knew that it was a grouse rising. and he fired.

johnnie green missed the bird. it had given him such a start that he was still shaking long afterward. he was disappointed, but not less downcast than old spot.

"never mind, old boy!" johnnie said. "we'll have better luck next time!"

but they didn't. twice more that same thing happened. and after the third miss old sport turned tail and ran away.

"i don't see what's the matter with that boy," he muttered. "i've pointed three birds for him. and he has let every one of them get away.... there's no fun in that kind of shooting."

after that johnnie couldn't get spot to go into the woods with him. whenever johnnie appeared in the yard with his gun, spot promptly vanished.

so johnnie spent a good deal of time shooting at old tin cans which he set on a fence post or a stone wall. and it wasn't long before he found he could hit them at every shot.

at last he came home from the woods one day with a grouse. when he showed it to spot the old dog actually began teasing him to go hunting.

the next day they set out together for the woods. and johnnie knocked down the very first grouse that spot found for him.

spot brought the bird to johnnie and laid it proudly at his feet.

"did johnnie green ever give you any of the birds that you find for him?" miss kitty cat inquired when spot was boasting a bit about the sport he and johnnie had in the woods. "no!" she said, answering her own question. "you're silly to hunt for him. i prefer to do my hunting alone. then nobody can take the game away from me."

old dog spot walked away from her, to the barn.

"miss kitty cat doesn't know what real hunting is," he told the old horse ebenezer. "she creeps up on small birds after dark, when they are asleep."

"and you creep up on big birds in the daytime," said old ebenezer, "so johnnie green can shoot them."

being a sporting dog, spot couldn't see anything queer in that remark.

"certainly!" he said.