The Project Gutenberg eBook of My friend Doggie; or, An only child

This ebook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this ebook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.

Title: My friend Doggie; or, An only child

Author: G. R. Glasgow

Release date: February 25, 2025 [eBook #75465]

Language: English

Original publication: London: Ernest Nister, 1890

Credits: Bob Taylor, Mairi and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)

*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MY FRIEND DOGGIE; OR, AN ONLY CHILD ***

MY FRIEND DOGGIE

or

AN ONLY CHILD.

UP at the Hall there was only one little girl. She was, however, such a very pretty little girl, and so very gentle and sweet-tempered, that she could hardly have been improved upon, and all the eight children at the Lodge loved her.

The eight children at the Lodge were not particularly pretty, neither were they particularly good, but they had warm, affectionate little hearts, and I suppose that, as each baby brings love into the world with it, there was eight times the amount of love in the cottage that there was at the Hall.

When the children at the cottage looked curiously at the little lady in her velvet and fur, their mother used to be ashamed of them, and tell them that beauty was only skin-deep, and it was better to be good than pretty—and they all believed her except Bet, and on that dreadful day when Francey told the little lady to her face that she did not see she (the little lady) was a bit better than she was, except for her clothes, poor Mrs. Smith had wept tears of sorrow and mortification, and Francey had dined on dry bread for a week—and they had all again implicitly believed, as their mother had told them, that they were only common children and Miss Dolly was a very superior being indeed—except Bet.

Bet was the youngest but one, so it was the seventh time the Angel of Love had come to the cottage when he was born. He was particularly plain—bless his heart, just like his dear father, Mrs. Smith used to say to the servants at the Hall—and although he brought plenty of love into the poor home, unfortunately he did not bring any extra bread and butter with him.

Bet was a dreadful boy—what his mother called a limb. He used to plant his sturdy legs apart, and gape at Miss Dolly and the Squire, without a touch of his cap or a pull at his rough curls, for all the world as if they were common cottage people like himself—for sometimes when a little common child is born the fairies forget to tell him that he is not quite like the upper classes, and then he is very apt to go through life never learning the difference at all, and having the impertinence sometimes to grow up into something quite original.

But the funny thing was that, for all his impudent ways, it was Bet that Miss Dolly chose to love out of all the children at the Lodge. If she ran away from the nurse or her governess in the garden, they were sure to find her sitting behind a bush with Bet, sharing strawberries on a leaf, or making cups and saucers out of acorns.

Her mother used to laugh, and say that an only child must have someone to play with, and that Bet was a dear impudent boy, with his brown curls and his twinkling eyes and his ugly face.

Now Bet was very fond of animals, and the gamekeeper had given him a spaniel puppy, and the gardener’s boy had given him a kitty, and one winter’s morning he had raced them down the avenue together and into the road.

Just as he got through the gate of the avenue he saw a whole lot of rough boys bounding and leaping towards him, and before he knew what they were going to do they had seized the poor little kitty, and were tossing it from one to the other as if it were a ball.

Bet was terrified and he was furious—and, above all, he heard the mewing of the frightened kitty as she clung with teeth and claws to the cruel hand—but Bet was only six years old, and though he kicked and struck and fought, the boys just laughed and shook him off as if he had been a cross puppy, and not a very brave, angry, ugly little boy.

But at that moment there came to his ears the sweetest sound he had ever heard—the sound of flying feet upon the gravel, and a furious screaming voice, much more like an infuriated cockatoo than a very superior little girl.

“You leave that boy’s kitten alone!” she was shouting, as she came flying down the drive in her fur cloak and scarlet hat. “You—you cowards—I’ll call the gardeners. I’ll call the coachman. You leave that cat alone!”

She had plunged into the midst of them, kicking and hitting much harder than Bet had done, and attracting so much attention that Smith rushed out of the cottage with his stick and Mrs. Smith’s red face appeared at an upper window. But Dolly had won the victory before the reinforcements arrived. The boys had dispersed in a great hurry at the sight of the stick and Smith’s powerful arm, and Dolly and Bet were huddled on the bank by the roadside together, with the poor frightened pussy clasped in their arms. Dolly was crying, now that the need for courage was over, and Bet was very white and very still, for a great resolve was forming itself in his mind, and it took all his strength to be capable of the sacrifice. The whole family came out to comfort Dolly and dry her tears, and Smith himself prepared to escort her back to the house. Her own spaniels, Dash and Dandy, had found her out, and were leaping joyfully upon her, partly from affection no doubt, but partly because she still held the long-suffering pussy out of the way of their frantic leaps.

“I’m ever so much obliged to you, Miss Dolly,” said Mrs. Smith, wiping the mud and snow off her fur cloak, and she looked round furtively at Bet to see if he had it in his mind to be polite or not.

But there was so need to tell Bet to pull his curly locks to-day. Even if one is an independent young Briton, with very crude ideas of social distinctions, one is often blessed with very strong feelings of love or gratitude, and Bet’s blue eyes were shining.

“I’ll never forget,” he said; “I’ll give you my best—always—I won’t never forget.”

He choked and ran away into the house, and Mrs. Smith excused him. “You see, he’s but young, Miss,” she said, “and he’s not free of his words, but he’s very much your debtor for the cat, that he is.”

So Smith and the big stick, and Dash and Dolly, strolled away to the house together.

Half way along the avenue they came upon three of the eight children scattering salt upon the snow, hoping it might lodge upon the tail of a fat robin that was hopping from twig to twig. They shrank away out of their father’s sight, but Dolly could not resist stopping to see if they succeeded. However, Dash and Dandy made such a rush at the fat robin, both at once, that he flew away with a frightened chirp, and Dolly nodded to the children, and ran on home.

But all that day Bet sat moodily in his little corner by the grate, with the great resolve taking root in his slow mind. To-morrow was Christmas Day and he wanted to make Miss Dolly a present, and in all the world he had only one thing of his very own of any value and that was his puppy. He wanted to give it to her, and in his heart he meant to give it to her, but it was like tearing a very precious flower up by the roots to take this great love out of his life; for he did love it. It ate out of his saucer at meals and slept in his crib at night, and, however little there might be to eat, Bet’s share was equally divided with the puppy.

He did not tell his mother what he was thinking about, or why his tears fell that night into the puppy’s saucer, because she used to say to Bet sometimes that they were too poor to be generous, and Bet did not want to hear her say that to-night; so he crept silently to bed and laid his cheek upon the puppy’s coat, and in two minutes they were fast asleep.

And that was how it happened that on Christmas morning there was an empty chair at the crowded table, and a neglected basin of bread and milk standing on the hob. There were no Christmas stockings for the Lodge children and no parcels on their plates, but Mrs. Smith loved all her children very much, and especially Bet, so she kept going uneasily between the window and the fire, saying anxiously, first to one and then to another: “Wherever is the boy?”

Now the Lodge children were well brought up, and under no circumstances were they allowed to talk at meals, but when Mrs. Smith had repeated her question for about the twentieth time, one fat child, bolder than the rest, said, stolidly:

“He’s up to the Hall, mother; he’s going to make a present of the pup to Miss Dolly.”

“Dear, dear,” said the mother, doubtfully, “to think of that; whatever’ll the Squire think—dear, dear, now—the impudence of Bet.”

Seeing her conversational effort was so well received the bold little girl made another venture:

“He’s just wropt up in Miss Dolly,” she said.

“Tut, tut,” said her mother, hastily, “that’s very unbecoming, Susan—dear, dear, what a saying; well, put his bowl on one side, Francey, and clean up the children for church.”

Bet had started in the early morning over the crisp hard ground, with the doomed puppy at his heels. He had quite fought out the matter with himself, and he felt he was glad to give up the puppy—all the more glad, perhaps, because the fight had been a hard one. Every two or three steps he turned to look at the soft little creature, tumbling over itself and making frantic efforts to keep up with his bold strides. Once it crept on to a bit of ice, and his blood ran cold with fear, but at last he reached the great front steps, and sat down exhausted with the puppy in his arms. Its tongue was out and its head hanging, and they were both nearly asleep when the door was opened suddenly behind them and a soft voice said: “Why, Bet! and the puppy!”

Bet was on his feet in a minute. “It’s for Miss Dolly—I brought it up—it’s the only thing that’s mine.”

“My dear little boy, Dolly will be so pleased.” Dolly’s mother thought, with a pang, of Dolly as she had seen her an hour ago, with arms full of toys, and her room littered with presents, and then of that other home, so full of children, so bare of presents, out of which another generous gift had come for Dolly. There were eight sealed parcels lying in the housekeeper’s room, but a generous impulse prevented her from speaking of them to Bet just now. She could hear Dolly on the stairs, and Bet’s solemn little voice, and the puppy’s squeals—and she was glad to think that she had remembered, and that Dolly would have the joy of coming too when she took the eight parcels to the Lodge. Far better than rank or distinction or money is the love that levels all—an everlasting bond between the Hall and the Lodge.

Geraldine Glasgow.

*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK MY FRIEND DOGGIE; OR, AN ONLY CHILD ***

Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will be renamed.

Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG™ concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for an eBook, except by following the terms of the trademark license, including paying royalties for use of the Project Gutenberg trademark. If you do not charge anything for copies of this eBook, complying with the trademark license is very easy. You may use this eBook for nearly any purpose such as creation of derivative works, reports, performances and research. Project Gutenberg eBooks may be modified and printed and given away—you may do practically ANYTHING in the United States with eBooks not protected by U.S. copyright law. Redistribution is subject to the trademark license, especially commercial redistribution.

START: FULL LICENSE

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE

PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE YOU DISTRIBUTE OR USE THIS WORK

To protect the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting the free distribution of electronic works, by using or distributing this work (or any other work associated in any way with the phrase “Project Gutenberg”), you agree to comply with all the terms of the Full Project Gutenberg™ License available with this file or online at www.gutenberg.org/license.

Section 1. General Terms of Use and Redistributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works

1.A. By reading or using any part of this Project Gutenberg™ electronic work, you indicate that you have read, understand, agree to and accept all the terms of this license and intellectual property (trademark/copyright) agreement. If you do not agree to abide by all the terms of this agreement, you must cease using and return or destroy all copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in your possession. If you paid a fee for obtaining a copy of or access to a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work and you do not agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement, you may obtain a refund from the person or entity to whom you paid the fee as set forth in paragraph 1.E.8.

1.B. “Project Gutenberg” is a registered trademark. It may only be used on or associated in any way with an electronic work by people who agree to be bound by the terms of this agreement. There are a few things that you can do with most Project Gutenberg™ electronic works even without complying with the full terms of this agreement. See paragraph 1.C below. There are a lot of things you can do with Project Gutenberg™ electronic works if you follow the terms of this agreement and help preserve free future access to Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. See paragraph 1.E below.

1.C. The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation (“the Foundation” or PGLAF), owns a compilation copyright in the collection of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works. Nearly all the individual works in the collection are in the public domain in the United States. If an individual work is unprotected by copyright law in the United States and you are located in the United States, we do not claim a right to prevent you from copying, distributing, performing, displaying or creating derivative works based on the work as long as all references to Project Gutenberg are removed. Of course, we hope that you will support the Project Gutenberg™ mission of promoting free access to electronic works by freely sharing Project Gutenberg™ works in compliance with the terms of this agreement for keeping the Project Gutenberg™ name associated with the work. You can easily comply with the terms of this agreement by keeping this work in the same format with its attached full Project Gutenberg™ License when you share it without charge with others.

1.D. The copyright laws of the place where you are located also govern what you can do with this work. Copyright laws in most countries are in a constant state of change. If you are outside the United States, check the laws of your country in addition to the terms of this agreement before downloading, copying, displaying, performing, distributing or creating derivative works based on this work or any other Project Gutenberg™ work. The Foundation makes no representations concerning the copyright status of any work in any country other than the United States.

1.E. Unless you have removed all references to Project Gutenberg:

1.E.1. The following sentence, with active links to, or other immediate access to, the full Project Gutenberg™ License must appear prominently whenever any copy of a Project Gutenberg™ work (any work on which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” appears, or with which the phrase “Project Gutenberg” is associated) is accessed, displayed, performed, viewed, copied or distributed:

This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before using this eBook.

1.E.2. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is derived from texts not protected by U.S. copyright law (does not contain a notice indicating that it is posted with permission of the copyright holder), the work can be copied and distributed to anyone in the United States without paying any fees or charges. If you are redistributing or providing access to a work with the phrase “Project Gutenberg” associated with or appearing on the work, you must comply either with the requirements of paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 or obtain permission for the use of the work and the Project Gutenberg™ trademark as set forth in paragraphs 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.3. If an individual Project Gutenberg™ electronic work is posted with the permission of the copyright holder, your use and distribution must comply with both paragraphs 1.E.1 through 1.E.7 and any additional terms imposed by the copyright holder. Additional terms will be linked to the Project Gutenberg™ License for all works posted with the permission of the copyright holder found at the beginning of this work.

1.E.4. Do not unlink or detach or remove the full Project Gutenberg™ License terms from this work, or any files containing a part of this work or any other work associated with Project Gutenberg™.

1.E.5. Do not copy, display, perform, distribute or redistribute this electronic work, or any part of this electronic work, without prominently displaying the sentence set forth in paragraph 1.E.1 with active links or immediate access to the full terms of the Project Gutenberg™ License.

1.E.6. You may convert to and distribute this work in any binary, compressed, marked up, nonproprietary or proprietary form, including any word processing or hypertext form. However, if you provide access to or distribute copies of a Project Gutenberg™ work in a format other than “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other format used in the official version posted on the official Project Gutenberg™ website (www.gutenberg.org), you must, at no additional cost, fee or expense to the user, provide a copy, a means of exporting a copy, or a means of obtaining a copy upon request, of the work in its original “Plain Vanilla ASCII” or other form. Any alternate format must include the full Project Gutenberg™ License as specified in paragraph 1.E.1.

1.E.7. Do not charge a fee for access to, viewing, displaying, performing, copying or distributing any Project Gutenberg™ works unless you comply with paragraph 1.E.8 or 1.E.9.

1.E.8. You may charge a reasonable fee for copies of or providing access to or distributing Project Gutenberg™ electronic works provided that:

- • You pay a royalty fee of 20% of the gross profits you derive from the use of Project Gutenberg™ works calculated using the method you already use to calculate your applicable taxes. The fee is owed to the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, but he has agreed to donate royalties under this paragraph to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation. Royalty payments must be paid within 60 days following each date on which you prepare (or are legally required to prepare) your periodic tax returns. Royalty payments should be clearly marked as such and sent to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation at the address specified in Section 4, “Information about donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation.”

- • You provide a full refund of any money paid by a user who notifies you in writing (or by e-mail) within 30 days of receipt that s/he does not agree to the terms of the full Project Gutenberg™ License. You must require such a user to return or destroy all copies of the works possessed in a physical medium and discontinue all use of and all access to other copies of Project Gutenberg™ works.

- • You provide, in accordance with paragraph 1.F.3, a full refund of any money paid for a work or a replacement copy, if a defect in the electronic work is discovered and reported to you within 90 days of receipt of the work.

- • You comply with all other terms of this agreement for free distribution of Project Gutenberg™ works.

1.E.9. If you wish to charge a fee or distribute a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work or group of works on different terms than are set forth in this agreement, you must obtain permission in writing from the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the manager of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark. Contact the Foundation as set forth in Section 3 below.

1.F.

1.F.1. Project Gutenberg volunteers and employees expend considerable effort to identify, do copyright research on, transcribe and proofread works not protected by U.S. copyright law in creating the Project Gutenberg™ collection. Despite these efforts, Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, and the medium on which they may be stored, may contain “Defects,” such as, but not limited to, incomplete, inaccurate or corrupt data, transcription errors, a copyright or other intellectual property infringement, a defective or damaged disk or other medium, a computer virus, or computer codes that damage or cannot be read by your equipment.

1.F.2. LIMITED WARRANTY, DISCLAIMER OF DAMAGES - Except for the “Right of Replacement or Refund” described in paragraph 1.F.3, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, the owner of the Project Gutenberg™ trademark, and any other party distributing a Project Gutenberg™ electronic work under this agreement, disclaim all liability to you for damages, costs and expenses, including legal fees. YOU AGREE THAT YOU HAVE NO REMEDIES FOR NEGLIGENCE, STRICT LIABILITY, BREACH OF WARRANTY OR BREACH OF CONTRACT EXCEPT THOSE PROVIDED IN PARAGRAPH 1.F.3. YOU AGREE THAT THE FOUNDATION, THE TRADEMARK OWNER, AND ANY DISTRIBUTOR UNDER THIS AGREEMENT WILL NOT BE LIABLE TO YOU FOR ACTUAL, DIRECT, INDIRECT, CONSEQUENTIAL, PUNITIVE OR INCIDENTAL DAMAGES EVEN IF YOU GIVE NOTICE OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SUCH DAMAGE.

1.F.3. LIMITED RIGHT OF REPLACEMENT OR REFUND - If you discover a defect in this electronic work within 90 days of receiving it, you can receive a refund of the money (if any) you paid for it by sending a written explanation to the person you received the work from. If you received the work on a physical medium, you must return the medium with your written explanation. The person or entity that provided you with the defective work may elect to provide a replacement copy in lieu of a refund. If you received the work electronically, the person or entity providing it to you may choose to give you a second opportunity to receive the work electronically in lieu of a refund. If the second copy is also defective, you may demand a refund in writing without further opportunities to fix the problem.

1.F.4. Except for the limited right of replacement or refund set forth in paragraph 1.F.3, this work is provided to you ‘AS-IS’, WITH NO OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PURPOSE.

1.F.5. Some states do not allow disclaimers of certain implied warranties or the exclusion or limitation of certain types of damages. If any disclaimer or limitation set forth in this agreement violates the law of the state applicable to this agreement, the agreement shall be interpreted to make the maximum disclaimer or limitation permitted by the applicable state law. The invalidity or unenforceability of any provision of this agreement shall not void the remaining provisions.

1.F.6. INDEMNITY - You agree to indemnify and hold the Foundation, the trademark owner, any agent or employee of the Foundation, anyone providing copies of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works in accordance with this agreement, and any volunteers associated with the production, promotion and distribution of Project Gutenberg™ electronic works, harmless from all liability, costs and expenses, including legal fees, that arise directly or indirectly from any of the following which you do or cause to occur: (a) distribution of this or any Project Gutenberg™ work, (b) alteration, modification, or additions or deletions to any Project Gutenberg™ work, and (c) any Defect you cause.

Section 2. Information about the Mission of Project Gutenberg™

Project Gutenberg™ is synonymous with the free distribution of electronic works in formats readable by the widest variety of computers including obsolete, old, middle-aged and new computers. It exists because of the efforts of hundreds of volunteers and donations from people in all walks of life.

Volunteers and financial support to provide volunteers with the assistance they need are critical to reaching Project Gutenberg™’s goals and ensuring that the Project Gutenberg™ collection will remain freely available for generations to come. In 2001, the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation was created to provide a secure and permanent future for Project Gutenberg™ and future generations. To learn more about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation and how your efforts and donations can help, see Sections 3 and 4 and the Foundation information page at www.gutenberg.org.

Section 3. Information about the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation

The Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation is a non-profit 501(c)(3) educational corporation organized under the laws of the state of Mississippi and granted tax exempt status by the Internal Revenue Service. The Foundation’s EIN or federal tax identification number is 64-6221541. Contributions to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation are tax deductible to the full extent permitted by U.S. federal laws and your state’s laws.

The Foundation’s business office is located at 809 North 1500 West, Salt Lake City, UT 84116, (801) 596-1887. Email contact links and up to date contact information can be found at the Foundation’s website and official page at www.gutenberg.org/contact

Section 4. Information about Donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation

Project Gutenberg™ depends upon and cannot survive without widespread public support and donations to carry out its mission of increasing the number of public domain and licensed works that can be freely distributed in machine-readable form accessible by the widest array of equipment including outdated equipment. Many small donations ($1 to $5,000) are particularly important to maintaining tax exempt status with the IRS.

The Foundation is committed to complying with the laws regulating charities and charitable donations in all 50 states of the United States. Compliance requirements are not uniform and it takes a considerable effort, much paperwork and many fees to meet and keep up with these requirements. We do not solicit donations in locations where we have not received written confirmation of compliance. To SEND DONATIONS or determine the status of compliance for any particular state visit www.gutenberg.org/donate.

While we cannot and do not solicit contributions from states where we have not met the solicitation requirements, we know of no prohibition against accepting unsolicited donations from donors in such states who approach us with offers to donate.

International donations are gratefully accepted, but we cannot make any statements concerning tax treatment of donations received from outside the United States. U.S. laws alone swamp our small staff.

Please check the Project Gutenberg web pages for current donation methods and addresses. Donations are accepted in a number of other ways including checks, online payments and credit card donations. To donate, please visit: www.gutenberg.org/donate.

Section 5. General Information About Project Gutenberg™ electronic works

Professor Michael S. Hart was the originator of the Project Gutenberg™ concept of a library of electronic works that could be freely shared with anyone. For forty years, he produced and distributed Project Gutenberg™ eBooks with only a loose network of volunteer support.

Project Gutenberg™ eBooks are often created from several printed editions, all of which are confirmed as not protected by copyright in the U.S. unless a copyright notice is included. Thus, we do not necessarily keep eBooks in compliance with any particular paper edition.

Most people start at our website which has the main PG search facility: www.gutenberg.org.

This website includes information about Project Gutenberg™, including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks.

Table of Contents

MY FRIEND DOGGIE or An Only Child.

THE FULL PROJECT GUTENBERG LICENSE