The owner of a spaniel was one day called away from his dinner-table,
leaving a dog and a favourite cat in the room. On his return he found
the spaniel stretched her whole length along the table, by the side of a
leg of mutton, while Puss was skulking in a corner. He soon saw that,
though the mutton was untouched, the cat had been driven from the table
by the spaniel, in the act of attempting a robbery on the meat, and that
the dog had taken up his post to prevent a repetition of the attempt.
The little animal was thus in the habit of guarding eatables which she
believed were left in her charge; and while she would not touch them
herself, she kept other dogs and cats at a distance.
How much evil might be prevented, if boys and girls would always act the
part of the faithful little spaniel; only, as they have got tongues in
their head, and know how wrong it is to do what is bad, they can
remonstrate lovingly with their companions who may be about to do a
wrong thing--and then, if this fails, do their utmost to prevent them.