A Child of the Sea; and Life Among the MormonsWilliams, Elizabeth Whitney
History
A Child of the Sea; and Life Among the Mormons
Williams, Elizabeth Whitney
Beaver Island (Mich.); Latter Day Saints -- Michigan; Strang, James Jesse, 1813-1856
Mother had a cousin who was an old man of eighty. He had worked for the
Hudson Bay and Great American Fur Companies of John Jacob Astor,
carrying great loads of provisions to the trappers all through the Lake
Superior country, then taking the loads of fur back to market from the
trappers' camps. He being now too old to work, and without a home, my
father feeling sorry gave him a home with us. He was so grateful and
happy he could scarcely express his gratitude, speaking very little
English and that very broken. French, Spanish and Indian he spoke
fluently. He was born in Canada of French and Spanish parents. His
mother and my mother's mother were sisters. His name was Bertemau
Mazoka. The trappers called him Magazau, meaning "store" in English, as
with his two dogs, Bob and Maje, he carried a regular store for the
trappers. One dog, Maje, had died. Bob, the other, was eighteen years
old, and inseparable from the old grandpa, as we children were taught
to call him. He loved to have us call him grandpa. He was very kind and
patient with us, never tiring of doing something for our comfort.
OLD DOG BOB.
But Bob, how can I describe him, the old, patient, faithful dog! He was
large and powerful, dark brown with darker stripes in color, part bull
in breed, but just as gentle and kind in disposition as possible. He had
pulled the heavy loads so long he was almost blind, teeth almost gone
and rheumatism so bad it was hard for him to get upon his feet when he
laid down. When grandpa came bringing Bob he had said in his broken
English, "Mr. Whitney you take me, you take Bob too. Me can't stay if
Bob no stay." The old dog seemed to know what his master was saying, for
he came close to him and looked straight into father's face. Then father
said, "Yes, Bob can stay too." He tried to show his delight with his
master by jumping about. It would be hard to tell which of us Bob loved
the best. I can see him now sitting in some out-of-the-way corner
watching us with his great, almost human eyes. He had not always been
kindly treated. He seemed to be so afraid to be in anybody's way, and
when he saw us petting the other two dogs he would slink away with head
down and look so dejected. The young dogs, too, knew he was a stranger
and growled at him and bossed him about. Then poor old Bob would go back
of the house and cry and whine so pitifully. At last father could stand
it no longer and gave the order Bob must not be annoyed any more and
must have a bed and lay behind the stove in the big corner, and that no
one was ever to speak a cross word or strike Bob. Grandpa cried with
delight.
BOB'S NEW MASTER.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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