the two little boys and the dog ate their supper in perfect silence, the only noise to be heard during the meal being the crunching of three sets of busy teeth. then, the fire being quite out, the children lay down on a dirty mattress in a corner of the room, and trusty curled himself up at their feet.
however lazy trusty might be in the daytime while the fire was alight, at night he always assumed the character of a protector. let the slightest sound arise, above, around, or beneath him, and he raised a bay, cracked it is true, but still full of unspeakable consolation to the timid heart of little pepper.
in the daytime pepper was often guilty of very wicked and treacherous thoughts about trusty. when he was so often hungry, and[pg 178] could seldom enjoy more than half a meal, why must tom, however little money or food he brought in after his day's sweeping, always insist on trusty having his full share? why must tom—on those rare occasions when he was a little cross and discontented—too cross and discontented to take much notice of him (pepper), yet still put his arms so lovingly round the old dog's neck? and why, why above all things must trusty be so very selfish about their tiny fire, sitting so close to it, and taking all its warmth into his own person, while poor little pepper shivered by his side?
pepper was younger than trusty, and he never remembered the day when the dog was not a great person in his home; he never remembered the day when his mother, however poor and pinched, had not managed, with all the good-will in the world, to pay the dog-tax for him.
and when that mother—six months ago—died, she had enjoined on tom, almost with her last breath, the necessity of continuing this,[pg 179] and whatever straits they were placed in, begged of them never to forsake the old dog in his need.
of course pepper knew the reason of all this love and care for old trusty; and the reason, notwithstanding those treacherous and discontented thoughts in which he now and then found himself indulging, filled him with not a little pride and pleasure. it was because of him—of him, poor little insignificant pepper—that his mother and tom loved trusty so well. for when he was a baby trusty had saved his life.
how pepper did love to hear that story! how he used to climb on his mother's knee, and curl in her arms, and get her to tell it to him over and over again; and then, as he listened, his big, dark eyes used to get bright and wondering, while he pictured to himself the country home with the roses growing about the porch; and the pretty room inside, and the cradle where he lay warm and sheltered. then, how his heart did beat when his mother spoke of that dreadful day when she went out[pg 180] and left him in charge of a neighbor's daughter, paying no heed to his real caretaker, the large strong dog—young then, who lay under the table.
how often his cheek had turned pale, as his mother went on to tell him how the neighbor's daughter first built up the fire, and then, growing tired of her dull occupation, went away and left him alone with no companion but the dog. and then, how his father, returning from his day's work, had rushed in with a cry of horror, to find the cradle burned and some of the other furniture on fire; but the baby himself lying, smiling and uninjured, in a corner of the room; for the brave dog had dragged him from his dangerous resting-place, and had himself put out the flames as they began to catch his little night-shirt. trusty was severely burned, and for the rest of his days was blind of one eye and walked with a limp; but he earned the undying love and gratitude of the father and mother for his heroic conduct.
after this adventure his name was changed from jack to trusty, and any member of the[pg 181] family would rather have starved than allow trusty to want. pepper never listened to this exciting tale without his chest beginning to heave, and a moisture of love and compunction filling his brown eyes.
to-night, as he lay curled up as close as possible to tom, with trusty keeping his feet warm by lying on them, he thought of it all over again. as he thought, he felt even more than his usual sorrow, for he had certainly been very cross to trusty to-day. these feelings and recollections so occupied him that he forgot to chatter away as usual, until, looking up suddenly, he felt that his brother's eyes were closing—in short, that tom was going to sleep.
now, of all the twenty-four hours that comprised pepper's day and night, there was none that compared with the hour when he lay in his brother's arms, and talked to him, and listened to his adventures. this hour made the remaining twenty-three endurable; in short, it was his golden hour—his hour marked with a red letter.
"oh, tom!" he said now, rousing himself[pg 182] and speaking in a voice almost tearful, so keen was his disappointment, "yer never agoin' to get drowsy?"
"not i," answered tom, awakened at once by the sorrowful tones, and half-sitting up. "wot is it, pepper? i'm as lively as a lark, i am."
"yer h'eyes were shut," said pepper.
"well, and your mouth wor shut, pepper, that wor wy i fastened h'up my h'eyes, to save time."
"tom," said pepper, creeping very close to his big brother, "does yer really think as yer'll 'ave the money saved h'up for dear old trusty's tax, wen the man comes fur it?"
"oh, yes! i 'opes so; there's three months yet."
"'e's a dear old dog," said pepper, in an emphatic voice, "and i won't mind wot pat finnahan says 'bout 'im."
"wot's that?" asked tom.
"oh, tom! 'e comes h'in, some days, wen 'tis bitter cold, and trusty 'ave got hisself drawed in front o' the fire (trusty do take h'up[pg 183] h'all the fire, tom) and 'e says as trusty is h'eatin' us h'out o' 'ouse and 'ome, and ef you pays the tax fur 'im, wy, yer'll be the biggest fool h'out."
"dear me," said tom, "'e must be a nice 'un, 'e must! why, trusty's a sight better'n him, and a sight better worth lookin' arter."
this remark of tom's, uttered with great vehemence, startled pepper so much that he lay perfectly silent, staring up at his big brother. the moonlight, which quite filled the attic, enabled him to see tom's face very distinctly.
a strongly marked face, and full of character at all times; it was now also so full of disgust that pepper quite trembled.
"well, he is a mean 'un," continued tom. "see if i don't lay it on him the next time i catches of him coming spyin' in yere; and, pepper," he added, "i'm real consarned as yer should 'ave listened to such words."
"'ow could i 'elp it?" answered pepper. "'e comed h'in, and 'e kicked at trusty. i didn't want fur h'old trusty not to be paid fur, tom."[pg 184]
"i should 'ope not, indeed," replied tom; "that 'ud be a nice pass for us two boys to fursake trusty. but look yere, pepper. yer never goin' to be untrue to yer name, be yer?"
"oh, tom! 'ow so?"
"does yer know wy trusty was called trusty?"
now, of course, pepper knew no story in the world half so well, but at this question of tom's he nestled close so him, raised beseeching eyes, and said:
"tell us."
"'e wor called trusty," continued tom, "'cause wen yer were a little 'un he wor faithful. trusty means faithful; it means a kind of a body wot won't fursake another body what-h'ever 'appens. that wor wy father and mother changed 'is name from jack to trusty, 'cause 'e wor faithful to you, pepper."
"yes," answered pepper, half-sobbing, and feeling very gently with his toes the motion of trusty's tail; for trusty, hearing his name mentioned so often, was beating it softly up and down.[pg 185]
"and does yer know wy you was called pepper?" continued tom, by no means intending to abate the point and the object of his lecture by the break in pepper's voice.
"tell us," said the little child again.
"you was christened hen-e-ry [henry]; but, lor! pepper, that wor no name fur yer. that name meant some 'un soft and h'easy. but, bless yer, young 'un! there wor nothink soft nor h'easy about yer. what a firebrand yer were—flying h'out at h'everybody—so touchy and sparky-like, that mother wor sure you 'ad got a taste o' the fire as poor trusty saved yer from, until, at last, there wor no name 'ud suit yer but pepper. lor, lad, wot a spirrit yer 'ad then!"
with these words tom turned himself round on his pillow, and, having spoken his mind, and being in consequence quite comfortable, dropped quickly to sleep. but to poor little pepper, listening breathlessly for another word, that first snore of tom's was a very dreadful one. he knew then that there was no hope that night of any further words with tom. he[pg 186] must lie all night under the heavy weight of tom's displeasure; for, of course, tom was angry, or he would never have turned away with such despairing and contemptuous words on his lips. as pepper thought of this he could not quite keep down a rising sob, for the tom who he felt was angry with him meant father, mother, conscience—everything—to the poor little fellow.
and tom had cause for his anger; this was what gave it its sting. there was no doubt that pepper was not at all the spirited little boy he had been during his mother's lifetime—the brave little plucky fellow, who was afraid of no one, and who never would stoop to a mean act. how well he remembered that scene a few months ago, when a rough boy had flung a stone at trusty—yes! and hit him, and made him howl with the cruel pain he had inflicted; and then how pepper had fought for him, and given his cowardly assailant a black eye, and afterward how his mother and tom had praised him. oh, how different he was[pg 187] now from then! his tears flowed copiously as he thought of it all.
but the times were also different. since his mother's death he had spent his days so much alone, and those long days, spent in the old attic with no companion but trusty, had depressed his spirit and undermined his nerves. the unselfish, affectionate little boy found new and strange thoughts filling his poor little heart—thoughts to which, during his mother's lifetime, he was altogether a stranger. he wished he was strong and big like tom, and could go out and sweep a crossing. it was dreadful to stay at home all day doing nothing but thinking, and thinking, as he now knew, bad thoughts. for the idea suggested by that wild, queer irish boy downstairs would not go away again.
that boy had said with contempt, with even cutting sarcasm, how silly, how absurd it was of two poor little beggars like himself and tom to have to support a great, large dog like trusty; how hard it was to have to pay trusty's tax; how worse than ridiculous to[pg 188] have to share their morsel of food with trusty; and pepper had pondered over these words so often that his heart had grown sour and bitter against the old dog who had once saved his life.
but not to-night. to-night, as he lay in his bed and sobbed, that heart was rising up and saying hard things against itself. tom, with rough kindness, had torn the veil from his eyes, and he saw that he had gone down several pegs in the moral scale since his mother's death. could his mother come back to him now, would she recognize her own bright-spirited little pepper in this poor, weak, selfish boy? he could bear his own thoughts no longer; he must not wake tom, but he could at least make it up with trusty. he crept softly down in the bed until he reached the place where the old dog lay, and then he put his arms round him and half-strangled him with hugs and kisses.
"oh, trusty!" he said, "i does love yer, and i 'opes as god 'ull always let me be a real sperrited little 'un. i means h'always to stand[pg 189] up fur yer, trusty; and i'll be as fiery as red pepper to any 'un as says a word agen yer, trusty."
to this fervent speech trusty replied by raising a sleepy head and licking pepper's face.
