August 10, 1935-What The Country Is Worrying About-At-Least On The Doylestown Road-Seems To Be Neither Hitler Nor Mussolini, But Julia
The Washington Daily News—Saturday—August 10,—1935
What The Country Is Worrying About-At-Least On The Doylestown Road-Seems To Be Neither Hitler Nor Mussolini, But Julia
By Ernie Pyle
PHILADELPHIA– “Julia come here! Julia, stop bothering the gentleman!”
Julia, was a little puppy dog, who lives on the Doylestown road up north of Philadelphia, in one of those old farmhouses so frequently turned into "Ye Olde Oaken Bucket Inn for overnight guests. "
Julia's mistress must have been the sister of the woman who owned the place, and as the scene opens Julia was leaping all over one of the new guests, a gentleman who has no antipathy whatever toward dogs. In fact, he likes them.
“That's the trouble with her, " Julia's mistress was saying, "She's so crazy about strangers, and they make over her so, we just can't teach her a thing.”
“She's very nice, " the man said, "but what is she? She's got a body like a wire-hair and a face like a fox terrier. I never saw anything like that before. "
“That's what we don't know. We bought her for a thorobred (sic) wire-hair, but she turned out like this. So now we don't know what she is.
"I think I'd like her this way better anyhow,” the man said. “ I don't like wire-haired's faces, they look dumb. they're long and square. Fox terriers faces look sharp. I'd like her better this way.”
SHE’S AWFUL SMART
“Yes, we like her this way, too. WIRE-HAIRED’S faces do look dumb. Julia's awful smart and full of life. That's one trouble, tho, she's so crazy about strangers we can't teach her anything. And if we turn her loose she's right out in the road.”
“Y” U. If she gets into the road. she won't last long, the man said. “The autos will get her.”
“Yes, I know. We're worried about it all the time. Come on, Julia, let's go get supper.”
The man had sat down and picked up a newspaper. The woman moved toward the door. Julia had discovered the man had cuffs on his pants, and was having herself a lot of fun with them.
LIKES THE STRANGERS
“Come on, Julia.”
Maybe Julia was deaf, or didn't understand English or something, for she paid not the slightest attention. Neither, apparently, was she at all aware of the pause, one of those end of the line pauses, in the conversation. Finally the woman got the ball rolling again.
“That's the trouble. She's so crazy about strangers we just can't teach her a thing.”
“She's got a smart face, tho," the man said. " Fox terriers faces are sharp and look smart. but I never saw a dog before with a body like a wire-haired and a face like a fox terrier.”
“No, we never did either,. We bought her for a thorobred wire-haired, but now we don't know what to make of it. But she's awful smart and full of life. We have trouble all the time keeping her out of the road.”
“If she gets out in the road she won't last long.”
“Yes, just the other day one of the neighbor boys bringing us some eggs saw her in the road and chased her off just as a whole string of cars went past.”
“Yes, the way those autos go past here they'll get her if she goes out in the road much.
SHE’S QUITE A DOG
“Come on Julia.” Julia didn't. The man held his newspaper up, but politely looked over the top before starting to read. The woman stood in the door to the dining room, waiting for Julia. There was that pause again. Julia kept on playing.
“She's so crazy about strangers,” the woman said. “I don't know what we're going to do with her. We can't teach her a thing.”
“But she's nice, and you can tell she's smart. She’s sure got a smart face. Not a square face like a wire-haired.”
“It's funny about her,” the woman said. “We bought her for a thorobred wire-haired, but her face looks like a fox terrier.”
“ I never saw one like her before. but I think I'd like her better that way.”
There was a noise from the kitchen. Julia stopped her playing, stood at attention, all alert listening for a moment, then was gone like a streak through the door. Her mistress turned to follow. “She's so full of life. I don't know what we'll do if we can't teach her to stay out of the road.”
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