Page:The Hog.djvu/42

40 Mr. Henderson says, "I have a young sow of a good breed, so docile that she will suffer my youngest son, three years of age, to climb upon her back and ride her about for half an hour at a time, and more; when she is tired of the fun, she lays herself down, carefully avoiding hurting her young jockey. He often shares his bread and meat with her."

A pig belonging to a baker in Kinghorn, county Fife, became so attached to a bull-dog that it would follow and sport with him, and follow her master, when he was accompanied by this dog, for five or six miles. The dog was fond of swimming, and the pig imitated this propensity; and if any thing was thrown into the water for the dog to fetch out, the pig would follow and dispute the prize with him very cleverly and energetically. These two animals invariably slept together. M. de Dieskau tells us that "he made a wild boar so tame that the animal, although nearly three years old, would go up stairs to his apartment, fawn upon him like a dog, and eat from his hand. He also endeavored to bring up one which he caught very young, and which formed such an attachment to a young lady in the house that he accompanied her wherever she went, and slept upon her bed. Once he attacked her maid as she was undressing her mistress, and, had he been strong enough, would have done her some mortal injury. This lady was the only person in the house for whom the creature showed any affection, and yet he was not fed by her. At last he fretted himself to death on account of a fox which had been taken into the house to be tamed."

A very amusing account of a "pet pig" is given by a lady, in "Chambers' Edinburgh Journal:"— "Being at a loss to know what to do with the refuse of our garden, Aunt Mary suggested that a pig should be purchased. Accordingly our little damsel Annette was despatched to a neighboring farmer, and, in exchange for a few shillings, she brought home a fat, fair, round pig, just six weeks old; and in her haste to display her bargain she tumbled it out in the sitting-room. Nothing daunted by the splendor of its new abode, the pig ran up and down, snorting and snuffing at every chair and table in the room, overturning with his snout my aunt's footstool, and trying his teeth on her new straw work-basket. After the pig had been duly admired and commented on, Annette was desired to install it in its own domicile; but this was more easily said than done; for being, I suppose, pleased with his new quarters, Toby—for so we named him—ran hither and thither, now scudding behind a chair or table, now whisking under the sofa; at length Annette succeeded in dragging him from his hiding-place while he roared out 'Murder!' as plain as a pig could speak. Annette was very fond of dumb creatures, as she called them; the pig became her darling, and for want of a companion of other scan consulted