es in loving submission. And the
animal, whether a high-bred, glossy-coated favorite, with golden collar
and silken leash, for whom hundreds had been paid, or an ill-favored,
ungainly brute picked up from nowhere and as thankful for a kick as for
a crust, was loyal with a fidelity that puts to shame man's boasted
friendship.

This man's dog had loved him. Drunk or sober, kind or cruel, his dog was
not content out of his presence. Why was he not with the man on this
fatal night? Because Belt had chained him in order to follow out his
vengeance untraced. The master knew the sagacity of his dog. He wanted
no companion on his midnight stroll. And when, restless and uneasy, the
dog was let loose and shown the garment of his master, what did he do?
He dashed away, nose to earth, in eager, loving pursuit, along the
road to Grant's cottage. There he sniffs the ground, where undoubtedly
the familiar scent lay, jumps upon the window-ledge with his fore paws,
whimpers, starts away, and follows the trail down the path to the
beloved body now cold in death.

What proof more convincing than that Belt had been there? How improbable
the trumped-up story that Grant could decoy from his home his bitterest
enemy, especially at the midnight hour! A loaded pistol and a chisel
were found under the window. It had been alleged that Grant placed them
there for his own base purposes. But admitting that man could deceive,
the dog would not. Canine instinct could not lie. Every man who knew the
nature of the animal must feel convinced that Belt's dog would never
have gone to that window except in honest pursuit of his master.

I felt that my speech had told, and as I sat down there was a stir in
the vast crowd. My client's face was flushed, and the wife's somber veil
was thrown back, revealing her large eyes lustrous with hope.

The Commonwealth's attorney occupied the floor for an hour, during which
he ridiculed what he termed the schoolboy tales from his youthful
opponent. But when the jury retired I felt that my influence was still
uppermost. The suspense was trying, but it did not last long. They
reported in a very short time, and the verdict, announced in a clear
ringing voice, was "Not guilty!"

Grant sprang forward as his friends pressed near and seized my hand in
a vise-like grip. Loud cheers rent the air, for again the fickle public
had veered around, the crowd surged to and fro, women wept, and the
fervent "Thank God!" that broke fr