She has never forgotten the resolve that she made some years ago, that
she would do all that she could to protect dumb creatures. Mr. Harry and
Mr. Maxwell have helped her nobly. Mr. Maxwell's work is largely done
in Boston, and Miss Laura and Mr. Harry have to do the most of theirs by
writing, for Riverdale has got to be a model village in respect of the
treatment of all kinds of animals. It is a model village not only in
that respect, but in others. It has seemed as if all other improvements
went hand in hand with the humane treatment of animals. Thoughtfulness
toward lower creatures has made the people more and more thoughtful
toward themselves, and this little town is getting to have quite a name
through the State for its good schools, good society, and good business
and religious standing. Many people are moving into it, to educate their
children.. The Riverdale people are very particular about what sort of
strangers come to live among them.

A man, who came here two years ago and opened a shop, was seen kicking
a small kitten out of his house. The next day a committee of Riverdale
citizens waited on him, and said they had had a great deal of trouble
to root out cruelty from their village, and they didn't want any one to
come there and introduce it again, and they thought he had better move
on to some other place. The man was utterly astonished, and said he'd
never heard of such particular people. He had had no thought of being
cruel. He didn't think that the kitten cared; but now when he turned the
thing over in his mind, he didn't suppose cats liked being kicked about
any more than he would like it himself, and he would promise to be kind
to them in future. He said, too, that if they had no objection, he would
just stay on, for if the people there treated dumb animals with such
consideration, they would certainly treat human beings better, and he
thought it would be a good place to bring up his children in. Of
course they let him stay, and he is now a man who is celebrated for his
kindness to every living thing; and he never refuses to help Miss Laura
when she goes to him for money to carry out any of her humane schemes.

There is one most important saying of Miss Laura's that comes out of her
years of service for dumb animals that I must put in before I close and
it is this. She says that cruel and vicious owners of animals should be
punished, but to merely thoughtless people, don't say "Don't" so much.
Don't