A CANINE ASSISTANT-GUAKD.

Manawatu Herald, 16 August 1881, Page 4

A CANINE ASSISTANT-GUAKD.

Few people who travel on the Lon"« don, Brighton and South Const railway, know what a distinguished chars ctcr has a free pass on eveiy I branch of the Hue, of which for several years he has taken dai ; y advantage. 1$ is between two and three years ago that a fox teniei 1 jumped into a train that was leaving Brighton for Horsham, and settled himself in the guard's cariiage. Little notice was taken of him at first, but after a time he began to be a person of great interest. No one knew where he came from or to whom, he belonged; litit every day ho was ready for an earl} start in an early train. Sometimes he went to Portsmouth, sometimes to Hovsham, sometimes only to nenrei stations j but the most remarkable part of his arrangements was that he always got to Brighton in time to go by the last train to Lewes, where he always slept, leav'ng again by the first train in the morning. About a 'year and a half ago the London, Brighton, and South Coast Company began to look upon him as one of their regular servants, and presented him with a collar bearing this inscription, '•' Jack — L. B. and P. C. Railway Company." A gentleman on one occasion traced Jack's movement's on one especial day, and probably it was a good sample of many another. He arrived from Brighton by a train reaching Steyning at 10.50 ; there he got out for a minute, but w«nt on by the same train to Hfinfteld:. • Here he left the train and wgnt to a publichouse not far from the station where a. biscuit was given Uhira; and, after a little walk, too£ t a later train to West Grinstead, where he spent the afternoon, returning to Brighton in time for the hMt ( . train. for Lewes. He generally .Uke^his pi ace on or by the guardkiwheel; and sits looking out of tb.eu.wkdow;. It would be very m testing to know in what the Jaseination of 4 ,his perpetual railway travelling consists* It certainly sho«vs an amount of instinct andobservation, and the regularity and punctuality of . Jack s daily life area lessonjto manya two-legged traveller. Whether he considers himself a sub guard, or dirtctO v 01 L ge W\ ffvßxeaer, no one can tell ; but ,jih,eja fo it .seems, an idea of duty in>iftmpyem«mtß.: What he has to d0,,(0r thi?k* he has to do) he does "faithfully, and so far is a telling example to his fellow travellers. V;.i > ' ' '