Tuck is an Ordinary Looking Fox Terrier, but His Owner Declares He is the Smartest Canine in the United States.
R. M. Smart, proprietor of a grain elevator at Xenia, O., claims to have in Tuck, an ordinary looking fox terrier, the smartest dog in the United States. The dog has never been taught a single trick, but his powers of observation are so remarkable that his owner says he is in a class by himself.
The dog is left alone at night in the grain warehouse. One night fire broke out in a remote corner of the building. Tuck knew it was up to him to summon help, but his barks were in vain. Then he happened to think that he had seen his master go to a queer looking instrument on his desk and take off the receiver when he wanted to talk to someone at a distance. Tuck raced into the office, jumped upon the flat top desk where the telephone rested and in his excitement knocked off the receiver. He barked and barked.
The girl operator in the exchange saw the light come on for that number, but could get no answer. All she could hear was the barking dog. But that was enough to tell her that something was amiss at the Smart elevator. She notified the police, and a man was sent to investigate. He found the warehouse in flames. The fire department was called and arrived in time to prevent the place being destroyed.
Then Tuck has seen his keen perception in other ways. His master’s business takes him frequently to Cincinnati and Columbus, which are in opposite directions from Xenia. The trains while pulling out from different ends of the station leave at about the same hour, but the train returning from Columbus arrives considerably later in the evening than the one from Cincinnati. But when the dog sees his master start to either city he always knows which train to meet in the evening.
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