in Alaska. Gee, it was awful."

The Woman sighed. "Well, at least they can't blame the loss of _that_
race on you, can they, Jack? It certainly was hard luck, but we will
have to be good sports and try it again. Perhaps you'll develop a dog
star of the first magnitude for us in your race, boys."

George and Danny looked serious. It was a difficult problem--this
assembling of a racing team, and the responsibility weighed heavily upon
them. Why, it meant the possibility of making a juvenile Record, and
winning a Cup, and naturally required a critical consideration of even
the smallest details.

"If I could only take some o' the Sweepstakes Dogs," mused George
regretfully, "it 'ud be dead easy; but Father says it wouldn't be fair
t' the fellers that hasn't a racin' stable t' pick from. We got t' use
some o' the untried ones. I been thinkin' o' Spot for a leader. He seems
sort o' awkward, 'cause he's raw-boned, an' ain't filled out yet; but
all the other dogs like him, an' he'd ruther run than eat."

"Isn't he pretty young for that position?" hazarded the Woman. "Let me
see, he can't be much more than a year old now."

She remembered when he had been a common little fellow, but a short time
ago, sprawling in every mud-puddle, or wobbling uncertainly after the
many strange alluring things in the streets. Matt, who seemed to have
second sight in regard to the invisible, latent good points in all
horses and dogs, had picked him up in the pound for a mere nothing; and
to him there was granted the vision of a brilliant future for the
vagrant puppy. "Mark my words," he had said decisively when Spot's fate