an elephantine patience and an uncannily wise brain. And, by the
time Lady was brought back, cured, the puppy had begun to show
the results of his sire's stern teachings.

Indeed, Lady's absence was the best thing that could have
befallen Wolf. For, otherwise, his training must needs have
devolved upon the Mistress and the Master. And no mere humans
could have done the job with such grimly gentle thoroughness as
did Lad. Few dogs, except pointers or setters or collies, will
deign to educate their puppies to the duties of life and of field
and of house. But Lad had done the work in a way that left little
to be asked for.

When Lady came home, her flighty brain seemed to have forgotten
the fact that young Wolf was her once-adored son. Of her earlier
capricious devotion to him, no trace remained. She sniffed in
stand-offish inquiry at him; as at a stranger. And the
scatterbrain pup remembered her no better than she remembered
him. There is a wide gulf in intelligence between a three-month
puppy and one six months old.

Yet,--perhaps because they were both excitable and mischievous
and loved romping,--and because each was a novelty to the
other--mother and son quickly formed a new friendship. From the
more sedate and discipline-enforcing Lad, the youngster turned
eagerly to chum-ship with this flighty gold-white stranger. And
Lady, for similar reason, seemed to find ten times as much
congeniality and fun in romping with Wolf as in playing with the
less galvanically agile Lad.