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The Lincolns:  Fido and Old Bob
By Howard Taylor

Father Abraham told us a lot of tales from Aesop.  He seems to know them all.  Since animals like to talk in Aesop's Fables, Fido and Old Bob would like to tell their own stories. 

Fido:   I am a big yellow dog some call a mutt.  I am a little bit of all kinds of dogs.  I guess I was welcomed into the Lincoln family because I was so good with the small boys.  Robert is the Lincoln boy that brought me home.  I really enjoyed Mr. Lincoln.  He would laugh at my antics and liked to throw branches and other things so I would go after them.  I had the perfect home, BUT, one minor problem, or actually 3 minor problems:  Eddy, Thomas or Tad, as we called him, and Willy.  They played hard every day after their studies and household chores.  I had to play hard too.  Rest time was when they were gone to school.  Mother Mary didn't pay a lot of attention to me, but made sure the boys kept me well fed and watered.  When the boys would get home, BANG!  I never knew what to expect.  One day I would be their pots pull their make believe oxen to get the supplies to the fort.  Next day I would just be an observer of boys' play.

Sometimes, I would get in trouble with Mother Mary because the boys made me go into the parlor room.

When Father Abraham would get home, things sometimes would get worse.  He would laugh at the boys' and my antics.

Oh well, that's the life of a dog with four boys.


Old Bob:  I have the life of a perfect horse.  I have a great stable to sleep and eat in.  I get to go on long journeys through the beautiful country land of Illinois, to who knows where.  Abraham, my chief rider, is good to me.  I get the best of hay and oats.  He brushes me and cares for me perfectly.  He is an excellent rider and I can almost read his mind about where to go and what to do.

I guess my favorite place to go is over to distant Charleston.  There are a lot of Lincoln kin over there, and I get lots of attention from those Hank boys.  You know, Dennis Hanks sons.  In recent times I have lost my trips to Charleston, though.  The new fangled railroad has taken over my important lawyer rider's means of transportation.  Oh well.  There are still lots of places on the 8th circuit that Abraham can't go by train.


I hope that I get to travel with Abraham as far as he goes.  Mrs. Lincoln says that he will be President some day.  It sure would be exciting to get on a train, myself and travel to our nation's capitol.


Both Old Bob and Fido say bye.  Have a good day and  be sure you are kind to your pets.