This story by Australian poet and writer Henry Lawson takes place in an outback pub one hot New Year’s Day. There are four people in the pub: the girl behind the bar, two customers playing cards, and another on a sofa sleeping off a hangover. When one of the card players loses all his money, he bets what he says is his sheepdog. Shortly after the card players leave, the other man wakes. He asks about his dog and threatens to go to the police unless the hotel pays him in some way. Question: Who really owned the dog? More…
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The Loaded Dog
This is one of the best-known stories by Australian poet and writer, Henry Lawson. It takes place in the late 1800s and involves three men and their big, lovable retriever pup. The men are working together digging for gold and like to go fishing in their free time. When the fish stop biting, they decide to catch them by making a bomb and exploding it in the water. The pup picks up the bomb, accidentally lights the fuse as he runs past the campfire, and has great fun chasing the men around the gold fields trying to give it back. More…
The Drover’s Wife
In this story by Henry Lawson, a woman remembers the many hardships and few good times in her life as she sits up all night with only a dog to help protect her and her children from a deadly snake. The snake has crawled under their house. They can’t sleep inside, as the wooden floor has gaps in it. They cower in the kitchen, which is attached to the side of the house and has an earthen floor. The children sleep on the table. She sits on a chair with a stick on her lap, waiting for the snake. More…