Classic Poem

There is a friendship that exists between
So-called dumb animals; we often find
Them sorrowing with a grief that is as keen
And deeply felt as those of humankind.

For many times this has been plainly shown
To me, and yet more clearly when I read
The story of a dog who kept alone,
A vigil when his mongrel pal lay dead.

Just how his pal met death I never knew—
I know he kept a lonely watch all day,
Through bitter cold, and not until he grew
Exhausted, would he let friends take away

The comrade he had known in happy hours;
No human could have shown more faithfulness:
He could not tell his grief with words or flowers,
But only with a puzzled, mute distress.

And when kind ones returned who bore away
His lifeless friend, no watcher was in sight . .
But travelers through a neighbor field, they say,
Had seen a lonely dog pass by that night.