Harry was a white dog with black spots who liked everything, except…getting a bath.
So, one day, when he heard the water running in the tub, he took the scrubbing
brush…and buried it in the backyard. Then he ran away from home. He played
where they were fixing the street and got very dirty. He played at the railroad and
got even dirtier. He played tag with other dogs and became dirtier still. He slid
down a coal chute and got the dirtiest of all. In fact, he changed from a white dog
with black spots to black dog with white spots. Although there were many other
things to do, Harry began to wonder if his family thought that he had really run away.
He felt tired and hungry too, so without stopping on the way he ran back home.
When Harry got to his house, he crawled through the fence and sat looking at the back
door. One of the family looked out and said, “There’s a strange dog in the
backyard…By the way, has anyone seen Harry?” When Harry heard this, he tried
very hard to show them he was Harry. He started to do all his old, clever tricks. He
flip-flopped and he flop-flipped. He rolled over and played dead. He danced and
he sang. He did these tricks over and over again, but everyone shook their heads and
said, “Oh no, it couldn’t be Harry.” Harry gave up and walked slowly toward the
gate, but suddenly he stopped. He ran to a corner of the garden and started to dig
furiously. Soon he jumped away from the hole barking short, happy barks. He’d
found the scrubbing brush! And carrying it in his mouth, he ran into the house. Up
the stairs he dashed, with the family following close behind. He jumped into the
bathtub and sat up begging, with the scrubbing brush in his mouth, a trick he certainly
had never done before. “This little doggy wants a bath!” cried the little girl, and her
father said, “Why don’t you and your brother give him one?” Harry’s bath was the
soapiest one he’d ever had. It worked like magic. As soon as the children started
to scrub, they began shouting, “Mummy! Daddy! Look, look! Come quick! It’s Harry!
It’s… It’s Harry!” they cried. Harry wagged his tail and was very, very happy. His
family combed and brushed him lovingly, and he became once again a white dog with
black spots. It was wonderful to be home. After dinner, Harry fell asleep in his
favorite place, happily dreaming of how much fun it had been getting dirty. He slept
so soundly, he didn’t even feel the scrubbing brush he’d hidden under his pillow.
"Why should Caesar get to stomp around like a giant, while the rest of us try not to get smushed under his big feet? What's so great about Caesar? Hm? Brutus is just as cute as Caesar. Brutus is just as smart as Caesar. People totally like Brutus just as much as they like Caesar. And when did it become okay for one person to be the boss of everybody, huh? Because that's not what Rome is about. We should totally just stab Caesar!"