NCERT Textbook - A Dog Named Duke | English Class 9 PDF Download

 Page 1


13
The only part of this story which is not known for certain is
whether or not the dog knew what he was doing for Charles
- “Chuck”- Hooper. Most, who are familiar with the story,
believe he knew what he was doing every step of the way.
I’m one of those who believe, because I watched it day by
day.
William D. Ellis
About the dog Duke
Duke was a rough-playing Doberman Pinscher, four year old, 23 kilos. His coat was
red with a fawn vest. Chuck Hooper had doubts at first about buying him because
his wife, Marcy, was not really a dog lover. She was a tiny blonde; Pomeranian was
her idea of the right-size dog for a colonial house on a small plot. This Duke needed
a hectare. Chuck visited Duke at the kennel several times before he made up his
mind. After about three months, he decided he had to have the big Doberman.
Duke’s appeal for Chuck was his rambunctiousness. It took a long time before
Marcy was more than polite to the dog.
1. Duke is a Doberman. What are the other known breeds of dogs?
2. Match the words in the boxes with their explanations given below:
rampageous
blonde
grin
quivering
subdural haemorrhage
taut
critical
shimmied
bellow
rambunctiousness
confinement
Fiction
Unit
F.2   A Dog Named Duke 
                                       by  William D. Ellis
Page 2


13
The only part of this story which is not known for certain is
whether or not the dog knew what he was doing for Charles
- “Chuck”- Hooper. Most, who are familiar with the story,
believe he knew what he was doing every step of the way.
I’m one of those who believe, because I watched it day by
day.
William D. Ellis
About the dog Duke
Duke was a rough-playing Doberman Pinscher, four year old, 23 kilos. His coat was
red with a fawn vest. Chuck Hooper had doubts at first about buying him because
his wife, Marcy, was not really a dog lover. She was a tiny blonde; Pomeranian was
her idea of the right-size dog for a colonial house on a small plot. This Duke needed
a hectare. Chuck visited Duke at the kennel several times before he made up his
mind. After about three months, he decided he had to have the big Doberman.
Duke’s appeal for Chuck was his rambunctiousness. It took a long time before
Marcy was more than polite to the dog.
1. Duke is a Doberman. What are the other known breeds of dogs?
2. Match the words in the boxes with their explanations given below:
rampageous
blonde
grin
quivering
subdural haemorrhage
taut
critical
shimmied
bellow
rambunctiousness
confinement
Fiction
Unit
F.2   A Dog Named Duke 
                                       by  William D. Ellis
14
a. This is the other word for trembling.
b. This is used for smile.
c. You call a person this if he/she has pale gold coloured hair.
d. This is a quality which relates to high energy and noise.
e. This is related to dancing or moving in a way that involves shaking your hips and
shoulders.
f. This is to express a tendency to show violent and wild behaviour often causing damage.
g. We use it for a condition which is serious, uncertain and dangerous.
h. This is a state in which one is forced to stay in a closed space.
i. This is a medical condition involving bleeding in the brain.
j. It is a loud, deep shout to show anger.
k. This is a condition when the rope or leash is stretched tightly.
3. Now read the following account
1. In 1953, Hooper was a favoured young man. A big genuine grin civilized his
highly competitive nature. Standing six-foot-one, he’d played on the university
football team. He was already a hard-charging Zone Sales Manager for a
chemical company. Everything was going for him.
2. Then, when he was driving home one autumn twilight, a car sped out in front of
him without warning. Hooper was taken to the hospital with a subdural
haemorrhage in the motor section of the brain, completely paralysing his left
side.
3. One of Chuck’s district managers drove Marcy to the hospital. Her husband
couldn’t talk; he could only breathe and see, and his vision was double. Marcy
phoned a neighbour, asking him to put Duke in a kennel.
4. Hooper remained on the critical list for a month. After the fifth week some men
from his company came to the hospital and told Hooper to take a year off. They
would create a desk job for him at the headquarters.
5. About six weeks after the accident, the hospital put him in a wheelchair. Every
day there was someone working his paralysed arm and leg followed by baths,
exercise and a wheeled walker. However, Chuck didn’t make much headway.
6. In March, they let him out of the hospital. After the excitement of homecoming
wore off, Chuck hit a new low. At the hospital there had been other injured
people, but now, each morning when Marcy quietly went to work, it was like a
gate slamming down. Duke was still in the kennel, and Chuck was alone with
his thoughts.
haemorrhage: heavy bleeding
Fi ct io n
Page 3


13
The only part of this story which is not known for certain is
whether or not the dog knew what he was doing for Charles
- “Chuck”- Hooper. Most, who are familiar with the story,
believe he knew what he was doing every step of the way.
I’m one of those who believe, because I watched it day by
day.
William D. Ellis
About the dog Duke
Duke was a rough-playing Doberman Pinscher, four year old, 23 kilos. His coat was
red with a fawn vest. Chuck Hooper had doubts at first about buying him because
his wife, Marcy, was not really a dog lover. She was a tiny blonde; Pomeranian was
her idea of the right-size dog for a colonial house on a small plot. This Duke needed
a hectare. Chuck visited Duke at the kennel several times before he made up his
mind. After about three months, he decided he had to have the big Doberman.
Duke’s appeal for Chuck was his rambunctiousness. It took a long time before
Marcy was more than polite to the dog.
1. Duke is a Doberman. What are the other known breeds of dogs?
2. Match the words in the boxes with their explanations given below:
rampageous
blonde
grin
quivering
subdural haemorrhage
taut
critical
shimmied
bellow
rambunctiousness
confinement
Fiction
Unit
F.2   A Dog Named Duke 
                                       by  William D. Ellis
14
a. This is the other word for trembling.
b. This is used for smile.
c. You call a person this if he/she has pale gold coloured hair.
d. This is a quality which relates to high energy and noise.
e. This is related to dancing or moving in a way that involves shaking your hips and
shoulders.
f. This is to express a tendency to show violent and wild behaviour often causing damage.
g. We use it for a condition which is serious, uncertain and dangerous.
h. This is a state in which one is forced to stay in a closed space.
i. This is a medical condition involving bleeding in the brain.
j. It is a loud, deep shout to show anger.
k. This is a condition when the rope or leash is stretched tightly.
3. Now read the following account
1. In 1953, Hooper was a favoured young man. A big genuine grin civilized his
highly competitive nature. Standing six-foot-one, he’d played on the university
football team. He was already a hard-charging Zone Sales Manager for a
chemical company. Everything was going for him.
2. Then, when he was driving home one autumn twilight, a car sped out in front of
him without warning. Hooper was taken to the hospital with a subdural
haemorrhage in the motor section of the brain, completely paralysing his left
side.
3. One of Chuck’s district managers drove Marcy to the hospital. Her husband
couldn’t talk; he could only breathe and see, and his vision was double. Marcy
phoned a neighbour, asking him to put Duke in a kennel.
4. Hooper remained on the critical list for a month. After the fifth week some men
from his company came to the hospital and told Hooper to take a year off. They
would create a desk job for him at the headquarters.
5. About six weeks after the accident, the hospital put him in a wheelchair. Every
day there was someone working his paralysed arm and leg followed by baths,
exercise and a wheeled walker. However, Chuck didn’t make much headway.
6. In March, they let him out of the hospital. After the excitement of homecoming
wore off, Chuck hit a new low. At the hospital there had been other injured
people, but now, each morning when Marcy quietly went to work, it was like a
gate slamming down. Duke was still in the kennel, and Chuck was alone with
his thoughts.
haemorrhage: heavy bleeding
Fi ct io n
15
7. Finally, they decided to bring Duke home. Chuck said he wanted to be standing
when Duke came in, so they stood him up. Duke’s nails were long from four
months’ confinement, and when he spied Chuck he stood quivering like 5000
volts; then he let out a bellow, spun his long-nailed wheels, and launched himself
across three metres of air. He was a 23-kilo missile of joy. He hit Chuck above
the belt, causing him to fight to keep his balance.
8. Those who saw it said the dog knew instantly. He never jumped on Chuck
again. From that moment, he took up a post beside his master’s bed round the
clock.
9. But even Duke’s presence didn’t reach Chuck. The once-iron muscles slacked
on the rangy frame. Secretly, Marcy cried as she watched the big man’s grin
fade away. Severe face lines set in like cement as Chuck stared at the ceiling
for hours, then out of the window, then at Duke.
10. When two fellows stare at each other day in, day out, and one can’t move and
the other can’t talk, boredom sets in. Duke finally couldn’t take it. From a
motionless coil on the floor he’d spring to his feet, quivering with impatience.
11. “Ya-ruff”
12. “Lie down. Duke!”
13. Duke stalked to the bed, poked his pointed nose under Chuck’s elbow and
lifted. He nudged and needled and snorted.
14.  “Go run around the house, Duke.”
15. But Duke wouldn’t. He’d lie down with a reproachful eye on Hooper. An hour
later he would come over to the bed again and yap and poke. He wouldn’t leave
but just sit there.
16. One evening Chuck’s good hand idly hooked the leash onto Duke’s collar to
hold him still. It was like lighting a fuse: Duke shimmied himself U-shaped in
anticipation. Even Hooper can’t explain his next move. He asked Marcy to help
him to his feet. Duke pranced, Chuck fought for balance. With his good hand,
he placed the leash in his left and folded the paralysed fingers over it, holding
them there. Then he leaned forward. With Marcy supporting him by the elbow,
he moved his right leg out in front. Straightening his right leg caused the left foot
to drag forward, alongside the right. It could be called a step.
17. Duke felt the sudden slack in the leash and pulled it taut. Chuck swayed forward
again, broke the fall with his good right leg, then straightened. Thrice he did
that, then collapsed into the wheelchair, exhausted.
18. Next day, the big dog started early; he charged around to Hooper’s good side,
jabbed his nose under the elbow and snapped his head up. The big man’s good
reproachful: a look to show that you are criticising someone
Fi ct io n
Page 4


13
The only part of this story which is not known for certain is
whether or not the dog knew what he was doing for Charles
- “Chuck”- Hooper. Most, who are familiar with the story,
believe he knew what he was doing every step of the way.
I’m one of those who believe, because I watched it day by
day.
William D. Ellis
About the dog Duke
Duke was a rough-playing Doberman Pinscher, four year old, 23 kilos. His coat was
red with a fawn vest. Chuck Hooper had doubts at first about buying him because
his wife, Marcy, was not really a dog lover. She was a tiny blonde; Pomeranian was
her idea of the right-size dog for a colonial house on a small plot. This Duke needed
a hectare. Chuck visited Duke at the kennel several times before he made up his
mind. After about three months, he decided he had to have the big Doberman.
Duke’s appeal for Chuck was his rambunctiousness. It took a long time before
Marcy was more than polite to the dog.
1. Duke is a Doberman. What are the other known breeds of dogs?
2. Match the words in the boxes with their explanations given below:
rampageous
blonde
grin
quivering
subdural haemorrhage
taut
critical
shimmied
bellow
rambunctiousness
confinement
Fiction
Unit
F.2   A Dog Named Duke 
                                       by  William D. Ellis
14
a. This is the other word for trembling.
b. This is used for smile.
c. You call a person this if he/she has pale gold coloured hair.
d. This is a quality which relates to high energy and noise.
e. This is related to dancing or moving in a way that involves shaking your hips and
shoulders.
f. This is to express a tendency to show violent and wild behaviour often causing damage.
g. We use it for a condition which is serious, uncertain and dangerous.
h. This is a state in which one is forced to stay in a closed space.
i. This is a medical condition involving bleeding in the brain.
j. It is a loud, deep shout to show anger.
k. This is a condition when the rope or leash is stretched tightly.
3. Now read the following account
1. In 1953, Hooper was a favoured young man. A big genuine grin civilized his
highly competitive nature. Standing six-foot-one, he’d played on the university
football team. He was already a hard-charging Zone Sales Manager for a
chemical company. Everything was going for him.
2. Then, when he was driving home one autumn twilight, a car sped out in front of
him without warning. Hooper was taken to the hospital with a subdural
haemorrhage in the motor section of the brain, completely paralysing his left
side.
3. One of Chuck’s district managers drove Marcy to the hospital. Her husband
couldn’t talk; he could only breathe and see, and his vision was double. Marcy
phoned a neighbour, asking him to put Duke in a kennel.
4. Hooper remained on the critical list for a month. After the fifth week some men
from his company came to the hospital and told Hooper to take a year off. They
would create a desk job for him at the headquarters.
5. About six weeks after the accident, the hospital put him in a wheelchair. Every
day there was someone working his paralysed arm and leg followed by baths,
exercise and a wheeled walker. However, Chuck didn’t make much headway.
6. In March, they let him out of the hospital. After the excitement of homecoming
wore off, Chuck hit a new low. At the hospital there had been other injured
people, but now, each morning when Marcy quietly went to work, it was like a
gate slamming down. Duke was still in the kennel, and Chuck was alone with
his thoughts.
haemorrhage: heavy bleeding
Fi ct io n
15
7. Finally, they decided to bring Duke home. Chuck said he wanted to be standing
when Duke came in, so they stood him up. Duke’s nails were long from four
months’ confinement, and when he spied Chuck he stood quivering like 5000
volts; then he let out a bellow, spun his long-nailed wheels, and launched himself
across three metres of air. He was a 23-kilo missile of joy. He hit Chuck above
the belt, causing him to fight to keep his balance.
8. Those who saw it said the dog knew instantly. He never jumped on Chuck
again. From that moment, he took up a post beside his master’s bed round the
clock.
9. But even Duke’s presence didn’t reach Chuck. The once-iron muscles slacked
on the rangy frame. Secretly, Marcy cried as she watched the big man’s grin
fade away. Severe face lines set in like cement as Chuck stared at the ceiling
for hours, then out of the window, then at Duke.
10. When two fellows stare at each other day in, day out, and one can’t move and
the other can’t talk, boredom sets in. Duke finally couldn’t take it. From a
motionless coil on the floor he’d spring to his feet, quivering with impatience.
11. “Ya-ruff”
12. “Lie down. Duke!”
13. Duke stalked to the bed, poked his pointed nose under Chuck’s elbow and
lifted. He nudged and needled and snorted.
14.  “Go run around the house, Duke.”
15. But Duke wouldn’t. He’d lie down with a reproachful eye on Hooper. An hour
later he would come over to the bed again and yap and poke. He wouldn’t leave
but just sit there.
16. One evening Chuck’s good hand idly hooked the leash onto Duke’s collar to
hold him still. It was like lighting a fuse: Duke shimmied himself U-shaped in
anticipation. Even Hooper can’t explain his next move. He asked Marcy to help
him to his feet. Duke pranced, Chuck fought for balance. With his good hand,
he placed the leash in his left and folded the paralysed fingers over it, holding
them there. Then he leaned forward. With Marcy supporting him by the elbow,
he moved his right leg out in front. Straightening his right leg caused the left foot
to drag forward, alongside the right. It could be called a step.
17. Duke felt the sudden slack in the leash and pulled it taut. Chuck swayed forward
again, broke the fall with his good right leg, then straightened. Thrice he did
that, then collapsed into the wheelchair, exhausted.
18. Next day, the big dog started early; he charged around to Hooper’s good side,
jabbed his nose under the elbow and snapped his head up. The big man’s good
reproachful: a look to show that you are criticising someone
Fi ct io n
16
arm reached for the leash. With Hooper standing, the dog walked to the end of
the leash and tugged steadily. Four so-called steps they took that day.
19. Leaning back against the pull, Hooper learned to keep his balance without Marcy
at his elbow. Wednesday, he and Duke took five steps; Thursday, six steps;
Friday, failure- two steps followed by exhaustion. But in two weeks they reached
the front porch.
20.  By mid-April neighbours saw a daily struggle in front of Marcy’s house. Out on
the sidewalk they saw the dog pull his leash taut then stand and wait. The man
would drag himself abreast of the dog, then the dog would surge out to the end
of the leash and wait again. The pair set daily goals; Monday, the sixth fence
post, Tuesday, the seventh fence post, Wednesday ......
21.  When Marcy saw what Duke could do for her husband, she told the doctor, who
prescribed a course of physiotherapy with weights, pulleys and whirlpool baths
and above all walking every day with Duke, on a limited, gradual scale.
22.  By now neighbours on their street were watching the pattern of progress. On
June 1, news spread that Hooper and Duke had made it to an intersection quite
far away.
23.  Soon, Duke began campaigning for two trips a day, and they lengthened the
targets, one driveway at a time. Duke no longer waited at each step.
24.  On January 4, Hooper made his big
move. Without Duke, he walked the
200 metres from the clinic to the
local branch office of his company.
This had been one of the district
offices under his jurisdiction as zone
manager. The staff was amazed by
the visit. But to Gordon Doule, the
Manager, Chuck said, “Gordon, this
isn’t just a visit. Bring me up to date
on what’s happened, will you-so I
can get to work?” Doule gaped, “It’ll
just be an hour a day for a while,”
Hooper continued. “I’ll use that
empty desk in the warehouse. And
I’ll need a dictating machine.”
25. Back in the company’s headquarters, Chuck’s move presented problems —
tough ones. When a man fights that hard for a comeback, who wants to tell him
he can’t handle his old job? On the other hand, what can you do with a salesman
Fi ct io n
Page 5


13
The only part of this story which is not known for certain is
whether or not the dog knew what he was doing for Charles
- “Chuck”- Hooper. Most, who are familiar with the story,
believe he knew what he was doing every step of the way.
I’m one of those who believe, because I watched it day by
day.
William D. Ellis
About the dog Duke
Duke was a rough-playing Doberman Pinscher, four year old, 23 kilos. His coat was
red with a fawn vest. Chuck Hooper had doubts at first about buying him because
his wife, Marcy, was not really a dog lover. She was a tiny blonde; Pomeranian was
her idea of the right-size dog for a colonial house on a small plot. This Duke needed
a hectare. Chuck visited Duke at the kennel several times before he made up his
mind. After about three months, he decided he had to have the big Doberman.
Duke’s appeal for Chuck was his rambunctiousness. It took a long time before
Marcy was more than polite to the dog.
1. Duke is a Doberman. What are the other known breeds of dogs?
2. Match the words in the boxes with their explanations given below:
rampageous
blonde
grin
quivering
subdural haemorrhage
taut
critical
shimmied
bellow
rambunctiousness
confinement
Fiction
Unit
F.2   A Dog Named Duke 
                                       by  William D. Ellis
14
a. This is the other word for trembling.
b. This is used for smile.
c. You call a person this if he/she has pale gold coloured hair.
d. This is a quality which relates to high energy and noise.
e. This is related to dancing or moving in a way that involves shaking your hips and
shoulders.
f. This is to express a tendency to show violent and wild behaviour often causing damage.
g. We use it for a condition which is serious, uncertain and dangerous.
h. This is a state in which one is forced to stay in a closed space.
i. This is a medical condition involving bleeding in the brain.
j. It is a loud, deep shout to show anger.
k. This is a condition when the rope or leash is stretched tightly.
3. Now read the following account
1. In 1953, Hooper was a favoured young man. A big genuine grin civilized his
highly competitive nature. Standing six-foot-one, he’d played on the university
football team. He was already a hard-charging Zone Sales Manager for a
chemical company. Everything was going for him.
2. Then, when he was driving home one autumn twilight, a car sped out in front of
him without warning. Hooper was taken to the hospital with a subdural
haemorrhage in the motor section of the brain, completely paralysing his left
side.
3. One of Chuck’s district managers drove Marcy to the hospital. Her husband
couldn’t talk; he could only breathe and see, and his vision was double. Marcy
phoned a neighbour, asking him to put Duke in a kennel.
4. Hooper remained on the critical list for a month. After the fifth week some men
from his company came to the hospital and told Hooper to take a year off. They
would create a desk job for him at the headquarters.
5. About six weeks after the accident, the hospital put him in a wheelchair. Every
day there was someone working his paralysed arm and leg followed by baths,
exercise and a wheeled walker. However, Chuck didn’t make much headway.
6. In March, they let him out of the hospital. After the excitement of homecoming
wore off, Chuck hit a new low. At the hospital there had been other injured
people, but now, each morning when Marcy quietly went to work, it was like a
gate slamming down. Duke was still in the kennel, and Chuck was alone with
his thoughts.
haemorrhage: heavy bleeding
Fi ct io n
15
7. Finally, they decided to bring Duke home. Chuck said he wanted to be standing
when Duke came in, so they stood him up. Duke’s nails were long from four
months’ confinement, and when he spied Chuck he stood quivering like 5000
volts; then he let out a bellow, spun his long-nailed wheels, and launched himself
across three metres of air. He was a 23-kilo missile of joy. He hit Chuck above
the belt, causing him to fight to keep his balance.
8. Those who saw it said the dog knew instantly. He never jumped on Chuck
again. From that moment, he took up a post beside his master’s bed round the
clock.
9. But even Duke’s presence didn’t reach Chuck. The once-iron muscles slacked
on the rangy frame. Secretly, Marcy cried as she watched the big man’s grin
fade away. Severe face lines set in like cement as Chuck stared at the ceiling
for hours, then out of the window, then at Duke.
10. When two fellows stare at each other day in, day out, and one can’t move and
the other can’t talk, boredom sets in. Duke finally couldn’t take it. From a
motionless coil on the floor he’d spring to his feet, quivering with impatience.
11. “Ya-ruff”
12. “Lie down. Duke!”
13. Duke stalked to the bed, poked his pointed nose under Chuck’s elbow and
lifted. He nudged and needled and snorted.
14.  “Go run around the house, Duke.”
15. But Duke wouldn’t. He’d lie down with a reproachful eye on Hooper. An hour
later he would come over to the bed again and yap and poke. He wouldn’t leave
but just sit there.
16. One evening Chuck’s good hand idly hooked the leash onto Duke’s collar to
hold him still. It was like lighting a fuse: Duke shimmied himself U-shaped in
anticipation. Even Hooper can’t explain his next move. He asked Marcy to help
him to his feet. Duke pranced, Chuck fought for balance. With his good hand,
he placed the leash in his left and folded the paralysed fingers over it, holding
them there. Then he leaned forward. With Marcy supporting him by the elbow,
he moved his right leg out in front. Straightening his right leg caused the left foot
to drag forward, alongside the right. It could be called a step.
17. Duke felt the sudden slack in the leash and pulled it taut. Chuck swayed forward
again, broke the fall with his good right leg, then straightened. Thrice he did
that, then collapsed into the wheelchair, exhausted.
18. Next day, the big dog started early; he charged around to Hooper’s good side,
jabbed his nose under the elbow and snapped his head up. The big man’s good
reproachful: a look to show that you are criticising someone
Fi ct io n
16
arm reached for the leash. With Hooper standing, the dog walked to the end of
the leash and tugged steadily. Four so-called steps they took that day.
19. Leaning back against the pull, Hooper learned to keep his balance without Marcy
at his elbow. Wednesday, he and Duke took five steps; Thursday, six steps;
Friday, failure- two steps followed by exhaustion. But in two weeks they reached
the front porch.
20.  By mid-April neighbours saw a daily struggle in front of Marcy’s house. Out on
the sidewalk they saw the dog pull his leash taut then stand and wait. The man
would drag himself abreast of the dog, then the dog would surge out to the end
of the leash and wait again. The pair set daily goals; Monday, the sixth fence
post, Tuesday, the seventh fence post, Wednesday ......
21.  When Marcy saw what Duke could do for her husband, she told the doctor, who
prescribed a course of physiotherapy with weights, pulleys and whirlpool baths
and above all walking every day with Duke, on a limited, gradual scale.
22.  By now neighbours on their street were watching the pattern of progress. On
June 1, news spread that Hooper and Duke had made it to an intersection quite
far away.
23.  Soon, Duke began campaigning for two trips a day, and they lengthened the
targets, one driveway at a time. Duke no longer waited at each step.
24.  On January 4, Hooper made his big
move. Without Duke, he walked the
200 metres from the clinic to the
local branch office of his company.
This had been one of the district
offices under his jurisdiction as zone
manager. The staff was amazed by
the visit. But to Gordon Doule, the
Manager, Chuck said, “Gordon, this
isn’t just a visit. Bring me up to date
on what’s happened, will you-so I
can get to work?” Doule gaped, “It’ll
just be an hour a day for a while,”
Hooper continued. “I’ll use that
empty desk in the warehouse. And
I’ll need a dictating machine.”
25. Back in the company’s headquarters, Chuck’s move presented problems —
tough ones. When a man fights that hard for a comeback, who wants to tell him
he can’t handle his old job? On the other hand, what can you do with a salesman
Fi ct io n
17
who can’t move around, and can work only an hour a day? They didn’t know
that Hooper had already set his next objective: March 1, a full day’s work.
26. Chuck hit the target, and after March 1, there was no time for the physiotherapy
programme; he turned completely to Duke, who pulled him along the street
faster and faster, increasing his stability and endurance. Sometimes, walking
after dark, Hooper would trip and fall. Duke would stand still as a post while his
master struggled to get up. It was as though the dog knew that his job was to
get Chuck back on his feet.
27. Thirteen months from the moment he worked full days. Chuck Hooper was
promoted to regional manager covering more than four states.
28. Chuck, Marcy and Duke moved house in March 1956. The people in the new
suburb where the Hoopers bought a house didn’t know the story of Chuck and
Duke. All they knew was that their new neighbour walked like a struggling
mechanical giant and that he was always pulled by a rampageous dog that
acted as if he owned the man.
29. On the evening of October 12, 1957, the Hoopers had guests. Suddenly over
the babble of voices, Chuck heard the screech of brakes outside. Instinctively,
he looked for Duke.
30. They carried the big dog into the house. Marcy took one look at Duke’s breathing,
at his brown eyes with the stubbornness gone. “Phone the vet,” she said. “Tell
him, I’m bringing Duke.” Several people jumped to lift the dog. “No, please,”
she said. And she picked up the big Duke, carried him gently to the car and
drove him to the animal hospital.
31. Duke was drugged and he made it until 11o’clock the next morning, but his
injuries were too severe.
32. People who knew the distance Chuck and Duke had come together, one fence
post at a time, now watched the big man walk alone day after day. They wondered:
how long will he keep it up? How far will he go today? Can he do it alone?
33. A few weeks ago, worded as if in special tribute to Duke, an order came through
from the chemical company’s headquarters: “.......... therefore, to advance our
objectives step by step, Charles Hooper is appointed the Assistant National
Sales Manager.”
William D. Ellis
Fi ct io n