For some reason I can't finish it. Here it is...
It was summer of 1848. This was the day I found the Coonville Camp. I pranced my way through the camp, hoping to find someone generous enough to spare some food. “Get, ya mutt!” one of the men said, as I fled from a kick of his boot. Some of the men did not like me there, but I still hung around. Eventually, a few pieces of bread or meat were tossed in my direction, and I was able to get a full meal of scraps. There was one man in particular that I lingered around. They called him “Calvin” and he did not mind a dog's presence, and he would intentionally drop a few scraps on the ground for me.
I was deep in the mountains, somewhere up north, in a prospecting camp about a month ago. I did not trust anyone there enough to be a pet, except for Calvin. One day by the stream when the men were panning for gold, I was splashing around in the water, playfully chasing driftwood. I was a puppy and I loved to play with anything I could find. I decided to gather some things to hide so that I could play with them tomorrow, in case they were not there the next day. Altogether I had two sticks, someone's missing boot, a bone, and about five rocks. John was across the stream, striking his pick at a boulder, for some reason that I didn't understand. I wanted to get his attention, so I barked, but he didn't even look. I lowered my front portion of my body, and stuck my hind and tail up, challenging him to chase me. Once again, he did not respond. So, I decided to offer him one of my precious treasures.
I approached John, dropped a rock at his feet, and whined. Finally, he stopped chipping away at the rock and looked down at me, saying, “What is it pup?” I took the rock in my mouth and set it down once more, then offered him my white paw. “What's this?” he said, as his face when blank. He picked up my treasure and turned it over and over in his hands. The rock was only about the size of a walnut, but when John saw it, it was as if he was looking at the world. It was just a little rock I had randomly snatched up from the stream to try to get his attention, and I didn't think it would have been a big deal, but John thought different. “Gold!” he yelled, startling me so that I bolted away from him. He held up my rock and called for all of the other men to come see.
Well, my toy was a big hit throughout Coonville Camp. John carried it up high as he made his way to the headquarter cabin. I began to grow jealous and wanted my rock back. I barked and carried on, following John and my rock.
