She spoke to Strickland in a language of her own, and whenever, in her
walks abroad she saw things calculated to destroy the peace of Her Majesty the
Queen Empress, she returned to her master and gave him information. Strickland
would take steps at once, and the end of his labors was trouble and fine and
imprisonment for other people. The natives believed that Tietjens was a
familiar spirit, and treated her with the great reverence that is born of hate
and fear One room in the bungalow was set apart for her special use. She owned
a bedstead, a blanket, and a drinking-trough, and if any one came into
Strickland's room at night, her custom was to knock down the invader and give
tongue till some one came with a light. Strickland owes his life to her. When
he was on the frontier in search of the local murderer who came in the grey
dawn to send Strickland much further than the Andaman Islands, Tietjens caught
him as he was crawling into Strickland's tent with a dagger between his teeth,
and after his record of iniquity was established in the eyes of the law, he was
hanged. From that date Tietjens wore a collar of rough silver and employed a
monogram on her night blanket, and the blanket was double-woven Kashmir cloth,
for she was a delicate dog.
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