midday
I squandered it on dumb creatures , petted the dogs , kissed the cats , and hugged the geese . One of my passions was to play in the stable : there I lolled about on the soft , warm straw , under the very hoofs of my special pets , that never did me any harm ; or I climbed into the manger , where I could sit for hours and gaze lovingly into my friends ' great brown eyes . But my favourite place was in the dog-kennel . There they often found me asleep at midday , and it was no easy matter to get me out again : for Nero , who was as a rule so quiet and good , showed his teeth to any one , even to his master , who came within reach of his chain on such occasions . My tender affection extended also to the vegetable kingdom . The rose-trees appeared to me like enchanted princesses , whose fate I bitterly bewailed ; the sunflowers were Catholic priests in full canonicals , and the dahlias Polish maidservants with red head-dresses . Thus I succeeded in assembling around me in the garden the whole human world , and found the counterfeit presentment preferable to the original , for it submitted in silence when I ordained its fate .