FIRST DOGS

George Washington had one. Ulysses S. Grant had one. Warren G. Harding had one. And, of course, Richard Nixon had one—not just the sadly exploited Checkers, but the more regal King Timahoe, the Irish settter of his presidential days. Time-Life correspondent Rowan and photo researcher Janis have assembled a barrage of trivia and photographs of presidents and their pooches: James Garfield named his dog Veto in order to keep Congress in line; Lincoln's Fido—the first presidential dog to be officially photographed—was intimidated by the hullaballoo of Washington and was sent back home to Springfield to be looked after by the barber. And Harding's Laddie Boy had his own hand-carved chair for cabinet meetings and was on the White House welcoming committee.It's too easy to get corny and cute on this subject, and Rowan succumbs—only people with terminal canineophilia will want to read this all the way through.