The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1843-04-25

Puss came back, and there lay poor lom' un"''e
to move She took him up gently in her mouln' una
carried him TO tho bed She then licked OIL the pood'
and finally curled herself around him, 10 keep MN
warm. Poor Tom at last went TO sleep """t
good mother was old puss, and how much ike the
kind mothers Of little children!
The next day Tom very stiff and sore. lie
could not move, or sleep, or eat. On, how ne did
sufierl But puss by his sidc almost all the time
She licked his wounds gently, to soothe and not
10 hurt thcm. She kept him warm and purrcd to him,
and did all she could. In three or four days he be-
gan to get better la a month his wounds were heal
ed but of his hind legs being broken was shorter
than the Others, and always remained so. Ii al
SO rather weak so that Tom, when he grew up, was
lame, and therefore he got the of Lmping
Tom.
Now you might suppose that this defect might be
great evil to Tom, in life But shall how
it was. lie was taken by girl named lucila, or
Lisa, as they called her. Why she chose him, rath
err than his perfect mates, cannot tell; though
guess she had tender heart, many pretty girls
have, and was guided in her choice by sweet kind
ness excited by misfortune.
Well, LISA carried Tom homo. Though lame, Inc
was still cheerful kit as you Some
houghtless people used to laugh at him las he flew
bout for his hinder parts went up and down in very
queer fashion las he gamboed the floor grass.
LISA nothing ridiculous in all this; the
rary, Toms limb really graceful and interesting
to her. believe the girl loved him all the better for
his mperfection.
You may be curious to know how all this is to be
accounted for will try to tell you. Tom real
ly good, lively little fellow He was not quite so
nimbe as other cats, but he did the best he could;
he showed good disposition This great
thing for everybody loves good disposition Ii is
not necessary to he smart in order to be loved Do
the best you can, and no body will ask more. Make
the best of every thing and you will satisfy and graft
fly all around you.
Now, this the way with Tom; he good
tempered; he did the best he could; he never had
the sulks; whenever his mistress wished to play, he
was ready; when she was busy, she kept out Of the
way. Being lame, he humble; being good, he
| was cheerful. So LISA loved him, and he was hup-
! py.
Thus, Limping Tom grew up And now he was
! cat twas his duty to guard the house, to chase
away the rats, and keep the mice in order He look
ed grave, and seemed feel the responsibility Of his
station. But STILL he did not altogether lose his love
Of fun. Most cats, when they grow old, grow dull
uninterestng. They lay aside the sambols and frol-
cks, and amusements, and accomplishments; they
prow about at night with melancholy cries. doze
away life in the chimney corner, and if you chance
! to tread on their tails, wo be to you'll
| Not exactly with Tom Despite his lameness,
he was rather jolly fellow, STILL He did his duty
all day-bnt at night he regularly Lissa. and
| provoked her into game Of romps Lissa
young lady, and black-eyed young man came to
see her almost every night Tom jealous at first
but finding that LISA liked the young man, in
duty bound, he began to like him too.
At last LISA and her lover married They
went to live in "a house of their own, and Tom went
with them. lie was a marked cat you may be sure.
Every body noticed his limp, and asked questions a
bout him. This led LISA and her husband to tell
! his story, and to praise him. So Tom to be
very celebrated, and universal favorte. His limp
actually made his fortune; and the was. that
instead of growing and snarling about it, he made
| the best of every thing, did his duty and good
tempered, industrious and faithful So it seems that
even natural defect may, by good will and good
sense, be turned to good fortune-.Ncrry's Museum