Alexandria gazette. [volume] (Alexandria, D.C.) 1834-1974, 1870-08-26

CRAZY ON CATs.-In the Fourth Ward of
this city lives Ellen Mcguire. an Irishwoman,
above sixty years Of age. Her great forte is
cats. Nine years since her husband died, and
left her about twenty thousand dollars, invested
in tenement house property. From the in
come OF this she lives, occupying three rooms
and the roof for her domicle.
One night, few weeks after her husband
died, she had dream, in which she was told
not to drown litter of young kittens then in
the house, but to keep them and their progeny
till they numbered ninety. three-the ago at
which she would die if she kept the cats all
right. She was told, as she says, to care tor
them, and when the numder exceeded ninety
three, to decide by lot which OF all the cats and
kittens should die. And further. that while
she kept the number good. and cared for them,
she need not insure her property nor employ a
her health fail till the appointed time. She
has obeyed the instructions Of her dream-her
property has not burned nor her health failed
her day.
Every cat has Its name, and comes when
called. When she sleeps they all manage to
crawl to a resting place on her bed, and scram
bic like children to sleep on or near her pillow,
so she can pet them When comes the time
for one or more of them to die, she calls them
all to her room, tells them the cause Of their
assembly, mourns with them. and by throwing
dice decides which are to ve-the lowest
numbers counting against the unfortunate. 10
be humane, she kills them with choroform,
and has the victim skinned. She talks to them
as it they were her children, and is only happy
when surrounded by them. And, strange to
say, the old cat she had when the dream gave
her this work 10 charge is still alive, and the
mothcr her op1 oroot gra I'm her
and so on without end, of all the others. The
cid lady and the old cat are great friends, and
lock upon each other as persons Of great i'm
rortancc.-M y Democrat.
DIETING. Dieting is usually considered to
mean the same thing as kind of starvation.
The idea which the educated physician attaches
to the term is judicious regulation of the
quantity and quality ofthe food, according to
the circumstances OF each case. A healthy
man may diet himself to keep well an Invalid
may diet with view to the recovery OF his
health yet the things eaten by the two Will
widely differ in their nature, bulk, and mode
OF preparation. A vast multitude are suffer
ing hourly by the horrors of dyspepsia no two
are rrcclsy alike in all points, since there is an
endless variety Of combinations as to age. seq,
occupation aud temperament. Yet dyspepsia
'iouShl VI W ofOl ouu ifO6oei S~>
ing it could be banished from the world 10
generation if the children were educated to eat
moderated y, regularly, and slowly; the parents
WHO DO this will do their offspring higher
GOOD than by leaving them large fortunes,
"hlch IN three cases out of four, foster idle
ness, gIuttony, and every evil thing. As the
rich can get anything to cat or drink whenever
they want 1t, they with INDUCED children,
brlpg on dyspepsia by eating irregularly and
without an appetite The poor-those who
nave to work ter ving-induce the horrible
alSease by eating too rapidly and at an uusea-
Sonao'e h1ur mainly by eating heartily at
supper and going to bed within an hour or two
a!tcrward, n the hey day of youth and man
y Tigor there may not for while be noticed
any special i'll effect from such practice-in
truth, 1t is at first inappreciable, but it is Gu
INITIATIVE, and impossible not to manifest itself
IN due time