Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1875-11-05
The FELINE A0UoHP lI5HNENTS OF
AN INFANT.

Asingular phen ,menon is Just now Gre
atig a sensation IL few miles south OF Erie
Pa, in the shape of Il mouSe-catching III
FAINT, surprising in expertness the agility
of the best canine or feline mouser in the
country. The report of this singular
freak of nature reachedm so well anthem
ticiated that l concluded TO crafty my
curiosity, and possibly be sold, as | had
often. But, to my surprise. the facts
turned ou5 more remarkably than the re-
port presented, and the most astonishing
natural wonder I ever witnessed. The
little gid ia question is a title over year
old, and can but just b4gin to run about
the house and yard. The moment she
wakes and gets ont of her crib she goes to
the old kitchen fireplace, which Is infested
with species of small house mice, and
sits down by "a hole in the corner very
much like cat, with her eyes intenti'
fixed on the burroW. She sometimes oc-
cupies this position fer an hour without
moving till Il mouse makes its appearance,
when by sudden start, apparently with
out any effort, she SEXES her yi:tim by the
neck. As soon us her prize is secured she
seems to be electrified with joy, and trem-
bles from head to foot, uttering Il kind OF
wild murmur or growl resembling the
half-snari of a wild Cat. On arriving at
the house and making known the object OF
my visit, the mother expressed the will
ingness to give me an exhibition Of the
baby, providing l would not make their
names public, as she seemed to dread no.
toriety already given to the affair. |. of
course, made therequired promise, and had
the privilege of witnessing with my own
eyes performance 50 wonderful and
novel that can never forget the impress
sion it made. The babe was asleep when
l arrived, and on awaking shel started at
once Oh her strange mission. She is a
beautiful little blonde, OF delicate features
and bright blue eyes, and her hair lies all
over her head in exquis;tely formed golden
curls, about the circle OF a dime.
There is nothing unusual about the
countenance of the child, or different from
that Of any pretty featured baby, except
when stalking her game. Then her eyes
become clustering and fixed, sparkling
gems, and her face and hands turn pale as
wax, while she appears to hear Or notice
nothing going on around her, but keeps
her eyes steadily cenJered upon the barrow
whence she expects her game to sally forth.
The mother, an Ode sister of the child
and myself sat in /. semi-circle around her,
silent as if in a spiritual seance waiting
for the signal Of departed spirits. Had no
mouse made its appearance, the sight was
one never to be forgotten-the deathly pale
face of that motionless child, and tie rive
ted, sparkling eyes concentrated for thirty
hearth. During that half hour we neither
moved or spoke above awhisper, when sud-
denly, like springing of trap, the little
THINGS head went down on the hearth,
followed by the fine squeak Of the mouse,
and then that strange. low growl. and the
singular tremor Of the body Of the childf
AS usual, she pressed itagainst her bosom,
and felG it gently and softly with her other
hand; then she would dexterously change
hands, carefully keeping her grip on the
neck to avoid its bite, though her mother
told me she had been frequently bitten;
and while sensitive to pain and crying at
the least ordinary hurt, she never was seen
to vince or show the least pain from the
bite OF q mouse.
[ examined her fingers and found them
Scared in many places where she had been
bitten. I tried to realize how the feat had
been accomplished, but it was done SO
suddenly there was no time to analyze it..
Yet was assured by the family, who had
taken frequent observation, that the
mouse, when once out of the hole, seems
to become charmed or magnetized, and has
no power, or at least shows no disposition
to escape till caught, when it is too late.
If any one approaches the child to take
the mouse away from her, she will utter a
shrill scream, and then try to conceal her
prize by putting it into her mouth.
I have heard Of snake and bird-charm-
ing children, but l guess this is the first
mouse catching baby yet developed. 1
wonder how Darwin would explain this
abnormal instinct by the laws of evolution
and natural selection Letter from. Erie,
Pa.