The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1877-06-28
Cats as PremOnitOrs.


The servant-girls who escaped from
the Southern Hotel while it was in flames
tell singular story about their pre-
monition of a fearful disaster. The
girls occupied three different rooms on
the sixth story, and about IL O'Clock,
after they had all retired and most of
them were asleep, a cat came, scratched
against the doors, and moaned pitifully.
As cat had never before been seen in
that part of the house, many of the girls
were frightened. Lizzie Leary, girl
strongly superstitious in her inclina-
tons, woke up the other inmates OF the
room in which she slept, and told them
there was a eat at the door acting
strangely, and she could not drive it
away. She expressed belief that 1t was
the sign of something terrible going to
happen, at which the other girls laughed
and ridiculed her When they opened
the door the cat mewed, but refused to
come in, and in a moment Tetreated
down the hall as if badly frightened.
About u O'Clock all the girls in that
room were awakened by the noise OF
cats at the door. On opening the door
they discovered four felineS crouching
against and scratching the wall, and
moaning low as if in terror. They pro-
cured broom and tried to drive the
disturbers down the hall toward the
stairway leading to the floors below, but
they refused to go in that direction.
While making the effort to drive them
away the door of the adjoining room,
where the other girls slept, was opened,
whereupon the cats made frantic
rush into the room, and flew under the
beds, where they crouched together
| Bv this time a dozen of the girls
were awake and highly excited over the
strange action of the cats. The cats re-
| fused to move from their position under
the bed, neither blows nor persuasive
calls having any effect on them. All the
cats were recognized as those belonging
/ in the cellars and on the lower floors,
where they were used rs mOusers, and
their sudden advent to the sixth floor,
/ together with their unaccOuntable ac-
tons, very naturally aroused the fears
/ of the servants, and the more nervous
ones could hardly be persuaded to retire
to bed again. It was concluded to al
\ low the cats to remain under the beds,
and in half hour quiet was again re-
stored. When the alarm of fire came,
| the cats were still under the ed,crouch-
ing and mewing, and there they staid
until the girls were rescued by the me-
morable courage of Michael Hester.
1t is said that all the girls now have a
firm belief that the visit of the eats was
a warning of impending danger, and that
they were sent there by some mysterious
agency to give a timely premonition-
The proper theory, doubtless, is that
occupying that part of the lower build
/ inc where the fire first started, and where
\ itspread and groaned and cracked in
a smothered way, perhaps for hours be-
fore the general alarm was given, the
cats became terrOr-stricken and sought
safety by flight to the upper stories,
They stopped at the servant-girls' rooms
because that was the highest point that
could be reached, and here conducted
themselves in manner which the girls,
very excusably, consider altogether pre-
! ternatural.-.S Louis Globe Democrat.