Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1878-12-28
TIE TIL TILE OF R4BBIT CIT.


TIE TIL TILE OF 4 R4BBIT CIT.
IChas. Dudley Warner in St Nicholas for January 7
This Is Il sad, but short. tale ablut a cat or
perhaps about a rabbit that pretended To be a
cat do not know which. You VIII presently
see why it must be short.
Some time ago a supposed friend sent me- as
a present. what purPorted 10 be q Chinese cat
Thereby hangs tale? Not at ali. The cat
hadht So OF q tan. II y IS said by way Of
apology and explanation that all Chinese eats
nave no tailS- II this is q fact in natural his
tory, IL is absurd fact; for il is known that
all ChiGaDlen-eyen the SInalleSt-haye fails
which are called cues, and sometimes pig-tails
OUT never cut-ta1ls. And it seemed Improbable
anu heaFt!eSS that ChlnaInan would deny tails
to his cats However, took the kitten In and
named her - China, "a name she has never re-
SpondeG to. to this day
And this shows the animals Instinct: for
when came 10 look in the dictionary. | found
that. in all probability. she was Manx cat
from the Isle OF Mana small Eaglisit island
thdfull room eLJuTu TO turn rOund} WherC. cats
are ooilgSl 70 Go without tails II is considered
very 2lGe kind or clt, il IL is q cat. OF when |
Is-rocGuo,S- Ii IS said that Turner. the great
- ralhteT,-N no was probably as good Judge OF
eats a. ever IVed,-keDt seven ManX CATS a.
ways H. bis house. Perhaps il was necessary 10
nave seven Ai;tiiX cats TO get the equivalent Of
one real eat: III my opinion It requires more
= AS SAID doubt II CHINA IS a cat take her
All together. She had as a kitten. no tail. Her
grown tai no" IS less than an inch long. and
most OF tlat Is fur il Is exactly ike rabbits
Iall-that is, Kind of place Tor Z tail When
China first began TO realize her existence. She
evidently thought she was a cat, and her first
Sp0ltlYe effort was to play with her tail She
looked around and there wasn't any tail there:
the ether end OF her was rabbit. she was NOR
tined: but what could she do? She began. with
g. out any apology, 10 play with her hind leg, to
chase ii round and round as il il were a TAN:
ard ever after that she amused herself with
her hind lee.
And her hind legs are worth PLAYING with
For they are not like the hind legs of a cat. but
are long and pend under exactly like the legs of
rabbit. SO she Is neither one thing nor
another; and cannot make out whether She is
a rabbit trying TO be cat, or a cat trying to be
a rabbit. She succeeds anyway. China Is
rather handsome. Her coat is the most beauti-
full combination OF soft buff and ermine fur-a
most pleasing color-and she Is Shapely little
thing besides. with a fine head and pretty face
Like some other beauties, however, she is not as
good as she Is beautiful She has a temper
can be very play ful and affectionate one minute
and scratch and bite the next without provo
cation. From an infant she seems TO have
no conscience She was perfect whirlwind in
the house, when the whim took her to frOlic
went over chairS and all sorts OF furniture like
anylng-squirrel; succeeded In about week In
tearing OF all the gimp from the chairs and
lounges. climbed the aZalea trees. shook off the
blossoms, and then broke the stems. Punish
ment she minded not at all-Only to escape from
it for moment. / think she had not. as a Kit
ten, a grain OF moral sense, ard yet she was
lawful cunning and enterraining-more SO
10 come and live with China. She drove that
big cat Out OF the house and OF the premises In
less than half a day, and that, too when she
wasn't more than seven inches long She went
at the big cat with incredible FURY with the
blaze and momentum of little Rfe-ball
Now, that China has come to be of decent
-Slze, some q -tle Ei+dcity and playfulnes5 has
geHe>6~t q her, but she is really Unframed; goes
for things on the table, steals, and all that and
IL Is more difficult than ever TO tell whether she
is rabbit or cat. We have another compan-
ion for her-a mild, staid old grandmother of
cat, with very big tall, enough for two, If they
would share it, China treats her with no re-
Speet, but, on the whole, they get On We'll
quarrelling only half the time and consent to
live IN the same house. China oyerlookS the
intrusion.
But as to the nature of China this is what
happened recently. China's mistress had I'M
dertaken 10 raise some TadiShes. In advance of
the season, In box In her conservatory. 1t was
slow process, owing to lack OF heat or lack OF
disposition In the radshes to grow They came
up, shot UP, grew slender, tall and pale Occa-
Sionally The mistress would pull up one to see
why the bottoms didn't grow. so that we could
eat them; but she never discovered why The
plants spindled up. all top and no radish: and
by and By they got tired and laid down 10 rest
They might In time come TO something. In fact
they began to look as IL they were thickening In
the stem and going 10 grow in the root. One
morning they were gone. Gone, after weeks Of
patient watching, watering, and anxious expec-
tatiOn. Nibbled oil close 10 the ground China
had eaten every one OF them short.
Now, doesn't that show that China is a rabbit?
VIII a cat eat radish-topS? This is OLe thing |
want TO know.
There came once 10 our house facetious per
sDH- THAT - q itTSDl WHO makes lOkfS likely n
hurt your feelings; and he looked at the cat and
said Ii didn't matter IL il had DO tail that /
could wrIte one for IL. have done 50
But that makes no difference. What want
TO Know now from the children OF ST. Nicholas
IS this: " .,at can do with her? / can neither
give her away for cat, nor sell her for q rab-
Bit Do you think IL would coax tail out OF her
70 put her under blue glass?
How RESUMPTION WORKs-A well preserved
Old gentleman entered the Sub-treaSury build
ing on wednesday, and presented 30 s. 1000
called bonds Tor redemption. After the usual
.)rmalitieS had been gone through with and
upon the counter seven bags containing So O00
each in gold coin. The old gentleman gasped
out:
Wha-wha-what's thfs?-
''Your So. 900, SIR" was the reply
But don't want gold. Give me LEGAL ten
derS- am y years OF age, and / can't carry
those about with me-" said tie old gentleInan
struggling 10 lift one bag.
ave have no authority to pay you legal
tenders, sir. We are redeeming called bonds In
gold"
The old gentleman expostulated but In vain
He hurried 10 the Gallatin National Bank ana
begged President Happen TO get him out OF nj.
ScTape. Mr.. Happen explained that all he could
do would be TO receive the gold on deposit and
allow him TO draw check against It, The oid
gentleman was delighted. He said he did not
could obtain greenhackS instead OF the gold
The bank porter Y as sent after the bags, the
deposit was made. the check drawn. and the
old gentleman went on his way rejoielng.-lN
\. Times.
ssThere Is an old nobleman In Peru who
always asks his bOdy-Servant three questions
rising IL: