Weekly Trinity journal., 1878-12-14
MARK TWAIN'S CAT STORY.

full look upon his face-I knew By the
emotional flush upon the strawb berry end
OF the old free livers nose, that Simon
Wheeler's memory was busy with the
olden time. And so l prepared to leave,
for all these were symptoms of remi-
niscence-signs that he was going to be
delivered of another of his tiresome per-
sonal xperiences-but l was too slow !:
he got the start of me. AS nearly as
can recellect, the intlictisn was couched
in the following language:
" We were all boys, then, and didn't
care for nothing, and didn't have any
trouble, and didn't worry about nothing
only to shirk school and keep up a re-
vivin' state OF devilment all the time,
This yah Jim Wolf was talkin' about
was the prentice, and he was the best
hearted feller, he was, and the most for
givin' and onselfsh l ever see-well,
there could not be q more bullier boy
than he was, take him how you would,
and sorry enough was | when l see him
for the last time.
Me and Henry was always pesterinr
him, and plastering horsebills on his
back, and putting umblebees in his bed
and so on, and sometimes we'd crowd in
and bunk with him, Notwithstanding his
growing, and then we'd let on to get
mad and fight across him, so as to keep
him stirred up like. He was nineteen,
he was, and long, and lank, and bashful
and we was fifteen and sixteen, and toll
erably lazy and worthless.
" So, that night, you know, that my
sister Mary gave candy puliin'; they
started us TO bed early, SO as the compa-
ny would have full swing, and we run in
ON jim to have some fun.
"Our window lookt out into the roof
OF an ELL and about ten o'clock couple
OF old tom cats got to roarin' and char.
GIN around it, and carryin' on like sin.
There was four inchos of snow on the
roof, and it was frozen Sc that there was
right smart crust Of ice on it, and the
moon was shinin' bright, and we could
see them cats like daylight. First they
would stand of and e-yow, VOW, VOW,
just the same as they was n cussin' one
another, yoG know, and bow up their
backs and push up their tails, and swell
around and spit, then all of sudden the
gray cat he'd snatch handful of fur out
of the yaller cats ham, and spin around
him like the button on barn door. But
the yaler cat was game, and he'd come
and clinch, and tho way they'd gouge
and bite and yowl, and the way they
make the fur fly was powerful.
Well, Jim, he got disgusted with the
row, and lowed he'd climb out there and
shake him oh'n that roof. He hadn't
leely no notion of don' it, likely, but we
everlastin'ly dogged him, and bullyrag-
ged him, and lowed he'd always
Dragged how he would not take a dare,
and so on, and 10 and behold you, he
went went exactly as he was-nothin
on but shirt, and that was short. But
you ought to see him creepin' over that
ice, and diggin' his toe nails and finger
nails in to keep from slippm' and 'bove
all, you ought to have sesn that shirt
tail aappia' in the wind, and them
loag ridiculous shanks of his a glistenin'
in the moonlight.
Them company folks were down
there under the caves, the whole squad
of them under the ornery shed Of old
WashIn ton Bower vines--all settin'
round about two dozen sassers OF hot
candy, which they'd set in the snow to
cool. And they was laughin' and talkin,
lively; but bless you, they didn't know
about the panorama that was goin' on
over their heads. Well, j i'm he went
sneakin' up unbeknown to them cats
they was q Ewishin' their tails and
VOW yowin' and thrsatenin' to clinch,
you know, and not pAyin, any attention
he went sneak in right up TO the
comb of the roof, till he was in a foot
and half of 'em, and then all Of q
sudden he made a grab for the yaller
cat But, by gosh, he missed fire and
slipped his holt, and his heels few up
and he Topped on his back, and shot
otf'n that roof like dart-went a slashin,
and a crashin' down through them old
rusty vines and landed right in the dead
center OF them comp'ny people !-sot
down like yearthquaks in them two
dozen sassers of red hot candy, ard let
off a howl that was bark fm the tonb!
Them gals-well, they looked, you know.
They see he wasn't dressed for coInp'ny,
and so they left. All done n a second.
it was just one little war whoop and
whish of their dresses, and blame the
weneh Of 'em was in sight anywhere
"Jm he was a sight. lie was gormed
with that biin' hot moSsses candy
clean down to his heels, and had more
busted sassers hangin' to him than if he
was An Injun princess-and he come
prancin' up stairs just whoopin' and
cussin' and every jump he gave shed
some china, and every squl:m he fetched
he dropped some candy
And blistered ! Why, bless your
soul, that poor creature couldn't reely
set down comfortable for as much as
four weeks
He commenced with. 'Oh! can those