The Red Cloud chief., 1879-05-29

ZONE R~~unayhable YssOs Illustrating ~
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CaVs Tssacssy Of Lafs-
A correspondent; Of the New York
Evening Post writes: The interesting
account Of the resuscitation Of . cat
given recently by DIR. Lambert in the
Evening Post encourages me 10 reiAse
some stories which may be entertaining,
although my experiments were not
made from motives Of humanity. Many
a ago I sailed from New York in
the bark Black Squall, for the Cape OF
Good Hope by way OF the port OF BALI
more, where we loaded the vessel with
-four and wheat. Before leaving New
York q friend had, as ! afterwArd found
reason to suppose, not di~sinterestedIy
presented me with . cat. We had
scarcely passed Sandy Hook when that
cat proved 70 be an intolerable nuisance
Sailors have q superstition that il Is nm.
lucky TO throw cats overheard. So -
we anticipated Q speedy arrival at Bal.
timore I resolved TO keep my disagreea-
BILE passenger until she could be safely
landed on the shores of Maryland, where
the immigration tax would n~otinterlere
with my disposition Of her by turning
her loose upon society. She was &C.
cordingly put upon the wharf at Feli's
Point. But she walked directly on
board the vessel again. She was then
carried Q short distance up the street,
but not far enough to give her any trou.
bic in returning. As l had taken up my
quarters at Barnum's Hotel. about three
miles from Fell's Point, I directed the
mate, when he came 10 call on me in
the evening, to bring the cat in . bag
and to leave her with the landlord, 70
whom I recommended her a. an excel
lent mouser. Fortunately for himself
the landlord had not long the opportu-
nifty Of comparing her good and bad
qualities, for on the next morning she
was on board the ship again. "Kill
her!" l then said to Mr.. Crowell. He
did kill her, and I saw him throw the
body over Q fence into . neighbOriDg
coal yard. Wesoon completed our cargo
and sailed for Cape Town.
on Bermuda we experienced a terrific
gale. The ship was deeply la1en and
labored fearfully in the heavy o seas
which were continually breaking over
her and filling the cabin and f~Orecasto.
Worst of all, she sprung aleak that in
creased so dangerously that the efforts
of the men, who were dashed to the
pumps, did not suffice 70 keep her free.
As q last resource l determined to throw
overheard some of the cargo. We took
off the main hatch, and out rushed tina.
cat, haggard and lean, but with fire in
her eyes, as she took the decks to her
IL. a. <.~o avI of Eko m suo~r-
nate fiend. The crew were paralyzed,
but our circumstances did not permit
them to remain so dong. The pumps
were kept at work while sufficient cargo
was thrown overheard to tighten the
ship, and as the gale soon afterward
moderated and the leak decreased we
were again in safety. In the evening
our attention was given to the Cat. We
chased her all over the decks, up and
down the rigging, and finally out TO the
iibboom end, where all track of her was
lost, as she undoubtedly went into the
water, not being aware OF the guys,
martingale gear and bObstays, on which
she might have found her way on board.
We crossed the line, and one beautiful
night, as we were running through
the southeast trades, the whole watch
came aft in CONSERVATION, reporting
that the ghost Of the cat was on board,
for they had heard her familiar, dis.
cordant me-ouw! l tried to reassure
them, and only partly succeeded. Again
and again they imagined the same inn
probable thing, and they were tenfold
more scared than they had been in the
gale when we all thought that the ship
was about to sink from under US. We
arrived in due time at Cape Town and
discharged our cargo. Away down in
the forespeak underneath the forecastle,
as the last bag of wheat were coming
out, we found the cat, more lean and
scraggy than ever, and weak-sO weak
now that she could scarcely drag her
tail behind her. was going to Stellen-
bosch, twenty miles from Cape Town,
that afternoon to pass the Sunday. The
cat was fed and put in a bag. l took
her ashore, q distance of q mile, in the
boat, then put her on the coach, took
her to Stellenbosch and left her there.
On the homeward passage we kept .
sharp lookout for her, but If she had
succeeded in getting on board again her
previous experience must have induced
her to hide herself effectually and to
make no more noise. The old Black
SQuall was sold and was, I believe,
abandoned at sea on her next voyage to
California. If that cat was aboard and
was, as may reasonably have been sup
posed by my old crew, the cause of the
disaster, it is to be hoped thst she was
at last absolutely drowned W beyond
the power of DR.. Lambert to restore her.
/ was telling this story with all the
truthfulness with which I have again
endeavored to relate it, one evening in
the parlor of q New York hotel. My
venerable friend DR.. T., of Connecticut,
who happened to be present, listened
attentively, and then proceeded to re-
mark in his habitually serious mood:
"Captain, that was an astonishing Cat,
but l have one at n NJ that is
even more wonderful. She, too, always
annoyed rs, but we r now resigned to
the inevitable. 1t is said that q cat has
nine lives, but some cats never die.
Three years ago I attempted to poison
her with arsenic, and gave her . dose
large enough to kill an OK. It had no
effect whatever. l then tried strych.
nine, but was equally unsuccessful. As
to croton oil, which was next given her,
she would lap it like milk. In short,
every thing in the way of poison being
q failure, I went out to the pond near
my house and cut . hole in the ice,
which was a foot thick, put her in it
and covered it securely with . plank.
But she swan underneath the ice for An
eighth of q mile and came out where
the water was I've the dam.
"At last 1 adopted . decisive
measure. / took . Ratchet and cut of
her head and threw it over the wall.
But the wonderful instinct of that cat!
When I came down in the morning to
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