The Wellington enterprise. [volume] (Wellington, Ohio) 1867-188?, 1882-03-08
A NEW BRANCH OF THE POSTAL
SERVICE

A short time since the London Tele-
graph, which IS always saying something
to get somebody into trouble, published
an article relative to the engrossing par
tiality which the domestic, cat feels for
its home, IT'S vehement yearning to re-
turn thither when circumstances over
which it has no control have resulted in
its transfer to unfamiliar localities, and
all that sort of thing, winding up by
giving an interesting account Of how
certain eminent Dutch naturalists had
utilized Grimalkin as a letter carrier;
made sort of carrier pigeon of the cat,
in fact. OF thirty-seYen cats carried
miles from their native village, and
turned loose with letters tied around
their necks, not one failed to get back
TO the starting point in time. HS liol 81. Il
Well, young Mr.. Tillinglast, out on
West Hill, read this article, and a roman
tic conception occurred to him right on
the spot. While he was burning a
limited quantity. of old Judge Diffen-
baugh's gas and just running Miss Diff
fenbaugh's bangs that evening, he tol1
Miss Diffenbaugh all about it. Happy
sehemet born of loves emergencies.
Mr.. Tllinghast would carry Elfrida,s
beloved maltese home with him that
night. The next evening, when, the
stars were shining and the presence of
the old Judge, returned from circuit,
forbade Clarence about the premises,
the maltese home returning would bear,
bound TO its neck by silken cord, q
memoranda. of Clarence, his undying
affection and one thing and another.
Clarence loved the maltese for its
mistress sakes but it just called for all
the love he had in the warehouse before
he got it home. The maltese was one
of the fiery untamed Ukraine breed !
blue as smoke, with tail like second
growth bologna sausage, and it weighed
about twenty three pounds. Its name
was Cleopatra. 1t was really a Mark
Antony cat, but Miss Diffenbaugh called
. it Cleopatra because it waSsuch pretty
name. You never can tell whether a
cat has q right to vote or not by the
name girl gives it. -
Mr.. Tllinghast tucked the cat under
his coat as well as he could, but the cat
stuck out fore and aft. Vainly he strug-
gled with it, bowsprit OF. spanker would
stand out in spite of him. And when
he was about halfway home, he met a
group of friends, ladies and gentlemen,
returning from some festive aud expen-
sive ice-cream saloon. They accosted
him, and he had to let go with one hand
to lift his hat, and as he did so Cleopa-
ira got. his head out and yelled for fresh
air in tone that blighted the lilacs and
threw one of the ladies into Mysteries.
Appalled, by the fesrful sound and IFS
terrible, consequence, Mr.. Tillinghast
was hurrying on, when one of the gem
tlemen collared him and told him that
s,.-A .s<.x,. 4 -. - 4
lcowardly trick, and one that no gentle
man would be guilty of, and he believed
that Mr.. Tillinghast would never have
done it had he not been intoxicated,i
and he would expect an explanation and
apology from him when he was sober.
Greatly depressed in spirit, Mr.. Fill
linghast pursued his homeward way,
Cleopatra occasionally clawing his ribs
in a manner that indicated an early
grave. Often the erratic eccentricities
of Cleopatra compelled the young man
to weep aloud, but they reached home
at last. Cleopatra curled up on the foot
s of the bed and purred himself to sleep
with the calm content of cat that had
made substantial lunch of human ribs,
and Mr.. Tillinghast sat up the greater
part of the night, writing letter full of
poetry, and bathing his lacerated body.
Next evening he made ready to send
his messenger home. l0VIn order to in
crease the cat vehement yearning =,
to return home, MIR. Titfinghastl had
fed it nothing during the day, and Cleo
patra, in the frenzy of hunger, had
chased imaginary rats about that room
until there wasn't left in it piece of
fragile furniture big enough to break
again. The only thing that wasn't
scratched was the ceiling, and the only
thing that wasn't broken was the ham,
eff" said Mr.. Tillinghast, holding
his hcerated hands in a bath of water
and soda, after tying his letter carefully
around Cleopatra's neck with q blue
ribbon, "if your syearning' to return
shomeiis one-half so vehement as mine is
TO have you return thither, you will be
Is, the lap of your angelic mistress be-
fore I, can close this door again Go,
messenger of 8 love that is deep as the
sea and deathless as eternity, gc, tell
the heart that holds my own that pens
of fire could not write on the scrolls of
;nfnity one-haf my love- : ,5.9',,f
Z And so he opened the door. Cleopa-
ira went out into the cleaning with the
air Of q cat who was Just going to say
something Ike, that anyhow, when he
suggested it. Mr.. TiIlinghast did not