The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1883-05-05
Rats.

If white rat escapes into q sewer or
other domain of his gray brother, the
latter very. quickly makes formal as
sertlon OF his seniority by eating him.
But 1t is very extraordinary fact that
a number of albinos in cage will
frignten away the other rats. Why this
is haven't the least idea; but that it is
so nave reason to believe has been
proved IN several instances that have
come under my notice. In steam
ers mat have been overrun with
these Vermin, mine has been
the only cabin free from their
incurslons, although my predecessors
have complained bitterly of the depre
dations they have committed. I have
observed 1T also in an infested cellar on
terra tlrma, but the most remarkable
confirmation of this circumstance ever
saw was at sea. l lived in cabin on
the upper deck, one of the several OPEN
ing into an alleyway, and all, as well
asthe surrounding Lighthouses, haunted
by these pets to an extent which was
seriously lnconvenient, to say the least
OF 1t. 10 keep bird was well-nigh
impossible, while inanimate property
deteriorated considerably from their
visitatlons or disappeared altogether.
So SAID my neighbors, for l slept tran
gully over sixty albinos, and l did not
see dark intruder the whole voyage,
though there was big rum under
the settee. Well, everybody declared
it must be the snakes that kept them
off, SO, Knowing that they had nothing
to 90 with it, l devised test. The dis
pensary just opposite was vermin-
stricken in common with the rest of
the alle,way; they did not take
the medicines, it is true, though
linseed-meal, sticking-plaster, oiled
silk, adhesive labels, pill-boxes,
bandages, and wrappers found great
favor in tleir eyes. But what they
especially coveted was towel or glass
cloth, such a. | was accustomed to keep
there to dry ny fingers from accidental
spills when th boat was rolling, or to
occasionally wipe bottle or glass when
Serving OUT iphysic, as the sailors
used to say. Whether the slight medic
lnal flavor thus acquired commended
it specially to them or not, l do not pre-
tend to say; butcertain it was that no
sooner was my back turned, even in the
daytime, than the cloth was dragged off
the rail where il hung and pulled in
under the. chest of drawers. 1t was
some while before the mystery of this
disappearance was solved, and 1 fear
that my unfortunate boy had rather a
warm time of it until he one day des-
perately pulled out the bottom drawer
in lucid interval and disclosed heap
of nibbled rags. Here was golden
opportunity for proving my theory!
put half a dozen albinosi in aparrot-cage
and stood it on the floor of the dispen-
sary; for two days the glass-cloth was
unmolested. Then placed piece of
bread there on the third evening; next
morning found it very slightly gnawed
and moved a few inches, as if the
whiskered banditti had begun to carry
it off but had been scared from their in
tent by a ghostly apparition in the par
rot-cage. But on the third morning the
cage was furnished with rather too
liberal a bed, and during the day the
bread was devoured, because the wraiths
were all laid-under the hay; as soon
as this was trampled down and bitten
small, however, so that the white occu-
pants were always visible, a second
piece of bread was untouched and the
thieves returned no more until the sur
gerry was relieved of the dreadful pres
ence and the glass-cloths made fast to
nail.-AU the Year RO2tnd.