Virginia free press. (Charlestown, Va. [W. Va.]) 1832-1916, 1886-08-05
Stories About Cats.

A German diplomatist of the last Gen.
tury has recorded a good observation
respecting favorite female cat, and adj
vances it as proof of consecutive and
conclusive reasoning on the part of the
animal Il noticed" says Baron Won
Gleichen, chat she was constantly look
ing at herself in the glass, retreating
from her own image and running back
to it again, and especially scratching at
the frames, for all my glasses were insert
ed in panels. This suggested to me the
idea of placing a toilet mirror in the
middle of the room, so that my cat might
have the pleasureo of examing it all round.
She began by making sure (by approach
ing and Withdrawing as usual) that she
was dealing with glass like the others.
She passed behind it several times, more
quickly each time; but, seeing that she
could not get at this cat, which was al
ways too quick for her, she placed herself
at the edge of the mirror, and looking al
ternately on one side and the other, she
made quite sure that the cat which she
had just seen neither was nor had been
behind the mirror. Then she arrived at
the conclusion that the cat was inside it..
But how did she proceed to test this con-
clusion, the last that remained to her ?
Keeping her place at the edge Of the mir
ror, she rose on her hind feet and stretch
ed out her fore paws to feel the thickness
of the glass then, aware that it did not
afford sufficient space to contain cat,
she withdrew dejectedly. Being con-
WINGED that the matter in question was a
phenomenon impossible for her to discoy-
er, because it was outside the circle Of her
ideas, she never again looked in any glass,
but at once renouDced an object which
had vainly excited her curiosity"
We ourselves have known a cat, says
the London Spectator, who would recog
nize his masters footsteps after a three
months absence, and come out TO meet
him in the hall, with tail erect, and pur-
ring all over as if to the very verge Of
bursting. And another cat we know,
who comes up every morning between six
and seven o'clock to wake his master
sits on the bed, and very gently feels first
one eyelid and then the other with
his paw. When an eye opens, but not
till then, the cat sets up loud purr, like
the prayer of fre-worshipper to the ris-
ing sun.
Those who say lightly that cats care
only for places, and not for persons
should 90 to the Cat Show at the Crystal
Palace, where they may see recognition;
between cat and owner that will cure then
of so shallow an opinion. When We
were last there one striking instance fel
in our way. Cats greatly dislike thes'
exhibitions; a cat, as a rule, Is like
Queen Vashti, unwilling to be shown
even to the mobiles, at the pleasure Of al
Ahasuerus. Shy, sensitive, wayward anC
Independent, a cat resents being PLACED
OH a cushion in a wire cage, and exposed
10 the uniDtelligent criticism, to say moth
ing of the fingers of a mob of sightseers
One very eminent cat, belonging to tn
Masters Common Room at Christ Church
Oxford, whose size and beauty have oil
several occasions entailed ON him the hare
necessity of attending cat show, takes
it is said, three days to recover from tn
sense of humiliation and disgust whicl
he feels, whether he gets prize or not
On the occasion to which we refer, ro'