Little Falls transcript. [volume] (Little Falls, Morrison County, Minn.) 1876-1894, 1889-12-27
THE FOLK LORE OF CATS.

! THE FOLK LORE OF CATS.
1 SUGGESTIONS AeouI PUss RE-
LlGlousLY HELD BY MANY, IVA.
Some OF the Peculiar Beliefs Of Jack Tar.
| The Cat Used to Cure or Transfer Dis
! Il cause.-The Black Cat Sure to Bring Low.
ers to the 9Lassie: -, .~ - -. !
Cats have the reputation Of being
weatherwise. an old notion which has
given rise to a most extensive folk lore
| 1t is almost universally believed that
good weather may be expected when the
cat washes: herself. but bad when she
ticks her coat against the grain. or wash
Is her face over her ear, or sits with her
tail to The fire. AS. too, the cat is sup
posed not only to havea good knowledge
Of the state of the weather. but certain
share in the arrangement of it, it is CON-
sidered by sailors to be most unwise to
provoke it. Hence they do not much
like to see a cat on hoard at all. and when
one'happens to be more frisky than usual:
they have popular saying that 1.-THE cat
has got gale of wind in her tail. 70 E !;
y charm often resorted to for raising
u storm is to throw cat overheard; but
according to Hungarian proverb. as
cat does die in water. it's paws dis ?
turb the surface; hence the flaws on the
surface of the water are nickllamed by
sailors cats paws" In the same way.
also. larger furry of the water is q
"cat's skim and in some parts of Eng
land a popular name for the stormy
northwest wind is the "cat's nose"
F.. GERMAN sUPERsTITloNS. 3.
Among other items Of weather lore as
ISOLATED with the cat, there is q supersti-
ton in Germany that, if it rains when
womenihavea large washing on hand. it
is an infa1lible sign, that they have a
spite against them. owing to their not
having treated these animals we'll We
may also compare the Dutch idea that a
rainy wedding day results from the
brides not feeding her cat; whereas, in
the valleys Of the Tyrol. girls who are
fond of cats are said always to marry
early, perhaps, as Mrs. Busk remarks.
| IAN evidence that household virtues are
| appreciated in them by the men," Once
| more. there is German belief that any
one who. during his lifetime. may have
made cats his enemies is certain to be
| accompanied to the grave amidsta storm
Of wind and rain.
Apart. however, from the weather
lore superstitions associated with the cat
| there is an extensive class Of other be-
| liefs. as, for instance. those relating to
folk medicine. Thus, in Cornwall, the
little gatherings which come on chill.
! dren's eyelids, locally termed "whilks,"
are cured by passing the tail of black
cat nine times over the part affected. As
recently as the year 1867, in Pennsylva-
MIA, a woman was publicly accused Of
witchcraft for administering three drops
of black cats blood to a child as rem
| edy for Group. She admitted the fact,
but denied that witchcraft had anything
to do with it, and twenty witnesses were
| called to prove its success. Again, lin
! many regions" we are told by Mr.. Con.
way. "a three colored cat protects against
fire, and black cat cures epilepsy and
protects gardens"
Formerly in Scotland, when family
removed from one house to another, the
cat was always taken, one reason being
that it served as protection against dis.
ease. Indeed. before member of the
family entered the new abode, the cat
was thrown into it. There was a super
stitious notion that. if a curse or disease
had been left on the house, the cat be-
came the victim and died, to the saving
of the family's lives. 1t is curious, how
ever, to find the opposite practice kept
up in Ireland, where it is considered
highly unlucky for a family to take with
them cat when they are moving,
more especially, too, when they have to
cross river.
IN TIMES OF ILLNESS.
Mr. Gregor also tells us that, in the
northeast of Scotland, if COW or other
domestic animal was seized with disease.
one mode of cure was to twist rope of
straw the contrary way, join the two
ends, and put the diseased animal
through the loop along with cat. By
this means the disease was supposed to
be transferred to the cat, and the ami
mails life was SO saved by the cat dying.
This, of course, was only one of the ex-
tensve charms Of which the leading idea
was that Of substitution.
A remedy for erysipelas lately prac-
ticcd in the parish of Locharron, in the
northwest highlands, consisted in cutting
Off one-half of the ear Of a cat and letting
the blood drop on the part affected.
| lr,I1 TO In
other items Of folk lore in connection
with the cat, there is a popular notion
that May cat-a cat born in the month
of Mays Of no use for catching rats
and mice, but exerts an injurious influ-
ence on the house through bringing into
it disagreeable reptiles Of various kinds.
Mrs. Latham, sin her West Sussex Su-
perssislons," says that q May cat is sup
posed ITO he inclined to melancholy, and
to be much addicted to catching snakes
and to bringing them into the house" l
had heard that this west country belief
existed in our village; and, very lately,
observinga most detected looking cat by
the fire in a cottage, said in jest: II
should think that cat was born in May"
ooh, yes" said the owner Of it; that
she was, and so was her mother; and she
was just as sad looking, and was always
bringing snakes and vipers within doors"
Mr. Henderson, speaking of this super
stition, tells us that all old north colGtry
woman on one occasion said to a lady:
"It's ma wander Jock IS lassies marry
: off so fast; ye ken what Draw black cat
| the've got 1t is considered unlucky to
dream Of cat, a piece of folklore preva-
lent in Germany, where if one dreams Of
a black cat at Christmas it is an omen Of
some alarming illness during the follow
ing year.
Equally unfortunate, to41nis it for a cat
to sneeze, this act being SUI posed to indi-
cate that the family will have colds.
Thus, we are informed by Mrs. Latham
that in Sussex ''even the most favored
cat, if heard to sneeze, is instantly shut
out of doors; for should she stay to re-
peat the sneaze three times indoors, the
whole family will have colds and coughs
New York Mail and Express.
A Wise Saying.