Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1890-11-14
SUGGESTIONS RELATING TO CATS.
A Black Cat Supposed to Re Satan's
FavorIte Form of Personification.

"A ISiu.k Cat Supposou 10 be StIhhb
Favorite Form OF RECONCILIATION.
> AT the trial of a Contested will in our
courts recently the case Turned largely
upon the sanity of the testatriX ut the
time she made the will. The testimony
which was introduced to prove'thc un-
soundness of her mind related in great
part to favorite cat which she had
kept by her for years, and to which
she was said to impute supernatural
powers. Witness after witness was
examined regarding the accomplish
ments of this animal. which had mys-
teriously disappeared, and so could not
be produced in court. Evidences was
given to show that the cat danced to
the music of hand-organs, and remain
cd devoutly in the attitude of prayer
until amen" was called, but whether
or not these acts had so impressed his
mistress that she considered him more
nearly allied to the human than the
feline race was evidently II hard ques-
ton for the jury to determine, for they
could not agree on verdict. 1t seems
like bit of old-time history to have
lawyers and jury gravely considering
the manner in which the woman
regarded the cat. A seventeenth CEN
fury jury would have decided that the
cat was the womana familiar" and
that she was bewitched by him.
AS late as 1918 IA man and woman
were executed in England for causing
the death of an Earrs son by witch
craft. assisted by their cat. 1t was
shown ut the trial that they had OBJ
tanned a glove belonging to the young
man and rubbed it Oh the back of their
familiar, eat named "Rutterkin;" the
glove was then boiled and afterwards
rotted causing the victims liver to rot
at the same time.
To trace the origin and growth of
all the superstition relating to cats
would be an endless task. Briefly
stated, as the animals were dedicated
to Hecate, the goddess of magic and
enchantment, it not unnaturally fol-
lowed that they were supposed to
possess supernatural powers. A black
cat was supposed to be Satan's favorite
form of personitication, and witches
naturally selected for their companion
the animal most pleasing to their mas
ter. Many witches claimed to be able
to transform themselves into Il cats
shape, and in the whole history of
witchcraft the animal plays an impor-
tant part, his life being often sacrificed
with that of his mistress.
Sailors, who are proverbially SUPER
stitious, are especially so as regards
cats They never kill one at sea under
any circumstances. as they think it
would bring bad luck. 1t is curious
notion on shipboard that cats frolics
portend storm, and that rain is fore
told by the animals uneasiness. Prob
ably he feels a cutaneous irritation at
the approach of rain which causes him
to usurp the place of the weather
bureau.
There is popular idea that cats
suffocate babies by sucking their
breath. 1t is less than 100 years ago
that a coroner's jury in England de-
cided that an 1S-nonths-old child died
in consequence of cat sucking it's
breath. thereby causing strangulation.
and this verdict was accepted Us the
cause of the chsds death without
question. The absurdity of this notion
is apparent when it is known that the
anatomical formation of cats mouth
makes it an impossible feat for ono to
suck child's breath. A cat who loves
warmth would naturally crawl up on
baby asleep in IA cradle, and in some
instances the child may have been
smothered by the animal lying on its
face and thus have originated the COM
mon superstition. Mary believe that
cat left in the room with corpse
will sprisg on it to distigure the face.
Egypt is the paradise of cats. rs they
We're once worslIiped there, and as a
slight survival of that reverence not
even the most depraved Egyptian
thinks of killing cat. n crime that in
ancient days was punished by horri-
BILE death. The most curious of all
superstitions relating to their former
gods is even now held by the Egypt
ians. They believe that all twins, up
to the age of about II years. 90 out at
night in the form Of cats. while the
bodies of such children lie ut home as
il dead. The body which lies ut home
while its spirit is prowling the street
must not be touched; instant death of
the child is the result.
There are many other absurd SUPER
stitions which relate TO poor puss.
such, for instance, us that II cat crying
on a roof foretells death. an idea
which. if true. would greatly reduce
our population ia single night; that
a finger affected by whitlow can be
healed by putting it into II cats ear.
and that eats blood is II cure for cpl
lepsy. Of course, comparatively few
people believe in such fanries now;
but how hard it is to totally eradicate
superstitious notions about cats from
The minds Of even enlightened persons
of our own day the records of tho late
trial show.-Boston Globe.