The Kimball graphic. (Kimball, Brule County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1905, 1890-04-11
TRANSFORMED TO A CAT.

inc Terrible Experience That Befell a
Young Man.
have been q cat. 1t does not matter,
for the purpose Of this story, how l
came to be thus changed, for ! was born
human, whether it was by drinking an
unknown elixir OK by some mysterious
Physical change, but the change did
happen, and l propose to tell of my cx-
perience as one of the abused feline
family.
On the 2sth of February, 1879, says a
writer in the Phil delphia Times, an
advertisement might have been seen in
some local paper calling for informa-
ton OF the whereabouts OF a young man
but so woraed as to be unintelligible to
none but himself. That young man
was myself, and all the time / was
s~hlvering on the kitchen doorstep, try
ing with piteous mewings to attract the
kind notice of our cook, How l got
there, as 1 have said is no
matter, but at last tho door
opened and l walked in. All my feel
ings were human, and l disdainfully re-
memember hoping that the saucer of
milk saw that kind-hearted Irish
woman preparing would be clean.
Eagerly ] Tapped up the liquid, and
saen could feel my lips trying to form
the word thanks. Then the bitterness
OF my situation for the first time burst
upon me. ! could not speak. l was in
deed a beast. Tho house servants now
began to stir about. The little page
who waited on the door came in, and all
began inquiring of the cook where /
came from. The story was soon told,
and l felt that / could remain with
safety.
Suddenly the door opened and two of
my fathers terriers rushed in. They
sprang at me and l felt the hair saise on
my back. l had time to give one a rake
with my paw across the nose that sent
him bowling into the corner, and never
shall forget the satisfaction | had atsee-
ing h blood flow. Then the cook drove
the other away and j made my escape
upstairs. l wanted to see a mirror. |
wanted to see ii l was a handsome ami
NAL, and eagerly did / spring on the
ledge of the hall mirror and take a good
look at myself. Yes, l was a beauty.
ana the pleasure OF such knowledge
went a long way to reconcile me with
my unhappy lot. Presently down came
the family to breakfast, and | can still
hear my mothers exclamation of
where did that cat come from, | hate
cats?" All, dearest mother, you will
never know the pain hat unconscious
exclamation gave me. Tho Waterman
old them how / came and my father
said in his kind way: Let the poor
thing stay, it will keep the house clear
of mice That settled it, and | rub
bed my back against his leg, the only
way could show my gratitude.
For several days ] was a favored in
mate. AT night l retired to the laun-
dry, and, perched upon a high table,
slept secure from the terriers attacks.
All this timo, though mice were plenty,
felt no desire to catch one. l was too
human. AT last, one day the cook dis
covered hat a dress of hers had been
eaten full OF holes by mice, and as she
was commenting on my laziness a mouse
ran directly in front of me. | made no
attempt whatever to secure what ought
to be my natural prey, and it proved too
much for the cooks good temper. Seiz-
ing a broom, ! was ANONYMOUSLY driven
from the premises. All that night |
wandered trying to find shelter; the
cold March wind whistled and howled.
The morning broke, and still ] could
find nc resting place. Cold and weary
skulked up the dark alleys and smaller
streets, here scaling a fence to escape
the cruel small boy, there darling
through a water hole to evade the still
crueler dog. Days passed, and still lit
tic food and no shelter. l could feel
myself growing weaker. l had wan
dered to the wharves, and, sneaking be-
hind a pile of boxes. prepared to sur
render the last of my proverbial nine
lives. Colder and colder grew the
weather: sitter and sitter could / feel
my legs become.
Now my headquarters are numb and
senselcss, and | could feel the deathly
chill creeping slowly up. At last some
thing has grippcd me at the head, when
J heard a rough voice exclaim, "Hello!
here's a cat, and with a long swing, in
spite of a feeble effort on my part t o as
sert that was still alive, l was pitched
into the ice-cold water. The sudden
shock revived mt for a moment, but too
late. ! was utterly exhausted, and with
a feeling of unutterable peace / sank
beneath the water. The next dav l
clothed and in my right mind walked
up our front steps, rang the bell and
walked in. The delight of the family
was of course gratifying, but | begged
that no questions might be asked con
corning my absence, and though l knew
it seemed strange no comments have
been made. This is the first time |
have found courage to tell OF the strang-
est experience that any man in this cen
fury has passed through and lived to
tell it.