The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1892-11-06


/ for the nasn told Is TIA. IN consequence Of
! the darkness and shs fact that his horses
/ we're very tired he Vas proceeding 81 little
! more than . srasiss parr
] think rzv grandmother Was rsfher r.
/ lieved than otherwise. She had been vsry
! fond Of the cat 81 one time. hut rs recent
| conduct bad sisena.ed her affection. We
/ Children buried i IA the garden under the
/ mulberry tree. h1i the old LADY insisted
/ fass there should be no tombstone, not
L even rnouDt raised So il lies there, an
/ honored. in drGnksrd's grave.
| also tod him Of another cat our family
/ had once possessed. She MAS the most
| moth~riy thing have ever known. she
vas never happy without 8 family. In
/ deed. | cannot remember Der when she
1 hzdn family N one stage or another.
/ she was not very particular what sort OF
/ 8 family 70 Vas. II she could not have
/ kittens. then size would content herself
| win puppies or rats Anything that she
| coula wash and feed seemed TO satisfy her
/ | believe she would have brought up
| chickens IL we had entrusted shern 70 her.
| AL her brains must have run 20 mother
illness. Tor she hadn't much sense. She
| eoald never tell the difference between her
osu children aud other peoples. She
! thought everything young Was = kitten.
| We once mixed up spaniel puppy that
had lost Its own mother among her
| progeny. | shall never forget her aston
ishment when IL first bsrked. She boxed
both It's ears. and then sat down looking
~ ii with an expression of indignant sor-
row that was really touching.
You're going 20 be q credit to your
| mother" she seemed TO be saying, you're
nice comfort 20 anyone's old age, you
are. making row like that. And look At
your ears Topping ali over your face. /
don't know where you pick up such ways"
He was good little dog. He did try to
nd hnT a tn =. n - -
his paw and to keep bis tail still, but his
success vas not commensurate with his
will. do not know which was the ssdder
10 reflect upon, his efforts TO become
creditahle kitten or bis foster mothers de-
| spair Of ever making him one.
Later on we gave her baby squirrel to
rear. She was nursing family of her
own at the time, but she adopted him with
enthusiasm, under the impression that he
was another kitten, though she could not
quite make ont how she had come 10 over
look him. He soon became her prime
fayorite. She liked his color, and took =
mothers pride in M. tail What troubled
her Was that it would cock up over his
head. She would hold il down with one
paw and lick il by the half hour together,
trying to make il set properly. But the
moment she let go 1t would cock again. |
have heard her cry witn vexation because
OF this.
u
her. and the squirrel was clearly the sub
iect of their talk.
'It's good color, said the friend, look
ing critically at the supposed kitten. who
was sitting up on his launches combing
his whiskers. and saying the only truth
fully pleasant thing about him that she
could think of.
He's lovely color" exclaimed our cat
proudly.
II don't like his legs much" remarked
the friend
NO" responded his mother, thought
fully. you're right there. His legs are his
weak point. | can't say think much of
his legs myself.
Maybe they'll FIJI out later on" sug-
gested the friend, kindly.
"oh, | hope so. replied the mother, re-
gaining her momentarily dashed cheerful
ness. ''oh. yes. they'll come all right In
time. And then look at his tail. Now.
honestly did you ever see kitten with
inner tail7"
.sYes, it's q good tall" assented the
other; but Why do you do it up over his
head 2"
II DON'T" answered our cat. at goes
that way. l can't make it ont. l sup
pose il viii come straight as he gets
older"
at will be awkward if 1t DON'T" said
the friend.
"oh, but I'm sure it will, /" said our cat.
II must lick it more. It's tail that
wants good deal of licking. you can see
that"
And for hours that afternoon, after the
other cat had gone. she sat trimming IL;
and at the end, when she lifted her paw
off it, and il dew back again like steel
spring over the squirrels head, she sat
and gaxed at it with feelings that only
those among my readers who have been
mothers themselves viii be able 10 COM
preheud.
What have done" she seemed to say
--"what have | done that this trouble
should come upon mef'
Jephson reused himself on the compile
tion of this anecdote and sat up.
''You and your friends appear to have
been the possessors of some very remarka-
bic cats, he observed.
Yes" answered, 'our family has been
singularly fortunate in It's cats"
''Singularly So agreed Jephson; II
have never met but one man from whom
| have heard more wonderful cat talk
than, at one time and another. have from
you"
oh" said. not, perhaps, without a
touch of jealousy in my voice. land who
was heR"
'lIe was seafaring man." replied
Jephson. Il met him on = Hampstead
tram. and we discussed the subject OF ami
mai sagacity."
Yes, sir, he said, monkeys In cute.
I've come across monkeys as could give
points 10 one or two lubbers I've sailed
under; and elephants - pretty spry. il
you can believe all that's told of EN-. I've
heard some tales about elephants. And
of course, dogs has their head.
screwed on ali right: | don't say as they
amt. But what | do say, is. that for
straightfor' ard. leyei-heaaed reasoning
give me cats. You see. sir, dog he thinks
a powerful deal of a Inan--never was such
q cute thing as a man, in dogs opinion;
and he taxes good care thai everybody
knows it. Naturally enough, We says a
dog Is the most intellectual animal there
is Now 4 cat, she's got her own opinion
about human beings She don't say much,
but you can tell enough 10 make you
anxious not TO hear the whole OF Il. The
consequence IS, we says a cats got no in
telligsnce. That's where we let our preju-
dice steer our Judgment wrong. In
matter Of plain common sense, there ain's
cat living that couldn't take the lee side
Of dog snd fly round him. Now, have
yoa ever noticed dog at the end Of q
chain, trying 70 xiii cat as is sitting
washing her face three-quarters OF an inch
cut of bis resch9 or course You have
Well. who's got the sense out ofthose twog
The cat knas- that il amt in the nature
of steel chains 70 stretch. The dog. who
ought, you q think 20 know a burned
sight more about 'em than she does IT,
sure they viii If you only bark loud
enough.
- Then. again, bare you ever been made
mad by eats scresching q the night, and
jumped ouf of bed and opened the window
aud yelled at ghemf Did they ever bulge
an inch for that. though you shrieked
loud enough 20 skeer the dead. and waved
your arms about ike = man n n PLAY