The Irish standard. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn. ;) 1886-1920, 1892-01-23
BOHEMIAN F,ELINES.
Country Cats and Their Peripa-
tetic Propensity.
They Pretend to BE Exclusively BONES
tic in Their Tendencies, E;ut They
Are Base Dissimul.-

ALI cats are more or less Bohemian,
though many, owing to circumstances
beyond their own control, are precluded
from giving free play to their propensi-
ties, which accordingly remain unde-
veloped all their lives. But country
eats have every opportunity Of INDUCING
their tastes for a more wild, irregular
md lawless life than the domestic
hearth affords, and not few avail
themselves freely of the chance. vi
sfiis class of cats there are several va
rieties: but three are sufficient for the
present purpose.
There is, first of all, says the st.
James Gazette. the discriminating cat.
which pretcnis to be an exclusively
domestic animal. lives D great deal IN
t}, parlor or draw ing~room, and gene1-
aIlv reminds one of the stories told OF
burglars and other criminals who have
posed before the world as exemplary
citizens for wears, have perhaps been
rb,,rch varf}ens or elders, and all the
time have been pursuing the most ne
farious practices In secret cat OF
this kind however, is not. strictly
gpealsinc, II gypsy cat. Her do1nlclle Is
ALWAYS The same. Size merely slips out
on the sly to enjoy u little sport oy
night, while all her friends and rela-
tons, that believe strictly in her virtue
are sound asleep. Sire is out long
enough, however, to do a good deal OF
mischief: and when she comes in with
She milk looks as innocent as Ii she had
never heard Of fur or feathers. She has
probably had d game supper, which ;sc"
counts for the heavy sleep III which she
indulges during the remainder OF the
day, and which imposes on all but those
who arc behind the scenes.
These cats, if they have reputable be-
Iongings, viii not be deliberately shot
by the neighboriny game keepers: but
their respect for Farmer >so~an"So, or
for the clergyman or the doctor, will
not prevent them from setting traps
where snch cats are likely to proWl,
and if puss walks into one they cannot
heln it, Some Gne morning she is
prcbably missed from the breakfast
table; and when in time it becomes ev-
stsent that she will return no more the
virtues Of the deceased are extolLed to
the skies, and the wretch who would in
lure SO harmless and anliable a pet con-
tsigped to the bottomless pit,
4 more straightforward and indepen-
dent cat is the one that cares Tery little
Hor the comforts OF civilization and
varely sleeps in any human ],abitation,
but divides, it's time between the woods
&l,,r. J,r,a.
ysahies aud outhouses which IL fire.
nueuts in the winter. This cat. OF
course, is T. systematic pOacher: though
it. will take to rats and mice when there
is nothing better to be had, while at the
same time it keeps up connection with
soJue cottage Or farmhouse to which it
can fly for refuge in emergencies. This
cat will lie in the turnips like a hare or
rabbit Us long as it is dry weather, and
when disturbed will dart Off to the cot
tage aforesaid, and. jumping upon some
coign Of vantage, viii stand with tail
erect, swearing in IL most preposterous
fashion and making believe al the time
that il IS the cat OF the house. Ibis, we
mean, i, what it will do IL it escapes
With life from the shooting party who
FIRST reused it; but, as it usually has to
run the ordeal Of five Or six barrels, the
changes, are considerable aginst it.
While il lives, however: the cat III
Question. has a pleasant and contorta-
t,le existence In the summer and early
autn,nn it lies about in the copses,
hedge-rovs and standing corn, living
dellciouslH on young rabbits partrldges,
and whatever else it can catch OF flesh
or fowl AS the weather grows cooler
it re turns to che snug winter quarters
il, the old barn or hayloft, where it
nestIess warmly in the straw, and when
tired Of ve,lnin finds Ii pleasing variety
il, the, sparrow This cat has his regu-
lar winter aud summer ha,nts despises
the restraints of domesticiIy. and, as
Macaulcy said Of Boyce and Savage, is
as irreclain;tble as the wild ass Still
he is not altogether a wild cat He is
on friendly te11us with the WAGNER
aul thrusher. and on very cold a1gllts
will sometimes contiescend to lie before
q cottage fire. But there is another
animal whom country people generally
call Il Wild cat. and who really deserves
the ra,lc though not belonging to the
genuine wildcat species with the short,
stunpv tail, which is now all but e1-
tinct in the southern parts, Of Great
Britain.
Preparing Opium t:o,n the Poppy.
I, Mt m l,sS some reVo-