The Durham daily globe. (Durham, N.C.) 1889-1894, 1894-03-08
A STUDY IN NATURE.

An anut Of mine once bequeathed me
an Angora cat, the most stupid beast |
have ever seen. Listen to what it told me
one winter evening as we sat before the
glowing cinders IN the CRATE:
Il was about > years old and as fat and
innocent a cat as one could see. Even at
mat age | showed a contempt for the life
OF a pet. However, | was thankful that
IroFldencc had placed me in the home Of
your aunt, for that good woman ad0red
me. My bed was a feather pillow, with
three coVerlets, in a corner of her ward
robe; my food was equal to nv bed. New
or soup nor bread, nothing but the finest
raw meat. In the midst of all this luxu-
r. / had but one desire, but one dream
20 slip out of the half opened window and
escape to the roof. One day | saw from
the window which looked out upon the
opposite roof four cats quarreling, theft
tails erect, their fur bristling, rolling over
the slate In the sunshine with the delir-
ium Of JOY. | had never seen so extraOr-
binary a sight. From that time nv mind
was made up-my happiness lay on the
roof. Outside the window so carefully
kept closed-as they shut the door of the
cupboard where the meat was putt de-
termined to run away! Life must possess
other things than bloody meat-it held the
unknown. The IDEAL!
lone day they forgot to close the kitch-
en- window | jumped u on the little
roof below. How beautiful those roofs
were, They We're bordered with cutters
eNhaling the most delicious odors. | fol
lowed Voluptuously these cutters, where
my paws sank in a soft, warm mud. 1t
seemed to me that | walked in a dream.
on velvet, while the heat of the sun pene-
trated my skin. will not hide from YOU
that | tremb]ed in every limb-there was
fear mixed with my joy. l remember,
above all, n terrible emotion which came
near making me fall headlong from the
parapet. Three cats came rushing at me,
meWIng frlghtfully and as l almost swoon-
ed with terror they treated me as a stu
pid beast. They told me they We're only
mewing for fun. | began to new with
them. 1t was charming. These ga. cats
laughed when l slipped on the hot zinc.
An old tOmcat took me under his espe-
cial care. He offered to educate me, which
offer accepted with gratitude. All, how
far off seemed that indolent life at your
aunt's! | drank from the cutters, and
never did swectened milk taste half so de-
licious. Everything appeared fine and de-
HghtfuI. y cat passed whose sight filled
me with an unknown emotion. Up to this
time L had never seen such exquisite crea-
lures, save in my dreams. My three COM
paniOns and | rushed toward her. | dis
tanced the Others and was paying nv
compliments to the young beauty, when
one of my comrades bit me cruelty on the
neck. | cried out in pain. BAH said the
old tomcat, you will see plenty of Others
AT the end of an hours promenade |
began to be f~uriOusly hungry. What does
one eat Oh the roOfsl' said | to my friend
the old tomcat. What one can find he
answered. This response embarrassed me.
for [ had been searching and had found
nothing. just then | perceived in a man
sard window a young woman who was
preparing her husbands breakfast. On
the able beneath the window lay an ap-
p~etizing outlet. Here is my chance
seized the outlet. The woman saw me and
flew at me with a broom, with which she
gave me a terrible blow. | dropped the
meat and fled.
"'That,s your style, is it?' said the tom
cat. Meat on tables is a thing wished for
from afar-it IS in the gutter one must
seek for it | could not comprehend that
meat in kitchens did not belong to cats.
My stomach Logan TO feel very uucomfrrt-
able. The tomcat added to my distress
by saying that we should have to wait fer
the night to descend to The streets to search
about in the piles Of rubbish. Wait for
night" He said that calmly, with the phi
losophy Of age and experience. | was al
most f]ainting at the simple thought!
1.-The night fell slowly-a night Of fog
and damp-which chilled me through and
through. Then the rain began to fail,