Custer weekly chronicle. [volume] (Custer City, S.D.) 1890-1931, 1897-06-12

Milwaukee Sentinel: A faIIacy enter.
tained by many people regarding mice Is
that house cats viii kill them. This be-
llef is proved every day to be errone-
Gus. "A mouse trap Is a more sure and
less troublesome method Of putting the
pantry's infesters to death. House
cats, as times go by, are changing. For
merly they were active by. day and Wig
liant by night. The tendency OF i'm
proved civilization Is TO make them
sleepy by day and rovers by night. They
have their whims nowadays, requiring
considerable attention. Perhaps the SUI
perior intelligence Of the Martlans will
make them useful. Cats in Mars may
ak for anything / know, and mice In
Mars may be 50 large that they hunt
the cats. Both possess some intelligence
and both have folklore.
The probability Is that the use OF cats
as mice ex~terminators Is comparatively
modern and a custom that originated In
the occident. The story Of Whittlngton's
cat indicates that cats were scarce arti-
cles in the rat infested islands OF the
east where the London captain traded
at the time the cat sold for four chests
OF gold. No one who likes cats and
49, 80 ~ VI III laNt ud1 GdD It
frain from a slight feeling of dlsap-
pointment at W~hittington's parting
with his cat. He might not have been
lord mayor OF London IL he had saved
his feline friend from the fiery sun and
high splced meats of Cathay, but the
chances are that he would have come
TO n front with meddling with politics.
The Greeks were unquestionably over
rim with ninA and DNaIa. IIaNt1 An1
troubles of his own with the rats. The
latter hard hearted prelate lost wealth,
dignity and life, but the Greeks had a
peaceable and gentlemanly method OF
dealing with mice hat is rather unique.
When a cellar OF a granary was overrun
with mice the Greek superstition die
tated that a letter be written in large
readable ancient Greek characters, with
thse words:
Il adjure you, ye mice, now present,
neither to injure me nor let Others do
so. l give you yonder field Specifying
n not too far on and II ever / catch
you here ] swear by the mother OF the
gods Will tear you into seven pieces"
The paper containing these words a
20 be placed on a large rock In the field
with the writing uppermost. 1t was be-
" ~ ~ G1iltnSiOhSf anu ~ upuDA
there were cases that could be pointed
TO in proving the proposition.
People Of the present day. after wag-
ing fruitless and ineffectual war against
the rats with poison and ice picks,
sometimes try writing letters TO them
after the style OF the Greek letter. al
though not In the same words. / have
A case on unimpeachable authority, told
me last week. 1t occurred in Milwau-
kee. A housekeeper on Grand avenue
found that there were many rats In the
cellar and store room. She wrote a let
ter addressed to the rats, politely call
ing their attention to the fact that their
presence In the house was a great in
convenience, The latter pointed out that
there was a feed store in the next block
where they would attain better results
with less work. Finally. the letter re-
quested the rats To go. as a personal ia
vor. The letter was laid on the lower
cellar stair n night. Next day the rats
had disappeared and were seen no more.
Ny informant did not profess to believe
that the rats were accommodating
enough TO nov their quarters because
they understood that she wanted them
To do so. Her theory was that seeing
the white paper on the steps and taking
1t into their heads il might be come new
warlike stratagem directed against
them, the rats deemed discretion the
better part Of vaior and left the place.
Rats, like all the rodents, are extremely
Suspicious.