Middlebury register. (Middlebury, Vt.) 1886-1937, 1901-08-23
The Story of
Decide and the
RObber Cat.
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No only child belonging to devot
ed human couple was ever more in
dulged-more spoiled was Dee
die, the only kitten of Catsie and Roi
When they were fed, the two parent
cats habitually stood back until they
were sure that there was more than
Decide could eat, and in every way
she was made to understand that they
considered nothing too good for her
AS this state of things is very apt to
make human children willful and self
ish 1t had to a certain degree this eff
feet on Decide. As far as affection for
her parents went she was a model
aughter-unhappy if either were long
absent, basking in the affection of her
big father and uniting with him in be-
slowing a matchless devotion on the
little mother. But when food was Civ
en- them, if it was something that need
ed to be divided into morsels, Decide
had q naughty habit of gathering them
into a heap so she could crouch over
the bits, drawing them singly from I'M
der her body to devour, while Catsie
and Roi sat looking on, happy in her
enjoyment This used to put me i'll
such RACES with the little beast that l
once caught her up, meaning to give
her a good shaking. but she disarmed
my wrath by beginning to purr as soon
as she felt MY grasp.
Rio often went little way into the
woods and came back bringing some
choice tidbit for Deedie-sometimes q
katydid or big grasshopper more Of
ten a chameleon, kind of small lizard
which in catdom seems to rank as the
daintiest of morsels. One never to be
forgotten day after he had gone on
one Of these little hunting excursions
we heard firing in the woods, which
was not an unusual occurrence but
when l went out later to feed my cat
family l found Catsie and Decide in
apparent agitation which increased
when l began TO call Roi They paid
no attention to the food | offered them,
but stood looking anxiously up the
path in the direction he always came
when returning from the woods. When
! paused after calling, they looked up
at me mewing and then up the woods
path and again at me, evidently trying
to say:
Call again. Don't stop"
l continued calling for long time,
my uneasipess growing as l realized
theirs. but Roi did not answer, nor did
we see his large, graceful form come
bounding up the path as always hereto
fore. | knew instinctively what had
happened He had fallen alone in
some leafy nook a victim to the same
fate that had overtaken poor little
Satan. But Catsie and Decide utter
ly refused to accept this conclusion,
and day after day for many weeks,
each time ! went out to feed or pet
them, they continued to say to me in
their own way:
Call him again. He must come back
to US
always called, just to satisfy them.
while they looked off up the path,
craning their necks and waving medi-
tative tails as they listened for the
longed for response They followed US
with evident understanding of our
quest in the search we instituted on
the chance of finding him lying wound
ed somewhere unable to return home
but no trace Of him was ever found.
If ne was shot as we have always be-
lieved, the hunter realized his error
and concealed all traces of the ragedy
Thus left, the fatherless daughter Of
an overindulgent mother it is not with
out precedent that when the time came
for Decide to choose for herself she
should have formed an undesirable at
tachment.
In my nursery days l delighted in a
tragic rhyme story called The Robber
Kitten" beginning:
A kitten once to his mother said:
ON never more be good.
I'll 60 and be a robber fierce
And live in the dreary wood,
Wood, wood, wood, and live in the dreary wood!"
This poem" with its lurd pictures
and the dismal echoes that We're the