The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-10-17
HER WAY OUT OF IT.

This incident occurred III WaShlnSton not very long ago:
 A young man was calling upon the girl to whom he was engaged. The couple were sitting on the front steps of the girls home an hour or so before the fall of darkness when they noticed the cat attached to the household of the girls family going down the steps leading to the basement area with a tiny field mouse in its mouth. The cat had caught the house in the vacant lot alongside the house.
 Dropping the tiny mouse over in corner of the area, the cat proceeded to torture the little animal after the ac- cepted feline fashion.
 She would permit the mouse to run away about a yard or so, pretending that she didn't know that there was mouse within miles. and then she would jump out, nail the mouse with her foot and toss it back to the cor ner.
 Then she would pick the mouse up in both of her paws, throw it into the air, and when 1t came down and started to run, nail it again. The tiny mouse would squeeze itself into a corner and sit up and look at the cat pitifully and then the cat would swipe 1t out of the corner with her paw and step on it, her eyes blazing estatically and her tail swishing. Some natural historians say that there is no animal so atrociously and gloatingly cruel as the ordinary purring. domesticated cat.
 That mouse" said the young fellow to the girl to whom he was engaged, lis only youngster yet. Strikes me he ought to have chance for his white al- ley"
 "Oh. don't know" said the girl, who, with her chin in her hands, was dream fly and fascinatedly regarding the spec tacle of the mouse being tortured by the cat.
 Don't you think it horrible to see the poor little beggar getting the worst of it that way?" he asked the girl, with slight note of surprise in his tone. She made no reply, but, still with her chin resting in her hands, gazed calmly at the cat tossing diminutive mouse into the air, and stepping on it, and dabbing at it with her paws, and pick ing it up in her mouth and throwing it down again.
 Mice get into the house." said the girl. after while.
 But that kind don't" said the young man, bit earnestly. That's field mouse, and field mice don't bother any body"
 TJNI. ;,1 {loAn corner, with it's tiny forepaws folded in front in very pleasing attitude, while the cat gazed w h expanding eyes at it before beginning to dab at it again.
 I'm going to give that mouse a run for it's Jaw marble" said the young man, getting up from the steps and starting down the area steps.
 Let the cat alone,' said the girl qui- etly, but never removing her gaze from the sight of the tortured mouse. The young man stopped suddenly and looked up at the girl. T want to give the mouse chance to get away" he said. Surely you don't find enjoyment in watching a poor little beast getting handled that way?"
 You don't have to look at it if you don't want to-" said the girl. with a cer- tain hardness in her tone. Let the cat alone"
 The young fellow gazed steadily at her for half minute, but she didn't ap- | pear to notice this. She was too intent upon the deviltry of the cat After twenty minutes of torturing it's prey, in the course of which it broke the | mouses legs. so that the tiny rodent could only hobble in it's efforts to run away, the cat ate the mouse, The girl never took her eyes from the cat until the cat had finished it's prey. Then she gave a sort of satisfied sigh as she emerged from her fascinated trance.
 well, the cat has had her supper" she said, in a matter tone, to her financee.