The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1902-12-27
A WORD AGAINST CATS.

There is just one kind of cat for a
nature student a dead one, l know
how the cat-admiring reader will re-
gard this statement. and I understand
the righteous indignation" which
prompts the question, What does he
Know about cats, anyway" 1t is fair
to answer this question.
/ have owned upwards Of fifty cats
from first to last, and have had as
many as seven at one time. Some of
these were of recognized breeds, and
others were just simply cats. l have a
complete alphabetical list of their good
| qualities from Availability" to "Wist-
fulness," but I would not own another
cat If it possessed every one of these
qualities in its own furry person. l
know how companlonable pussy is,
when she rubs herself against ones
legs arChing her back and meowing
gently to attract ones attention, and I
realize the cozy, homelike feeling she
engenders, as she sits on the rug be-
fore the open fire, with her tail curled
, over her front paws, blinking at the
flames, and grooming softly to herself
the personification of C0ntentment But
there are two sides to her character.
and l know the other side as we'll /
know that that gentle, purring creature
on the hearth-rug is but a tiger in re-
pose; that soft vibrating purring is the
faint rumblng of a volcano, inactive
for the time being, but liable to be in
eruption at any moment. No matter
chow gentle a cat may be- how much
good training it has received, the flut-
ter of birds wing or the movement of
mouse calls it back to nature in an
instant, and arouses the demon which
resides in the heart of every member Of
the feline race Without a moments
warning the gentle, blinking eyes are
ablaze with a cruel light, the velvet
paws are bristling with sharp talons,
and the soft purring has changed to a
savage growl. There may be excep-
tons, but they are 50 few that the gen.
eral statement holds good.
The first loss / sustained at the
hands or rather the teeth and claws, of
a cat occurred when I was small boy.
had lot of pigeons in loft, and one
morning l was much distressed to find
the partly eaten body of one of the
birds lying on the floor of the coop. A
few days later another one was killed,
and by keeping a close watch, I one
evening discovered our own tabby en-
tering the pigeon cote, having climbed
down from the roof, which she had
gained by way of tree trunk growing
against it. She never ate any more
pigeons.
Since then I have had some very sad
experiences with cats, a few of which I
will mention. Some years ago, I took
two young gray squirrels from the nest
to study, and they were soon so tame
that they would follow me all over the
garden, exploring my pockets and chas-
ing each other all over my body. The
cats, Of which we had several. were
always locked in the house when the
squirrels were loose In the garden.
One day 1 was sitting on the ground,
playing with the grays, when one of |
them started suddenly away from me.
The next instant there was q terrified |
equal from the squirrel, and the little
fellow whisked through a small WIN !
dow into the cellar. Close upon him |
was a large tom cat, which l thought |
was locked up in the house. With a
bound he went through the cellar win
low, which was, alas, too small for the |
10 enter. I rushed tito the house and
lown the cellar steps. just in time to
see the cat making his exit with the
imp body of my pet hanging from his
laws.
Two or three years ago a song SPAR
'ow built in the lioneysuckle which
wined around fence post in tht gar
len Scarcely had it laid its egs before
| cat. in an effort to reach the sittig
bird, utterly demolished the little home.
Fortunately the bird escaped, and, like
he plucky little heroine that she was,
'egan to build another nest in the same
pot. This one also being destroyed by
, cat, a third home was built in the
and We hoped that such
would be rewarded at |