The Baltimore County union. [volume] (Towsontown, Md.) 1865-1909, 1905-06-17

He became faint, and complaining of
nausea, went out and promptly re-
covered.
"I quote the following from ply
sician of distinction as case where
the symptoms arise on seeing cat,
and where, at other times, they are
evoked by the odor of an Unseen
cat
"My wife simply lives in horror of
cats. 1t is more than fright and it
makes no difference whether it be a
tiny kitten or the most tigerlike tom
cat. / have seen her absolutely pros
trated by terror after an unexpected
meeting with a cat, although she is not
in the least Historically inclined nor
afraid of other animals.
"She has never as child been
| frightened by a cat but has always
had this fear. She can usually de-
tect a cats presence by its smell,
when it is unseen and when others
cannot smell it, but this she cannot
always do.
"Her father has the cat fear, and
her maternal grandmother can also
smell out cat; also brother aud
two sisters, the rest of a large family
being Indifferent to the animal.
"A lady very we'll known to me
sends me, with other instances, this {:
She was in her room preparing for
bed, when suddenly she felt her usual
sensation of cat being near. A SER
want was called and a vain search
was made.
cat last, still suffering, she her.
self made careful search, and found
strange cat curled up under lounge
and we'll hidden. She has no know
ledge of cat from sense of smell.
'Dr. J. c. w. writes me: Some
years ago was present at meeting
af a scientific society. The secretary,
while reading his report, stopped and
said: IT can't go on. There must be
cat in the ROOM" Search was made
and, under the topmost seat in
the amphitheatre was found cat.'
"Mrs. H., lady long and well
known to me, first told me and later
wrote to me to this effect: 7 was in
a shop in Paris trying on gloves,
when I became sure of a cat near me.
The woman in charge said she had no
cat, but, on my persisting and be-
coming faint, search was made and a
stray cat found under the counter and
driven into the street.
"'A few minutes later my symp-
toms returned, and the cat was found
to have come back into the shop
through the open door and was be-
hind me. Icould recall a number Of
like instances
CDR. T. writes as follows: Gen.
Roberdeau had an unaccounable
aversion to being anywhere in the
vicinity of cats. Itwas no affectation
but an inborn idiosyncrasy. He
could not account for it and tried hard
to overcome it, but without the least
success.
"'It affected him with peculiar
faintness, paleness and difficulty of
breathing, increasing to such an ex-
tent that it was involuntary for him
to leave the room. He was never
mistaken when he said there was a
cat in the room an instance of which
occurred once when invited to dine at
Chief Jnstice McKean's.
Knowing his antipathy, they
made careful search and aired the
room, but the moment Gen. Rober-
deau entered he said "There is cat
here p They assured him there was
not, for they had taken proper pre-
cautions on his account.
He replied that he knew there
was cat there and retired to another
room, while further search revealed
kitten behind the bookcase. The
writer's father has often heard his
mother and aunts tell of their girlish
tricks played on Gen. Roberdeau,
of secreting a cat in the room in which
he was sitting, and the General never
failed to perceive it instantly.
This popularity does not seem to
be generally inherited among his de-
scendants, except that in three or four
cases it has appeared in modified
form.
8" Miss Mary E. Roberdeau, the
eldest daughter of Isaac, partially in
herited this antipathy which showed
itself in another form, occasioning an
eruption on the skin, passing off after
the cause was removed.
"My informant adds: Very SINH
larly affected was the writer's sister.
Although excessively fond of pets,
and cats in particular, it has been no.
ticed that after fondling one a most
terrific cold in the head would sudden
ly ensue.
"'She would sneeze time after
time, her eyes water profusely and
her face become flushed. The vio-
lence would subside after putting the
cat away, leaving no trace visible the
next morning. It has always beer
considered a modified form of hei
great grandfather's antipathy.
CDR. S., a physician of distinction
writes: I am not now aware of the
presence of cat when it is not in
sight or known to be near, but or
some occasions of my life I have beer
so uncomfortable that I have feared
cat must be in the room and or
those occasions cat has always beer
found.
"'I could never make friend ofs
a man or woman who loved fondlins
cats, and have often had to get {
patient to Danish the cat from the
room before could give my mind tc
her symptoms.
my wife reminds me of one occa
sion, about 1892, when she and
were visiting stranger. REMARKED
during the absence of the hostess tha
was certain there must be cat il
| ~. E..1-A..~1fx, IL IL -