The San Francisco call., 1908-10-10

The once upon q time was when
was just Is years OLD and had fool
fshly resolved 10 run away from home.
board a whaler and sail for Arctic
seas. Ny home was in the backwoods
or Maine ] had the kindest and most
devoted parents. but. willful fellow that
j was, I thought ] knew what was best
1or me. and therefore had determined
10 initiate the hero Of a book L had
been reading.
I had heard about the almost GER
tain fortune there was in the mead of
? single whale, and believing in my
ignorance that could harpoOn one
myself about as easily as my father
could shoot a deer. / nursed the grow
,ng idea. that 1 could make a mint Of
money In a single voyage. and thus
give grand surprise TO my little
world at home.
4 think that I really loved every
domestic animal upon our place except
the cats. Up TO the period when my
story begins I never remember to have
stroked or petted one. ] thought them
al like tigers. treacherous and cruel.
and stupid and of no value whatever
bat 10 catch and torture mice.
Ny only sister Margaret, much
younger than I. had few weeks pre-
vious found and brought home a little
puny gray kitten that. to tease her,
] had maliciOusly niclInamed Peggy.
] saved il on one occasion from the
Jaws Of a strange dog. for Maggie's
sake for I knew she petted the ugly
little thing but beyond that had never
shown it any favor or special notice.
"Well. all my arrangements for run
ning away from home were completed.
] had bribed an old stage driver-who.
three times a week passed on his stage
within half a mile of my fathers
Louse-to wait for me at a certain hour
Of certain evening. 1t was raining
hard when ] slipped out of the house
after supper under pretense of going
out TO the barn after my hatchet, and
with q little bundle, which I had hidden
beneath a woodpile, ran across
muddy stubblefield TO make the short
est cut to the county road.
Although ] was in a state OF the
greatest excitement. as 7 fed J heard
distinctly the mewing Of a cat through
Aahe noise Of the wind and rain and it
Seemed TO follow me. I looked back,
but in the elouded twilight could dis
cover nothing.
The stage was awaiting me with but
one old woman in it, who failed to rec
ognize me.
Jump inside. said the driver;
guess you're soakin' wet Let the poor
puss in too. ] guess she follered you
for good luck and 10 my amazement
5ust before the stage door banged to-
in leaped my sisters Peggy and
crouched at my feet The old woman
soon went TO sleep. ] then stopped and
lifted the poor little wet, shiVering
creature into my arms She cuddled up
10 nv breast as though I were her best
friend and. somehow. then for the first
time. I began to realize the wrong L
had done in running away from my
good home. like a thief, even though 1
hoped and expected TO bring back to ii
thousands of dollars.
1T was past midnight when we reach
ed the coast village, near which was
sncbored the whaler ! hoped to board,
and 7 had resolved that when the stage
stopped I would give Peggy an oppor-
tlnity OF going wherever she wanted
and II she turned in the direction of
home I'd follow her. j was little
saperstitious, you see
NO. uncie." quickly said Carl. I
tlink you trusted to the good sense OF
tie cat"
when I slept in my bunk for the first
time aboard ship Peggy deliberately
curled herself UP on my pillow and be-
saan 10 purr as though she thought the
plea santest thing a cat could 90 was
10 take a voyage to The north pole
But didn't your father and mother
and sister Maggie" began Herbert.
Vow. Herbert; no switching off on
side track in this story. The cat is the
heroine.
we had a mixed crew, but the ma
foritv were Americans Our whale
neld was somewhere on the southeast
-rn coast OF Greenland and our route
20 il lay through the straits OF Belle
sic We were a long tine in reaching
tho straits. The winds were adverse;
the first mate, whom I liked best of all
on board. and TO whom I owed my stu
alton. fell dangerously i'll and nay du-
ties as cabin boy became very irksome;
we saw no whales, and ] believe
DIDN'T YOU wish you had stayed
home, sir?" said Jack. Il know you
did.''.
Hold up. Jack. Remember this story
is about q cat, not a naughty, foolish
boy. / was saying, when you inter
lupted me. that I believe / would have
died from home sickness but for Peggy,
who, ] think, was born TO be sailor
and a bold. brave one at that. She
used 10 EiliLlD Lllt cIiIOuuEs Ell ulfoA lHc
boom ard yaWn among the rigging.
Her fur became longer and more beau
tifui daily. and her eyes, which were
as clear as the bright stars in that lati-
fude. seemed almost to have laugh in
them Indeed. they began TO be love-
lv dark blue IN color. just like my sis
fers. and often when I would stroke
her warm. silky ears would plan how,
when I got my fortune. would hang
= diamond or a pearl in each little ear.
clasp pair of similar bracelets around
her neck and give her back in triumph
10 her young mistress.
She was the pet and plaything of all
the crew. from Captain Abbott down to
ne and so well fed upon tidbits that
she grew as fat as an opossum- But she
always slept with me, her head close TO
my cheek, and her purring became mu-
sic TO me-
we had passed out Of the straits and
in sight OF the rocky coast Of Labrador
were heading for the open sea, when
VIC got befogged- I can not make you
understand how dense that fog was,
how il Dewiidered US. nor how very
cold the air grew. We could not tell
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