The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1915-06-24
100 CATS GUARD y. y. POLICE.
Rats and Mice Kept on the Run by
Well Trained FelineS.


where they have their own police
duty to perform, says the New York
Times. This consists of riding the
houses of mice and rats.
Most of the cats were contributed
by generous policemen. Others just
naturally strayed into the stations.
Were it not for the presence of these
cats some of the station houses which
are in the neighborhood of stables
and rookeries would be overrun by
rats. Policemen who have faced all
kinds of danger unfiinchingly. do not
hesitate to say that it makes them
feel decidedly uncomfortable to be
awakened from their slumbers by
rat who is using the floor of the dor
mitory for a playground. and that it
is mighty reassuring to be able to
drop off to sleep with the knowledge
that the station house cat is faithful
ly patroling.
The station house cat, policemen
assert, possesses characteristics dis
,tinctly different from those Of the
common house cat or any other spe-
cies of the tiger family. For exam
pie he is not given to nocturnal
prowlings. He spends most Of his
time in the station house. and when
he does go out into the night he does
not stray far. Most of these cats,
police lieutenants, who have studied
them, assert, have strong antipathy
for an intoxicated person, and when
such a prisoner is brought into the
station the cats walk away in dis
gust. Instead of being called Tom
my" or Kitty" they are usually ad-
dressed grufly by the police as You"
and Hey YOU"
In the Morrisannra police station
there is a beautiful white cat named
Peter. He is the pride of the station
house, and was born there five years
ago when he was adopted by Lieuten-
ant Peter Brady, after whom he was
named. Peter has strong likes and
dislikes. His favorite resting place
is the top of the station house desk.
When a lieutenant whom Peter dis
likes is on duty nothing will induce
him to remain near the desk. but he
will seek a far corner of the station.
Peter was a great favorite with the
late Lieutenant Frank O'Rourke.
When O'Rourke wanted his pet he
would blow a police whistle, which
would bring Peter to the station.
There was a certain lieutenant that
disliked Peter as much as the cat
aisliked him. This lieutenant went
in the back room of the station one
night for few minutes, leaving Peter
in charge of the place. When the
lieutenant returned he found that the
ink had been spilled all over the
pages of the blotter. The captain
wanted to know how it happened. and
the lieutenant blamed it on Peter.
There is a large gray cat in the
Alexander avenue station. Many
names have been suggested for this
cat, but as the men have not been
able to agree on one they are now
conducting a voting contest and the
cat will be presented with the win
ming name. In the West 152nd
street station there is large cat,
which spent his early life in a butch
er shop, He makes daily visits to
the butcher shops in the neighbor-
hood, and when he is absent and the
police want to set him on the trail
of a mouse who is disturbing their
equanimity they know that he can
be found at a neighboring butchers.
In a Brooklyn precinct there Is
battle-scarred cat named Gray Whis-
kers. Some time ago an old building
opposite the station house was being
torn down, and under cover of night
a regiment of rats swarmed from the
ruins into the station house. The
men in the dormitory were awaken
ed by the sound of many feet and
saw by the light from full moon
that the visitors were rats, and that
they were being hotly pursued about
the place by Gray Whiskers, which
was giving them no quarter. No
count was kept of the number of rats
which Gray Whiskers dispatched, but
those he failed to slay he routed
completely from the station house.
so terrifying them that. according to
the police. no rat since has had the
termerity to live there.