Norwich bulletin., 1916-06-29
MOfherkfnS

blinded one to the fact that there was nothing in the least angelic about her stubborn little mouth and chin She shTieked with delight when she9 dis covered the kittens and. straightway annexed Gray and White as her own Holding the li1ekless kitten in her two plump hands, she would squeeze 1t with all her might till the poor things sides fairly came together and it mewed faintly with discomfort
 Ny protests agafnst such treatment and admonftions to more gentle meth ods in handling the little creature were but met with an upward slanee of the curls and a renewed grasping of the kitten.
 T must do it because love 1t So. she said in explanation,H and besides 1t IS mine, nfnes mfz1ei Mama says may take it home with me when I
 Poor Gray ana Whites It seemed
 unlikely there would be enough left
 or her to take anywhere Under this
 strenuous loving she grew thin and slelSly The mother cat 4vfatched her anxiousfy. following the small girl around diatractediy- But her rights. as mother were always overiooked Gray and White was pulled from her side. in the middle of a much needed meal and carried off to be put to bed in some distant hammock, crushed down and held firmly in place in spite or her wriggling and feeble news. Ben and Jim fairly cried in fndigna-
 ton and hopeless wrath at the suf-
 ferlrgs of the small animal
 One morning. while dressing, I heard my window
 I Therel told you what would hap pen if you bother them su Now yo41
 see they're gone and it's all your fault
 It aints It ainti" passionately from
 Kitty, anyhow.'s
 No. she wasn't neither, she be- longed to her mother and she's taken
 her away l told you so! And it's all
 Sobs from the small girl, accompan. jed by sounds as though she were en. gased in slapping Ben with all hel
 Tt aintl It aintt And she wa:
 mine, mine, minel So there!s'
 threw open the blind and leaned
 ouI, What's the matter, Ben ?"
 Ben, one cheek very red, looked uI Tl at me The mother cat and the kft. tens have all gone, every bit of them And it's all her fault. I told her so!
 The angel-eyed girl had disappeared
 Wherever the fault lay our iitti friends had gone The days slfppe, py and nothing was seen or hear, from them. We had given them ud entirely, when one morning, out arnoni |. the ash barrels, Just as lame and un Z attraetive, round the mother cat Sh ieaped upon me as a. dog might hav done and sprang into my arms. purr ! ! Ing with delight. licking my hands an < my face when I put it down on he rough fur, caressing1y
 For week after that she appearey \ 4h 3m4&1 sN..z z alone. It was evident that she mean
 to keep the whereabouts Of her lit ? tens a secret.
 Jim and Ben were Of the sorrovvfr opinion that Robbie had found ther and and had wrecked his wicked viii Q thought 1t more than urohahl 7 that they had been safely hidden a-vva :. ' somewhere by their little mother. a one morning encountered her alon 5 over py tne golf links She ran up 4 me eagerly, rubbing against me ar s, looking up began to mew softly SE 7. thing. 2 What ia it, Kitturhsgs aske .e stepping down and smoothing her ST ' Llcked my hand, mewed piteously, an 4 ran away lew paces, stopped regarf iS ing me earnestly, then came back fl me with her queer little haltinn rt 19 and rubbed against me again Wine '1 she had repeated these aanoeuvrl IS several times 1t daWned upon rav sfs e Did human brain that she waa asjkil x me 10 go with her
 ns For mile I followed her along ta V dusty road, till suddenly she sank doT irs in the cool shadow of an apple tre V She was pauting and exhausted fro af her long run but she looked un at n le amecttonafelF and stretching hersf x out on the boof grass she Mftared fHn -ss4 uecuf4aT soft little erv rf1fsa 57f4faf,i, D1 mother calls her kittene.
 The faTmEard gate stood open. Pre- If5 emily from around the afeposE a Iifs 1f gray and Ntaite head appeared. ff a- lowed closely by another with brig 3e eyes and yellow naottifngs round C ie short ears, and little Gray and Trghi ae and Tiger came trotting down { ie road.
 it. They ran straight For their moth er anas hungry as uauaL nestled down ae her. digging her poor 3ain aidam wi ilx inch thy paws She Wafcansd fhl or with purra nAd dell atea gg11BleS, lIis IS Ing them fondly with her rQfEh tonai n, locking uD at mo b@tw6en maileGi Ma
 languidly eontented eyss
 at See ehey're ala r9BhA N9o seem us to say had to f6lkA them sEeV .el where I could bring xh9En Hp 1n peA Ils knew you wouldn't tell if SIoF ee Fyou. And never dld.
 .ls