The central record. (Lancaster, Ky.) 18??-current, 1917-01-04
How the Cats Came to
Strongsville
By NJ. QUAD


twisted leg besides. His parents died
when he was ten years old, and Hez
became a sort of child outlaw. lie
wandered here and there till he finally
settled In Strongsville.
Hez found the farming class much
more sympathetic than the villagers,
but he was imposed on by them to
certain degree. When he had got to be
youth Of fourteen or fifteen he could
hoe corn or potatoes or chop and split
wood as well as almost any man. They
would hire him by the week and give
him such food and lodgings as they
saw at, and when he was through with
his week he was given some old clothes
or few cents In money.
The years passed on until Hezekiah
was twenty, and he was more of an out.
law than ever. A man named Brooks
went to work In the sawmill at Strongs-
Vile. He was an old bachelor, and he
rented a small house and lived alone.
In passing the boy on the street one
day he must have given the victim a
look Of sympathy, for when he got back
TO his house again he found Hezekiah
seated on his doorstep. He invited him
in and gave him n meal and a good
bed. From that day the unfortunate
had home.
To make clear what followed the
reader must know that Strongsville
had a strong antipathy to cats. 1t was
founded on sanitary principles. There
had once been an epidemic Of scarlet
fever and again an epidemic OF mea-
sles, and the doctors had agreed that
the germs Of both were carried from
house to house by the feline population.
Thus il came about that the cats were
exterminated to the last one and the
mice had a play day every day in the
year. The old bachelor learned this
fact as soon as he talked of renting
house in the village. He was told that
II he brought a cat along with him
she would certainly be poisoned of in
short order.
One day after HeZekiah had had a
home for six months he went to work
for certain farmer at wages set by
Mr. Brooks, who had become a guard
ian to him. After working for three
or four days Hezekiah unearthed box
Of gold coin amounting to 5000. They
were English coins and had been buried
In the long ago-so long ago that the
hoy had becsme mere MINK He car.
ried tho money home with him wran.
ned In bis old coat and a. sent forth
metallic cIink. M n wos thrown ON tho
table. He was smiling almost for the
frst fine In a vear and . fter an effort
no managed tn say.
81 duy q out ~ tho cround,
"Did Won toll tho farmerf, ASKED
Mr.. Brooks when he had recovered
from his sstonisbment
"Not a word /" was replied
"weun continued tho ola bacbe,or
after the money had been counted
.tb,s and has made Won rich I'm, don't
saw ANYTHING about a. IN anv ono The
neonle Of this town bsva used Won
sbamefuI,v and 7 want 10 soc Won got
even with them You Know what
moan don't vouw
In renlv Uezeliab,s face lighted nm
and no nodded bis head He had been
aware for a LONG fine that no ono had
nIaved him fair hut no fe,t bis helm |
iessness 70 resent n
In thinking how no might revenue
the vounp mans wrongs the old bach |
e,or brought nm tho car Question and
ba soon had bis nlsns laid The next
rim neddIer that came along was sion. |
ned and held I'm priyate conversation
FOR half an bour and then no winked |
and laughed and drove away. He |
stored his tinware temporarlv and
loaded nm 900 felines IN its Mace.
That wagon re-entered the village st
II O'Clock at night. when every man,
woman and child was sleeping bis first
sleep. II paused in front of the town
hall, and the door was opened, and
the cats came bouncing out.
Two hundred cats might have been
exterminated In time, but the tin ped
dler returned next evening with 200
more re-enforcements and again the
third night. The town had now been