Evening star., 1925-09-13
This and That
BY Charles E. Trace,oeH.

Now that Jack Spratt, the cat, has
had several dogs named after him In
various sections of the National Cay.-
tai, perhaps a history of how he came
to get his name will prove interesting
to the faithful followers Of his adven-
lures.
For Jack Spratt is not just a cat
He is a personality. Every Sunday
morning hundreds of people open up
their Star ito see what Jack Spratt is
doing today" He regularly receives
his mail, and has callers, who bring
him gifts ranging from choice beef
steak and cream to fresh catnip.
He Is, in short, something more than
cat. He is what you and l. dear
reader, may never be--a personality,
In which many people who do not know
each other are interested, held in a
common bond.
Jacks name was intended for a dog,
In the first place, so that is why 1t is
appropriate puppies should be named
after him. Our intention was TO get a
wire-haired fox terrier, one of those
snappy little fellows with straight fore
legs, rectangular head and a black
spot over the right eye.
The kind of dog we wanted. how.
ever. costs around 500. and 100 iron
men is rather good sum to pay for
dog, unless you have more money
than most of us have. (That's a rath-
Ell good way to put IT'D
Accordingly, when the cat, Jack
Spratt. showed up at our back door
two years ago this Autumn. he was
Immediately chrtstened Jack Spratt.
What else could we call him?
The name was appropriate in more
ways than one, for Jack Spratt literal
ly will eat no fat. great hog. no
amount of hunger or coaxing can in
duce him to eat any fat. Fat is ex-
actly what he will not eat He not
only prefers lean meat, he will eat
nothing else.
Jack also has many doglike ways,
among which may be named the trick
of standing on his hind legs although
more gracefully than any dog ever did
it in all the history of the canine
tribeI, and the trick of tearing a sheet
of paper into bits, a typically doggy
action.
AS for dogs themselves, he has little
fear of them, although believing in the
old maxim that discretion Is the better
part of valor. He has absolutely no.
fear of dogs in his own weight, and
has even made friends with one of
them.
Jack has many nicknames used by
his intimates. What was more nat
ura1, for instance, than that he should
be called Jackie Spratt, then Jackie?
Once called that, il was inevita BILE
that she should be called Jackie Coo
gan Sprstt, and this in turn gave way
to Coogan. Coogan in turn gave place
to Google, one of his NEST common
nieknames.
His personal friends often call him
Sprudel Spratt, or Sprudel for short,
which name requires a bit of explana-
ton. An advertisement of a certain
brand of foreign saline in an English
publication led to a trip to a drug
store, which was bile to produce the
advertised brand. but did bring forth
a box of Sprudel salt, from GERMANY,
believe.
The word Sprudel had such charm
that we found ourselves repeating 1t
upon going home. and, being greeted
by Jack Spratt with a tremendous
meow, the words Sprudel Spratt were
found delightfully."- alliterative.
An attempt to fasten upon Jack the
cognomen of Jackie Coogan Dempsey
Spratt, at time when he was nightly
engaged in fearful battles in the alley,
resulted in the dismal failure 1t de-
served
Il
Jack Spratt is his standard name,
! 1t must be kept in mind, against which
the others have cropped up, TO he used
upon occasion only.
At one period, for instance, he was
called Kitloe, derived from the uni
| versal cat name, Kitty. | rather fancy
Kitloe myself, especially for a playful
! cat.
Funny Feller is another of Jacks
names, although not much used. At
another time he was called Little, and
| this led to the more frequent use OF
| Littler.
Jack, Coogan ana Sprudel are the
three fayorite names used in address
ing this cat, who receives letters ad-
dressed to M?. Jack Spratt, ju "a IL
hnA rnrnra a human hAlnr