Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-05-12
This and That
BY Charles E. TrocesUeH.

| Step by step the kittens are getting
! out Of the basement. This is literally
| true. At the age of weeks they man
! aged to climb upon the first bottom
| step.
When they were a few days older
| they negotiated the second step, and
by the end of the fifth week several
of them managed to make the third
step.
There they were reposing at this writ
ing, evidently not being able to get up
enough nerve to go higher at this time.
A flight of "stairsteps" must look like
| q veritable tower to a miniature cat,
only recently arrived in this world, and
interested in everything it sees.
Mrs. Blackie's kittens, five in number,
find the steps from the basement to the
first floor the most interesting thing
imaginable.
No doubt to them it represents the
| pinnacle of achievement. Up its mys-
| ferrous winding they see their mother
disappear, along with the strange and
great animals who sometimes come
down to visit them.
These latter creatures are the posses
| sors Of great appendages which are
termed hands" but which are slightly
suspicious to kittens.
The hand which oescends to pat
d4oO anu ~ CdACo
the average kitten some four or five
weeks to get the latter idea out Of its
head.
Kittens do not become human I'M
til about the fourth week
Then the racial instincts begin to assert
themselves, and the little cats come to
realization that mankind is their
friend. eve speak, Of course, of the
kittens in good home)
Little Nipper, Alexandra Dumas,
D'Artagnan, Porthos and Athos-these
come tumbling over the side of their
box at the sound of a human voice.
AS the staircase makes handy place
to sit to watch their wrestling matches,
visitors commonly sit there.
While D'Artagnan is swarming up the
broom, squirrel fashion, Alexandra Du-
mas and Porthos will be rolling over
and over in a close embrace.
Athos, coal black, finds himself a
bunk in small box, while Nipper, ever
cool and collected, prefers to sleep by
himself in the big soap box in which the
collection was born.
The favorite sporting place Of the
family now is at the foot of the stairs
on a rug which once did duty in the
bathroom.
Do many people not like cats because
they are so human In many ways and
so show up the failings of humanity?
We were put In mind of this by
watching the kittens climb the stairs.
Athos, the smallest (who was the last
one to get his eyes open), was the first
to climb out of his box, and also the
first to manage to hoist himself up to
the first step.
There he sat, very proudly, looking
down upon his more tinorous mates.
When one of them attempted to climb
up. AthoS would slap him down.
In the meantime, the other four
spent their time trying to pull Atros
of the step. Biting at his paws and
tail, Little Nipper was the most eager
assailant.
Not only was Athos attempting to
keep others from getting as high as he
was, but the others were attempting to
pull him on his perch after he had got
there!
In a way, this seemed perfect pic
ture of life. The same sort Of thing
occurs among men; every one is ia
miliar with It.. In favor Of the kittens
1t may be said that jealousy and envy
probably had no place in their little
minds. They were simply playing.