CHAPTER V.
KITTY AND THE FISH.
One morning, when Minnie went down stairs, she found Fidelle apparentlymuch distressed at having stepped into some water which the chamber girlhad accidentally spilled on the floor.
Puss shook one foot and then another in the most dainty manner imaginable,and then, going to a dry place, sat down to lick her paws.
"What can be the reason cats don't like water?" Minnie asked her mother."Leo thinks a bath very refreshing, and I suppose Tiney would if Katedid not scrub her so hard."
"I don't know, my dear, why it is so; but they do almost always dreadthe water. Though they are extremely fond of fish, they seldom ventureinto the water after it, but wait for it to be brought to them.
"But there are cases where they have become expert fishers. I rememberan account now which I think will interest you.
"A widow woman by the name of Rogers had a large family of childrendependent on her for support. By practising the greatest economy, theywere able to live for several years. At last there came a famine, whenprovision of every kind was so scarce that this poor family were reducedto the verge of starvation. Twenty-four hours had passed without onemouthful of food, and the widow knew not where to obtain any; when,hearing a faint scratching at the door, she went to open it. She sawthere a sight which made tears of grateful joy stream from her eyes. Thecat, which had long been an inmate of the family, a sharer of theirprosperity and adversity, with whom one of the children had divided herlast crust,--this cat stood at the door, holding in her mouth a largefish, which furnished all the household with a plentiful meal.
"What was more remarkable, puss continued to do this for nearly threeweeks, until better times dawned upon them, when she suddenly ceased thehabit, and never was known to take to the water again."
"Wasn't that a good kitty, mamma?" cried Minnie, giving Fidelle an extrasqueeze. "She was a useful cat."
"Yes, my dear; and when your father comes home, I think he can find anumber of instances where cats have overcome their dislike of wet feet,and have become expert fishers."
In the evening, Minnie did not forget to remind her father that sheliked to hear stories. Running up on the steps, she took the volume fromits place, and playfully put it into his hands.
After repeating to him the incident her mother had related in themorning, he turned over the leaves, and presently found the following:--
"At Caverton Mill, in Roxburghshire, a beautiful spot on the Kale water,there was a famous cat domesticated in the dwelling house, which stoodtwo or three hundred yards from the mill. When the mill work ceased, thewater was nearly stopped at the dam head, and below, therefore, rangradually more shallow, often leaving trout, which had ascended when itwas full, to struggle back with difficulty to the parent stream.
"So well acquainted had puss become with this circumstance, and so fondwas she of fish, that the moment she heard the noise of the mill clappercease, she used to scamper off to the dam, and, up to her belly inwater, continue to catch fish like an otter."
"That is really a curious instance," remarked Mrs. Lee, "where theinstinct of puss amounted almost to reason. She connected the stoppingof the wheel with the shutting off the water, and found by experiencethat at such times the trout could be seen."
"Here is another," added Mr. Lee, "related by the Plymouth Journal, inEngland."
"A cat who had for many years attached herself to the guard house, wasin the constant habit of diving into the sea, and bringing up the fishalive in her mouth, for the use of the soldiers. At the time thisaccount was given, she was seven years old, and had long been a usefulcaterer. It is supposed that she first ventured into the water, to whichcats have a natural aversion, in pursuit of the water rats, but atlength became as fond of it as a Newfoundland dog. She took her regularwalk along the rocks at the edge of the point, looking out for her prey,and ready to dive in at a moment's notice."
"We have a neighbor at home," said Ida, "who cannot endure the sight ofa cat. I wish she could hear some of these incidents; it is probablethat it might change her opinion of their intelligence."
"They are really affectionate little creatures," rejoined Mr. Lee, "asthis story would convince any one."
"A cat, which had been well treated in a family, became extremelyattached to the eldest child, a little boy who was very fond of playingwith her. She bore with patience all maltreatment which she receivedfrom him without making any resistance. As the cat grew up, however, shedaily quitted her playfellow for a time, from whom she had before beeninseparable, in order to catch mice; but even when engaged in thisemployment, she did not forget her friend; for as soon as she hadcaught a mouse, she brought it alive to him.
"If he showed any inclination to take her prey from her, she let themouse run, and waited to see whether he was able to catch it. If he didnot, the cat darted at it, seized it, and laid it again before him; andin this manner the sport continued, as long as the child showed anydesire for the amusement.
"At length, the boy was attacked by small pox, and during the earlystages of the disorder the cat never quitted his bedside; but as hisdanger increased, it was found necessary, on account of her cries, toremove the cat, and lock her up. The boy died. On the following day,puss, having escaped from her confinement, immediately ran to thechamber where she hoped to find her playmate.
"Disappointed in this, she sought for him with great uneasiness, andloud cries, all over the house, till she came to the door of the roomwhere the corpse had been placed. Here she lay down in silent melancholytill she was again locked up. After the child was buried, the cat wasset at liberty, when she suddenly disappeared. It was not until afortnight later that she returned to the well-known apartment quiteemaciated. She refused nourishment, and soon ran away again with dismalcries. At last, compelled by hunger, she made her appearance every dayat dinner time, but always left the house as soon as she had eaten thefood that was given her. No one knew where she spent the rest of hertime, till she was found one day under the wall of the burying ground,close to the grave of her favorite.
"So indelible was her attachment to her deceased friend, that till hisparents removed to another place, five years afterwards, she never,except in the greatest severity of winter, passed the night any whereelse than close to the grave.
"Ever afterwards she was treated with the utmost kindness by everyperson in the family, though she never exhibited partiality for any ofthem."