THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA PRESENTED BY PROF. CHARLES A. KOFOID AND MRS. PRUDENCE W. KOFOID a; § THE BOOK OF THE CAT BY ... FRANCES ,SIMPSON WITH 12 COLOURED PLATES, AND NEARLY 350 ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT FROM PHOTOGRAPHS AND DRAWINGS CASSELL AND COMPANY, LIMITED LONDON, PARIS, NEW YORK AND MELBOURNE. MCMIII ALL RIGHTS RESERVED S CONTENTS, CHAPTER PACE I. — CATS OF THE PAST ... i II.— CATS OF TO-DAY . . 18 III. — CARE AND MANAGEMENT . . 37 IV.— HOUSING OF CATS ... . 49 V.— EXHIBITING ......... 61 VI. — THE POINTS OF A CAT ........ 96 VII. — LONG-HAIREI) OR PERSIAN CATS . . . , . .98 VIII. — SOME NOTABLE CATTERIES ....... 101 IX.— BLACK PERSIANS . ....'. .112 X. — WHITE PERSIANS . ....... 118 XI.— BLUE PERSIANS ..... . .125 XII.— SILVER OR CHINCHILLA PERSIANS . . . . . 137 XIII.— SILVER TABBY PERSIANS. ....... 165 XIV.— SMOKE PERSIANS ..... . . 178 XV.— ORANGE PERSIANS ..... .187 XVI. — CREAM on FAWN PERSIANS ..... .201 XVII. — TORTOISE-SHELL PERSIANS . . . . . 2O8 XVIII. — TORTOISESHELL-AND-WHITE PERSIANS . ... 212 XIX. — BROWN TABBY PERSIANS . . 2IS XX. — "ANY OTHER COLOUR" PERSIANS .... 231 XXL— NEUTER CATS .... . • • 237 XXII.— MANX CATS . . .244 XXIII.— SIAMESE CATS . 254 iv THE BOOK OF THE CAT. CHAPTER PAGE XXIV. — SHORT-HAIRED CATS ........ 274 XXV. — SHORT-HAIRED CATS (continued) ...... 282 XXVI. — SOME FOREIGN CATS ........ 297 XXVII. — CATS IN AMERICA . . . . . ... . 303 XXVIII.— MAINE CATS ......... 325 XXIX. — CAT PHOTOGRAPHY FOR AMATEURS ...... 332 XXX. — REARING OF KITTENS ........ 337 XXXI. — COLOUR BREEDING ..... . 344 XXXII. — THE PLACE OF THE CAT IN NATURE ..... 350 THE DISEASES OF CATS, AND THEIR TREATMENT . . . .358 INDEX .......... 377 LIST OF COLOURED PLATES. BLACK PERSIAN . . . . . . . Frontispiece BLACK AND WHITE PERSIAN CATS .... To face t>age 116 BLUE AND CREAM PERSIANS . . . . . . .126 BROWN TABBY AND SILVER PERSIANS . . . . . .160 SMOKE AND ORANGE PERSIANS . . . . . . .186 TORTOISESHELL AND ToRTOISESHELL- AND- WHITE PERSIANS . . . 2IO SILVER TABBY AND ORANGE AND 'WHITE PERSIANS . . . .234 MANX AND SIAMESE . . . . . . . .252 BLUE AND WHITE SHORT-HAIRED CATS . . . . . .274 BROWN TABBY AND ORANGE TABBY SHORT-HAIRED CATS . . . 288 TORTOISESHELL TOM, AND SILVER TABBY SHORT-HAIRED CATS . 294 FOREIGN CATS . . . . . . . . . 300 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. " White to Move " i Mummy of a Cat ..... i The God Cat 2 An Egyptian Wall-Painting: The Ador- ation of the Goddess Pasht . . 2 The Worship of Pasht in the Temple of Bubastes 3 Mummified Kitten .... 3 A Cat God of Egypt .... 3 Puss as a Retriever : An Egyptian Wall- Painting 4 An Egyptian Toy Cat .... 5 A Mineral Lusus 6 Puss in Warfare ..... 7 A Group of Cats in Pottery ... 9 Tomb of a Cat which belonged to Madame de Lesdiguieres . . 10 The Printer's Mark of Melchior Sessa of Venice 12 A Cat in Heraldry 12 A Merchant's Mark .... 12 Alice and the Cheshire Cat ... 13 A Study 14 Madame Ronner at Work ... 15 "Crystal," the property of Mrs. Finnic Young 16 Lady Alexander's " Brother Bump " . 17 Sleeping Beauties 18 Miss F. Simpson's " Bonnie Boy" . 18 Kitten at Work and Play ... 19 Kitten belonging to Mrs. Owen . . 20 The Antiquaries 21 " Kepwick Violet " and " Kepwick Hyacinth " . . . . .22 Miss Savery's Blue Persian Kitten . 23 A Pair of Short-haired Brown Tabbies . 23 Cat Calendar 24 Cat Calendar 24 Cat Calendar ..... 25 Mr. Harrison Weir .... 26 Mr. Louis Wain ..... 27 Lady Marcus Beresford ... 28 Litter of Siamese Kittens ... 29 " Puck III." 30 Mrs. Clinton Locke and ber Siamese Kittens "Calif" and " Bangkok " . 31 The Cat's Playground .... 32 Royal London Institution fcr Lost and Starving Cats .... 33 The Cart of the R. L. 1 34 The Hon. Philip Wodehouse's " Silver Saint " 35 A Bevy of Blues belonging to Miss Savery 35 Cats' Tombstones at the Dogs' Ceme- tery, Hyde Park .... 36 Tabbies up a Tree, .... 37 Blue Persian belonging to Her Majesty the Queen 37 Three Little Maids .... 39 A Perilous Perch 4° Mrs. Hardy's Neuter " Pharaoh " . 41 " The Raiders " Caught ... 43 Kittens belonging to Miss Bromley . 45 Neuter Pets owned by Mrs. Hastings Lees 46 Carolling ...... 48 In a Playful Sort of Way ... 49 A Musical Party 5° The Ideal Cattery .... 53 A Litter Box 55 A Useful Cat House .... 55 A Portable Hutch . . . 56 Lethal Chamber, R.L.I. . . . 57 Spratt's Travelling Basket ... 58 A Useful Cat Basket .... 58 A Gang of Poachers . . • * • 59 Waking Beauties 61 Richmond Cat Show : Arrangement of Tents 65 Mrs. Gregory's ' ' Skellingthorpe Patrick ' ' 67 " Inquiry" 67 Richmond Cat Show : Judges at Work 69 Type of Cage at the Richmond Cat Show .71 Mr. C. A. House 72 Mr. T. B. Mason 72 The Toilet 73 Blue Persian Kittens .... 74 Kits with a Taste for Flowers . . 75 Two Kittens bred by Miss Williams . 75 Richmond Cat Show : The Ring Class 77 Minding Shop 78 Thieves 79 Mrs. Drury's Brown Tabby " Periwig " 80 Miss Simpson's " Cambyses " . . So A Litter of Blues 81 Judging in the Ring at the Crystal Palace 83 Miss Kirkpatrick's Blue Kittens . . 84 " Rose of Persia " . . . '85 Mischief 88 Our Play-room 89 Mr. F. W. Western .... 91 Officials of the N.C.C.C. ... 92 Sandy Stealing the Milk ... 94 Silver Cats belonging to Mrs. Clark of Ashbrittle .... 95 The Points of a Cat .... 96 Tailpiece 97 Blue Persians belonging to Mrs. Wells 98 "Gentian," owned by Lady Marcus Beresford 99 Mrs. Herring's " Champion Jimmy " . 100 PAGE The Hon. Mrs. McLaren Morrison's Cattery 101 Scenes at " Bishopsgate " . . . 103 A Sleeping Box at Lady Decies' Cattery 104 Lady Decies Visiting her Pets . . 104 Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart's Cattery . 105 The Imitation Tree, Mrs. Clarke's Cattery 106 Mrs. Clarke's Cattery .... 107 The Hon. Mrs. McLaren Morrison . 108 Mrs. Collingwood and "James II." . 109 A Morning Meal at Bossington . . in Black Persian " Johnny Fawe " . .112 "Champion Menelik III." . . .113 Kitten Bred by Miss Kirkpatrick . . 115 Mrs. Little's Black Persian " Colleen " 115 The Carol Singers . . . .116 "Jungfrau" ...... 118 Mrs. McLaren's White Persian ' ' Lady- smith " 119 Mrs. Pettit with her White Persians . 121 "Crystal" 122 " White Butterfly " . . . .123 " Musafer" 124 "Jack" and "Jill" . . . .125 The Artist 128 Blue Kittens bred by Miss Kirkpatrick 129 Mrs. Robinson's Blue Kittens . . 129 Mrs. Wells's Cattery . . . .130 "Rokeles Kissi " 131 Scared 132 Cast of the Cat Club Medal . . .133 Miss G. Jay's Cattery . . . .134 Rev. P. L. Cosway's " Imperial Blue" 135 " Un Saut Ptrilleux " . . . .136 "Jack Frost" . : . . .137 "StarDuvals" 138 " The Absent-Minded Beggar " . . 138 "Omar" 139 Three Pretty Silvers . . . .140 " Shah of Persia " . . . .141 " Fulmer Zaida " 142 ' ' Troubadour '^ 143 A Perfect Chinchilla (two views) . . 145 Mrs. Balding's " Silver Lambkin " . 146 Mrs. Balding's " Flume Tod " . . 147 "Sea Foam" 148 Mrs. Wellbye's " Silver Lotus " . . 149 Mrs. Wellbye's " Silver Dossie " . . 150 Mrs. Wellbye's Silver " Veronica ' . 151 Two Views of Woodheys Cattery . . 153 " Silver Blossom " .... 154 " Silver Blossom's " Two Buds . . 155 "Wild Tom" 156 " Fur and Feather " . . . .158 " The Silver Lambkins " . . . 159 " Jupiter Duvals " .... 161 VI THE BOOK OF THE CAT. " The Elder Miss Blossom " " Dolly Daydream " " I want to go home ! " " The Marquis of Dingley " . Miss Leake's Summer Cattery PAGE 162 163 164 '65 166 Silver Tabby Kittens owned by Princess Victoria of Schleswig-Holstein . 167 " Beautiful Duchess " .... 168 Winter Quarters at Dingley Hill . . 169 In the Studio 171 Miss Cope's " Starlet ". . . .172 A Pair of Silver Tabbies . . .173 " Thames Valley Silver King " . . 174 " Roiall Fiuffball " . . . .177 Mrs. Stead's Smoke Litter by " Ranji " 178 " Jo " and " Tiny " .... 178 Miss Bartlett's Two Smoke Kittens . 179 Mrs. James's Cat Houses at Backwell . 181 Mrs. Stead's Smoke Persian "Cham- pion Ranji "... . . . 182 " Champion Backwell Jogram " . . 183 Mrs. Sinking' Smoke Persian "Teufel" 185 "Lucy Claire" 186 Mrs. Singleton's " Orange Girl ". . 187 "Puck" 188 "Swagger" 188 " Benjamin of the Durharns " . . 189 "Toirington Sunnysides" . . . 190 "Lifeguard" 191 One of Mrs. Neate's Outdoor Catteries at Wernham 192 "Curiosity" 193 Mrs. Neate's Cat Houses (two views) . 194 "Musing" 197 " Out in the Cold " .... 199 " Higher Education " .... 200 Mrs. Clinton Locke's Cream Kitten . 201 A Creamy Smile . . . . . 201 Mrs. Norris's Cream Kitten . . . 202 " Kew Ronald" and " Kew Laddie" . 203 Miss Beal and her Kittens . . . 204 Mrs. D'Arcy Hildyard's Cream Kittens 204 " Miriam of the Durhams " . . . 205 " Champion Romaldkirk Admiral " . 206 Mrs. F. Western's " Matthew of the Durhams" ..... 207 " Topsy of Merevale" . . . 208 Miss H. Cochran's Tortoisesheil " Bru- nette" 209 Miss Sargent's " Topsy " . . . 210 Miss Kate gangster's " Royal Yum Yum" 2ii " Peggy Primrose " . . . . . 212 Miss Yeoman's " Mary II." . . . 213 "At Home". ..... 214 Miss Simpson's " Persimmon " . . 215 Miss Mellor's " Lady Sholto " . .216 " Champion Crystal " (American) . 217 A Room in Brayfort Cattery . . 218 Miss Whitney and her Neuter Brown Tabby 219 "Brayfort Princess", and "Brayfort Fina "...... 220 " Lonsdale Chrysalis " and " Lonsdale Moth" 221 Mrs. D'Arcy Hildyard's " Sulpherland " 222 "Pioneer Bobs" ..... 223 "LornaDoone" 225 " Birkdale Ruffle " 226 PAC;E " Birkdale Ruffiie's " Cattery . . 227 Brown Tabby "Goozie" . . . 229 A Trio of Tabbies .... 230 A Picturesque Group .... 231 A Grotesquely-marked Kitten . . 232 " Lockhaven Colburn " . . . 233 "The Conquest of the Air " . . . 234 "Grace before Meat" .... 235 " Marcus Superbus," a Silver Smoke . 235 " Blue Robin " 236 Miss Kirkpatrick's " Chili" . . . 237 " KingCy "... .237 Miss Chamberlayne's "Belvedere Tiger" 238 " Benoni " 239 Miss Adamson's Chinchilla Neuter . 240 " Nigel the Raven " .... 241 Madame Portier's Neuter " Blue Boy " 242 Rascals ....... 243 Type of Manx Kitten .... 244 " Golfsticks " 245 Specimen of a Manx Tabby . . . 246 Orange Manx 248 Mrs. H. C. Brooke's Manx " Katzen- jammer " 249 " Ballochmyle Bell Spitz " . . . 250 Manx Cat . . . . . .251 Mr. Ward's Manx " Silverwing " . . 253 A Litter by "Tachin" .... 254 The Garden Cattery at Bishopsgate . 255 Mrs. Roberts Locke, with " Calif," "Siam," and " Bangkok " . . 256 "Si" . . . . . . .257 " Tiam-o-Shian " .... 257 "It" 258 Mr. Ratcliffe's Siamese . . . 259 Lady Marcus Beresford's " Ursula" . 260 Miss Armitage's " Cora " . . . 262 Pair of Siamese belonging to Mrs. Armitage 263 Mrs. Robinson's " Ah Choo " . . 265 " Champion Wankee ". . . . 265 "Mafeking" 266 The late " King Kesho " . . . 267 Lady Marcus Beresford's " Cambodia " 268 Pugs Paying a Visit to the Siamese, Mrs. Hawkins' Cattery . . . 269 " Romeo " and " Juliette " . . . 271 A Cosy Corner 273 " Ashbrittle Peter " .... 274 " Ballochmyle Blue Queen ". . . 275 Mrs. Carew Cox's Blue male " Bayard " 276 " Sherdley Michael " .... 277 " Sherdley Alexis " .... 277 "Sherdley Sacha I." and " II." . . 277 Maria 278 Mrs. Carew Cox's " Yula " . . . 279 Lady Alexander of Ballochmyle . . 280 " Champion Ballochmyle Brother Bump " 281 Short-haired Tabby Kittens . . . 282 Another View of Lady Decies' Cattery . 283 Lady Decies' " Champion Xenophon" . 284 An American Begging Cat . . . 285 " Ebony ol Wigan " .... 286 Sleeping and Waking Tabbies . . 287 A Black-and-White Britisher . . 288 " Champion Ballochmyle Otter ". . 289 " Champion Ballochmyle Perfection " . 290 Mrs. Barker's " Tyneside Lily " . . 291 PACE Two Views of Briarlea Catteries . . 292 A Corner of the Bossington Catteries . 293 Tortoisesheil Male " Samson " . . 294 Mrs. A. M. Stead's Brown Tabby . . 295 Mrs. Collingwood's "James II." . . 295 " Ben My Chree" .... 296 liurmese Cat ..... 297 Mexican Hairless Cats .... 299 African Cat 300 Manx and Abyssinian .... 301 Geoffrey's Wild Cat .... 302 " The Storm King" .... 303 "Rado" 303 The Old Fort Cattery .... 305 Mrs. Colburn and her White Persian " Paris " ..... 306 Brushwood Catterv .... 307 Miss Johnston's " Persimmon Squirrel " 308 A Reception Room in aChicago Cattery 309 Mrs. E. N. Barker . . . -311 " Silver Hair " and " Tiptoe " . , 312 Miss Ward's " Robin ". . . . 313 Three Little Grandchildren of " Per- simmon "..... 314 An American Beauty . . . 317 "Champion Miss Detroit" . . . 318 " The Commissioner " .... 319 " Ajax " ...... 321 Orchard Ridge Cattery . . . 322 Mrs. Charles A. White . 323 " The Blessed Damozel "... 324 " Tobey," a Maine Trick Cat . . 325 " Henessey" 326 " Blue Danube " 327 " Leo," owned by Mrs. Martin . . 329 " Yellow H. I4th Beauty" . . . 330 Mrs Bagster's " Demidoff " . . . 331 A Snapshot 332 Amateur Photographers . . . 334 Playing at Work 335 In the Studio 336 Tabitha's Afternoon Tea . . . 337 A Happy Mother 338 Mrs. Bonny's " Dame Fortune" . . 339 "Derebie" 339 A Litter of Eight belonging to Mi.ss Savery 341 " Star of the Spheres" and "Son of Roy " 342 The Foster-Mother .... 343 The Foster-Mother in Action . . 343 " Arrived Safely " 344 "Patricia" 345 Miss Goddard's Pair of Kittens . . 346 " Lollypop" 347 Three Little Americans . . . 348 " Holmlea Thistledown " . . . 349 Brain of Cat 350 Skull of the Great Sabre-toothed Cat . 351 Superficial Flexor Tendons of a Cat's Left Foot 352 Bones and Principal Ligaments of a Cat's Toe 352 Pads of Cat's Left Forefoot . . . 352 Skull of a Cat 353 Skeleton of a Cat 351 Skeleton of a Cat 355 A Cat's Eye 3S6 Tongue of a Cat 357 Giving Medicine 358 INTRODUCTION. FANCIERS have long felt the want of a work dealing in a popular manner with cats, and it was therefore with great pleasure that I undertook to write THE BOOK OF THE CAT, and to give the results of a long ex- perience in as simple and interesting a form as possible, so that the book might be instructive to cat fanciers, and also readable to that portion of the community which loves cats for themselves and not only for their prizes and pedigrees. It is possible that the beautiful reproductions in this work may result in the conversion of some cat haters, who, seeing the error of their ways, may give poor puss a corner in their hearts. Dogs are more essentially the friends of men, and cats may be considered as the chosen allies of womankind. In the past, as I have endeavoured to show, many noted celebrities of the sterner sex have shown a sympathetic feeling for the feline race. At the present time the number of men fanciers on our cat club lists and exhibitors at our shows tends to prove that the cat is gradually creeping into the affections of mankind, even in this busy work-a-day world. I have given a full description of the various breeds, and have suggested advice as to the feeding, housing, and general treatment of cats. The chapters on the management of shows, containing also simple rules for the guidance of exhibitors, will, I trust, prove useful and instructive. In my work I have received most valuable assistance, for which I am deeply grateful, from Mr. H. Gray, the well-known veterinary surgeon, whose chapter on the diseases of cats will, I am sure, be very interesting to breeders and fanciers. To Mr. H. C. Brooke I must tender my sincere v thanks for his chapter on foreign cats, and to Mr. E. N. Barker for his excellent survey of the American cat fancy, and to Mrs. Pierce for her notes on Maine cats. Mr. Robert Holding's chapter on the anatomy of the cat, with its excellent diagrams, forms a valuable addition to the work. To Mrs. S. F. Clarke I am greatly indebted for the number of clever photographs with which she has so kindly supplied me. To many of my " catty " friends I offer grateful thanks for interesting items, paragraphs, and pretty photographs ; and last, but not least, I have to thank viii THE BOOK OF THE CAT. that veteran, Harrison Weir, for his kindly encouragement, and I feel I cannot do better than quote from his letter, received on the completion of my work- enclosing a few remarks for my preface : — " Miss Frances Simpson has kindly dedicated her labour of love, the fascinating BOOK OF THE CAT, to me, and truly the honour is great. Words cannot convey my feelings, but out of its fulness the heart speaketh — Thanks ! I carry my mind back to the long, long ago, when the cat was a god or ideal, and worshipped. Then later, ' our gentle Will ' called it ' the harmless, necessary cat,' and that it has ever been, and more than that to many. It is a lonely home without a cat ; and for awhile — and I hope for long — cats are the fashion. Thirty years ago it was apparent to me that cats were not valued at their true worth, and then I suggested a show of cats! Let anyone try to start anything new, though novelty is said to charm ! Many were the gibes, jokes, and jeers that were thrown at me then. But nothing succeeds like success. Now, if I may without offence say a few words as to present-day shows, it is that they have not answered my expectations. Why ? Because particular breeds are catered for and run after. Why such breathless talk all about long-haired cats, be they blues or silvers ? This is not cat breeding. I want, I wish, and, if I live, I hope to see far more of the ' harmless, necessary cat ' at our shows ; for a high-class short-haired cat is one of the most perfect animals ever created. " Far more I might, and perhaps am expected to add ; but my life's work is well-nigh done. He who fights honourably the good fight sinks at last. Miss Frances Simpson has rendered me her debtor ; and others, beside myself, will tender her grateful thanks for her work in the cause of the cat and for the welfare of the fancy. Adieu ! " Mr. Harrison Weir's words are precious to me, and now that my " labour of love " is ended I can only re-echo his wish and express a hope that the many pages I have devoted to the " harmless, necessary cat," whose fireside friendship I have enjoyed all the years of my life, may awaken and arouse a greater interest in and admiration for these gentle, complex creatures, who in return for a little understanding will give a great deal of love. FRANCES SIMPSON. KENSINGTON, August, 1903. ihoto: Mrs.,S.f. Uarke ' WHITE TO MOVE. THE BOOK OF THE CAT. CHAPTER I. CATS OF THE PAST. origin of the cat has J_ puzzled the learned, and the stock from whence it sprang is still, in the opinion of some, a mystery for the zoologist to solve. Historians tell us that the feline race came into existence about the same time as the horse. Reference is made to the cat in Sanskrit writings over 2,000 years old, and still earlier records are found in the monumental figures, inscriptions, and cat mummies of ancient Egypt. These care- fully-preserved relics of the past MUMMY OF A assist us in answering the ques- tion as to how this least tameable of animals became domesticated. There are many legends con- cerning Puss and the manner in which she first sprang into existence. A surprising account of CAT. (At the British Afuseittii. ) the cat's creation is found in the works of an Arabian naturalist. It is as follows : "When Noah made a couple of each kind of animal enter the Ark, his companions, as well as the members of his family, said to him, ' What security can there be for us and for the animals so long as the lion shall dwell with us in the same vessel ? ' The patriarch betook himself to prayer and entreated the Lord God. Imme- diately fever came down from Heaven and seized upon the king of beasts, so that tran- quility of mind was restored to the inhabitants of the Ark. But there was in the vessel an enemy no less harmful — this was the mouse. The companions of Noah called his attention to the fact that it would be impossible for them to preserve their provisions and their clothes intact. After the patriarch had addressed re- newed supplications to the Most High, the lion sneezed, and a cat ran out of his nostrils. From that time forth the mouse became so timid that it contracted the habit of hiding itself in holes." THE BOOK OF THE CAT. THE GOD CAT. (/''rani an old Wood-cut.} So runs the legend, and in an old Italian picture representing the departure from the Ark we may observe a big brindled cat lead- ing the procession of animals with an air of dignity and self-satisfaction. According to the Arabic scholar Damirei, there was no cat in the Garden of Eden. It is a singular fact that nowhere in the canonical books of the Old Testament nor in the New Testament is the cat mentioned, and if we take into con- sideration the number of books connected with the life, manners, customs, and religions of the Egyptians, this omission is the more striking. The only Biblical reference to cats occurs in the Book of Baruch, chap, vi., v. 22. This is a letter by Jeremy to the Chil- dren of Israel, who were taken captive by Nebuchadnezzar to Babylon. Some Hebrew scholars have asserted that the animals that prowled and cried among the ruins of Babylon were jackals, and not cats. But however much the origin of the feline tribe is wrapped in mystery, we are certain that more than 3,000 years ago the cat lived and was loved along the banks of the Nile. The ancient city of the Pharaohs paid her homage ; she was admitted into the ranks of sacred animals, she was worshipped in the temples. Jewels were placed in her ears and necklaces about her neck. Figures of cats were kept in the home and buried in the tomb. Trinkets representing both the goddess and the cat were worn upon the person, to indi- cate special devotion on the part of the wearer. There seems but little doubt that the ancient and well-beloved cat of the Egyptians was a barred or marked animal, answering to some extent to our homely tabby. Paintings and statuettes of this type frequently occur, and therefore we may it take for granted that the Egyptians, who were so realistic and true to Nature when dealing with the animal world, would have presented cats of other species had they existed. According to the historian, animal worship was first introduced into Egypt by Chores, the second king of the Second Dynasty. The Egyptians made gods of many living creatures of all kinds, amongst others the bull, the crocodile, the ibis, the hawk, the beetle, and the asp ; but the cat appears to have held the highest place in their hearts. Not only was it preserved from injury, beloved and venerated during life, but at its death it was buried with all respect, and everyone mourned for it with out- ward and visible signs of grief, even to the extent of shaving off their eyebrows. The Egyptian's idea of a correct burial involved mummification, so that all the parts might be preserved and thus kept from annihilation against the day of resurrection. A rich man's cat was very elaborately mummified. Different coloured stuffs were AN EGYPTIAN WALL-PAINTING : THE ADORATION OF THE GODDESS PASHT. (.British Museum.) CATS Of THE PAST. twisted round and round the body, forming curious patterns in two colours. The head would be carefully encased and sometimes gilded ; the ears were always standing upright. These curious mummies look something like bottles of rare wine done up in plaited straw. Sometimes the mummy would be enclosed in a bronze box with a statue of a cat seated on the top. Mummies of cats with painted faces have been found in wooden coffins at Bubastes, Specs, Artemidos, Thebes, and elsewhere. Here is an illustration of a kitten brought to me from the Boulak Museum. The picture gives but little idea of the care and neatness which must have been em- ployed in wrapping up the dear little dead bodies. The linen used is of the finest. The ears of the tiny kitten are each separate and distinct, and the muzzle of the creature shows distinctly through the delicate wrappings. Scarcely a good museum in the country now that has not some specimens of cat mummies. In some of these we notice that eyes have been added after the mummy has been en- cased and the embalm- ment completed. Most of the cats that died in the far-away time were thus embalmed and sent for burial to the holy city of Bubastes, near Thebes, on the banks of the Nile. The Temple of Bu- bastes, according to Herodotus, was the fair- est in all Egypt, and here special reverence was paid the cat. The local goddess of this city was Pasht, who was represented as a woman MUMMIFIED KITTEN. (hi the poisession of Miss Simpson.) THE WORSHIP OF PASHT IX THE TEMPLE OF BUBASTES. (British Mjtscitm.) with a cat's head. Cats were kept in the temples sacred to them, and doubtless the head cat of the Pasht's temple was a very splendid speci- men, who, living the life of great luxury, would be buried with the pomp and magnificence of a royal personage. It was at Bubastes, on the banks of the Nile, that an annual festival in honour of the goddess Pasht was held. We are not told whether the cats took any part in the proceed- ings. From the towns and villages within hail, pleasure parties were sent in boats up and down the river to the city, and on their pas- sage the men and wo- men who crowded these boats made merry all the long summer day. VA CAT GOD OF EGYPT. The WOmen Clashed (From Hit British Museum.) their cymbals and danced, and the men played on their flutes. Seventy thousand people, it is said, assembled at this feast, and they sacrificed victims and drank a good deal of wine. Perhaps the cats were treated to an extra dish of some dainty to mark this red-letter day in the annals of their patroness and goddess. THE BOOK OF THE CAT. A curious custom, which probably had its origin in these pilgrimages to the sacred shrine. had until recent years survived amongst the Egyptian Moslems, who when they were start- ing on their way to Mecca always set apart one camel for the conveyance of several cats, and some ancient dame was told off to take Beni Hasan, one hundred miles from Cairo. A few years ago some excavations were made near this town, and thousands of little mummied bodies were found that had rested peacefully for centuries. Their graves were desecrated, their burying-ground plundered, and tons and tons of mummied forms were carted 'away to PUSS AS A RETRIEVER : AN EGYPTIAN WALL PAINTING. (At tilt British Museum.) charge of the precious animals. She was honoured with the title of " Mother of Cats." Her office was not an enviable one, and prob- ably it was found that a woman was unable to wrestle satisfactorily with the refractory travellers, for at a later date a man was substituted to carry the pussies to the Holy City. Thebes appears to have been a favourite burying-place for cats, and also a place called the neighbouring fields to serve the useful, if not romantic, purpose of manure ! Accord- ing to Horopollo, the cat was worshipped in the temple of Heliopolis, because the size of the pupil of the animal's eye is regulated by the rising and waning of the sun. Plutarch, however, states in his treatise on " Isis and Osiris " that the image of a female cat was placed at the top of the sistrum as an emblem of the moon. " This," says the historian, CATS OF THE PAST. " was on account of the variety of her fur, and because she is astir at night ; and further- more, because she bears firstly one kitten at a birth, and at the second two, at the third three, and then four, and then five, until the seventh time, so that she bears in all twenty- eight, as many as the moon has days. Now this, perchance, is fabulous, but 'tis most true that her eyes do enlarge and grow full at the full moon, and that on the contrary they contract and diminish at the decline of the same." Among other fables of classic naturalists and historians may be mentioned the follow- ing by Herodotus : " If a fire occurs, cats are subject to supernatural impulses ; and while the Egyptians ranged in lines with gaps between them, are much more solicitous to save their cats than to extinguish the fire, these animals slip through the empty spaces, spring over the men's shoulders, and fling themselves into the flames. When such accidents happen, pro- found ,grief falls upon the Egyptians." Whether these frenzied cats did or did not commit suicide is open to doubt, but that they would plunge fearlessly into water is an acknowledged fact. This is attested by paint- ings representing sporting scenes in the valley of the Nile. Men and women used to go out on fowling excursions in a boat to the jungles and thickets of the marsh land, or to lakes in their own grounds, which abounded with wild fowl, and there among the tall reeds knock down the bird with a stick. Into these happy hunting grounds they took a cat who would jump into the water and retrieve the game as it fell. There is a painting taken and AN EGYPTIAN TOY CAT. (At the British Museum.) brought from a tomb in Thebes, which is now in the British Museum, and Wilkinson, in his " Manners and Customs of Ancient Egyptians," writes as follows : "A favourite cat sometimes accompanied the Egyptian sportsmen on these occasions, and the artist intends to show us, by the exactness with which he represents the animal seizing the game, that cats were trained to hunt and carry the water-fowl." One of the earliest representations of the cat is "to-be-found in the Necropolis of Thebes, which contains the tomb of Hana, who prob- ably belonged to the Eleventh Dynasty. There is a statue of the king standing erect, with his cat Bouhaki between his feet. The large basalt statues, of which there are so many in the British Museum, both seated and stand- ing, are examples of great interest. They have mostly the disc of lunar divinity above their heads and the royal asp above the forehead. M. Champfleury, in his delightful book, " Les Chats," gives a good deal of information regarding the cats of ancient Egypt, and men- tions the existence of funerary statues of women which bear the inscription Techau, the cat, in token of the patronage of the god- dess Bast. Frenchmen occasionally call their wives ma chattc without attaching any hier- atic association to that term of endearment. According to ancient documents in the Louvre, we are enabled to surmise the name by which the cat was known in Egypt. It was Mau-Mai', Maau, or Maon. A tablet in the Berlin Museum, bearing the representation of a cat, dates from 1600 B.C., and another, two hundred years older, has an inscription in which the word " Mau " appears. Amongst old Egyptian images in bronze and earthenware, we may often find the cat crouching with the symbolic eye, emblem of the sun, engraved upon its collar. In the British Museum there is a curious example of a toy in the shape of a wooden cat with inlaid glass eyes and a movable lower jaw well lined with teeth. There is a tradition that Cambyses devised a scheme for the capture of the town of Peluse, THE BOOK OF THE CAT. which, if true, is one example among many things and domestic animals belonging to of the devotion of the Egyptians to cats. It children were buried with them, was in the fourteenth year of his reign that From some of the oldest Indian fables we this king of Persia tried to effect an entry into learn that the cat was domesticated in that Egypt, and he is said to have hit upon a clever country at a very early period. Her first strategy. Knowing that the garrison of the appearance into China would seem to have town was entirely comprised of Egyptians, he been about 400 A.D. There is a curious put at the head of his army soldiers each carry- ancient Chinese saying to the effect that ing in their arms a cat. The Egyptians, " A lame cat is better than a swift horse alarmed lest they might injure the sacred when rats infest a palace." animals when destroying their enemies, con- Amongst the curious freaks in the natural sented rather to be vanquished. But for world are mineral lusus. These are stones, their scruples they might perhaps have agates, or marbles, which, by the action of repulsed the invaders, for the Persian soldiers the soil, air, or water during thousands of could not well have done their share of the fighting while clasp- ing in their arms restless and terrified cats ! It is strange that the cat was almost neglected by the Greeks and Romans. It is true that Grecian art working on such grand sweeping lines might fail to follow the insignificant yet graceful curves of the cat. Therefore no Greek monument is adorned with a figure of A MINERAL I.USUS. (FrotH aft old Engraving) years, have assumed various forms, which we may interpret to represent human heads, trees, animals, and so forth. This illustration of a mineral lusus is taken on a reduced scale from a book by Aldrovandus, an Italian naturalist of the seventeenth century. The figure of the cat occurs, he says, in a slab of marble. It was also re- produced by Athanasius Kircher, the Jesuit, who copied many of the idol of Egypt, and Homer never gives a Aldrovandus's engravings, passing mention of the cat. Among the I think the most casual observer would Greeks the cat was sacred to the goddess pronounce this illustration to be the repre- Diana. Mythologists pretend that Diana sentation of a cat ; and if, as we are led to created the cat in order to throw ridicule upon believe, this and other figures are really the the lion, an animal supposed to have been result of natural causes, we can only marvel called into existence by Apollo with the in- at the wonderful correctness of outline and tention of frightening his sister. This he form in which through countless ages the followed up by producing a mouse, which substances comprising the specimen have Hecate's cat immediately ate up. A cat was arranged themselves. often emblazoned on the shields and flags of We have no record that the cat became Roman soldiers. That the cat was known at domesticated in Great Britain and France an early period in Italy we have proof in before the ninth century, when it would the curious mosaic in the Museum at Naples, seem that she was by no means common, and which depicts one pouncing upon a bird, considered of great value ; for in the time of The date of this has been fixed at about one one of the old Princes of Wales, who died in hundred years prior to the Christian era. In 948, the price of a kitten before it could see the Bordeaux Museum there is a tomb of the was fixed at a penny, after it had captured a Gello-Roman period with a representation of mouse, twopence ; and if it gave further a girl holding a cat in her arms and with a proofs of its usefulness it was rated at four- cock at her feet. In those days the play- pence. This same prince, Howel the Good, CATS OF THE PAST. issued an order that anyone who stole or killed a cat that guarded the prince's granary was to forfeit a milch ewe, its fleece, and lamb, or as much wheat as when poured on the cat suspended by its tail (the head touching the floor) would form a heap high enough to cover the top of the tail. This is not only curious, as being an evi- dence of the simplicity of ancient customs, but it goes far to prove that cats were not aborigines of these islands. The large price set on them — if we consider the high value of specie at that time - and the great care taken of the improvement and breed of an animal that multiplies so quickly, are almost certain proofs of their being little known at that pe- riod. No doubt wild cats abounded in our islands, and this creature is described by Pennant as be- ing three or four times as large as the house cat. The teeth and claws are, to use his expres- sion, " tremendous," and the animal is alto- gether more robust. The tail of the wild cat is thick and as large at the extremity as it is in the centre and at the base ; that of the house cat tapers to the tip. This ferocious creature, well named the British tiger, was formerly common enough in the wooded and mountain- ous districts of England, Scotland, and Wales, but owing to the attention paid to the preservation of game it has gradually become almost if not entirely exterminated. In olden times, when wild cats were hunted and captured, the principal use they were put to was to trim with their fur the garments of the ladies in the various nunneries scattered over the land. A writer of the Middle Ages says : " The peasants wore cat skins, badger skins, &c." It would appear that lambs' ana cats' skins were of equal value at that period. Harrison Weir, in his work on cats, tells us that in 1871 and 1872 a wild cat was ex- hibited at the Crystal Palace by the Earl of Hopetoun ; he also mentions that as late as 1889 Mr. Edward Hamilton, M.D., writing to the Field, gives information of a wild cat being shot at Inverness-shire. He states : " A fine specimen- of a wild cat was sent to me on May 3rd, trapped on the Ben Nevis range. Its dimensions were : "•from nose to base of tail, i foot; height at shoulders, i foot 2 inches." In July, 1900, a paragraph to the following ef- fect appeared in the Stock- Keeper : — " The Zoological Society have just ac- quired a litter of wild cats. This is the only instance where a whole litter has been sent to the Gardens. It was taken not far from Spean Bridge, Inverness-shire." PUSS IN WARFARE (vide p. 8). (From a ittfi Century MS.) The late Professor Rolleston, in an article on the " Domestic Cats of Ancient and Modern Times " (Journal of Anatomy and Physiology), has well explained much of the confusion about cats in former writers and their so-called interpreters. He shows how loosely now, as long ago, the word " cat " and its classic equivalents may be employed. Just as we still speak of civet cats and martens. Up to the beginning of this century the wild cat was wrongly thought to be the original of the tame species. Yet apart from more exact evidence this is shown to be an error if we note the value set upon domestic cats in former centuries. The Rev. Dr. Fleming, in his " History of British THE BOOK OF THE CAT. Animals" (1828), points out some of the distinctions between the two species. He also alludes to the spotted variety, termed the Cypress Cat, as noticed by Menet, who wrote the earliest book on British Natural History in 1667. " It is a curious fact," says Mr. J. E. Her- ting, an eminent naturalist, " that in Ireland, notwithstanding reports to the contrary, all endeavours to find a genuine wild cat have failed, the so-called ' wild cat ' of the natives proving to be the ' marten cat,' a very differ- ent animal." In the early Middle Ages, according to tradition, cats were utilised in a strange man- ner. The illustration on p. 7 depicts a German fortress which it was desired by the enemy to set on fire. Not being able, one may suppose, to effect this by treachery, the foes pressed into their service both biped and quadruped. On the back of the pigeon and cat alike, a flask of inflammable matter is attached, and furnished with a time fuse to ignite at the proper moment. There is a broad road for the cat to travel, and we must presume that the gate of the fortress was left open for her entrance. The pigeon would be supposed to cut the cord of the flask with her beak when just over the magazine and let it drop at an auspicious moment. This cut is reduced from a coloured drawing in an unpublished manuscript volume dated 1575, in which is a great variety of illustrations of fireworks for war and recreation. It is strange that the cat, which was an object of worship and adoration to the Egyp- tians, should, during the long, dark years of mediaeval history, be looked upon as a diabol- ical creature. The only pleasant legend handed down to us from ther"Middle Ages is that of " Dick Whittington and his Cat." There are records to show that this worthy citizen was thrice Lord Mayor of London, and we have always been led to believe that it was to his cat he owed his wealth and prosperity. At all events, so long as London is London, Whittington will ever be associated with his cat. Innumerable are the legends that gather round the cat during the Middle Ages. It was believed that the devil borrowed the coat of a black cat when he wished to torment his victims. Sorcerers pretended to cure epilepsy by the help of three drops of blood taken from the vein under a cat's tail. At numerous trials for witchcraft, puss figured as the wicked as- sociate of the accused. Cats were offered by sorcerers as oblations to Satan, and they were flung into the fire at the Festival of St. John. All praise to Louis XIII., who as the Dauphin interceded for the lives, of these poor pussies thus annually sacrificed. It was thought to bring good luck to a house if a cat were cooked alive in a brick oven, and in Scotland she was roasted before a slow fire as a means of divin- ing the future. The mania of witchcraft had pervaded all ranks, even the holy profession, whose duty it should be to preach peace and goodwill. Hundreds of wretched old women were sent out of life " in a red gown " (the slang of that day for being burnt " quick " or alive), after undergoing the most excruciating tortures to make them confess the impossibilities for which they suffered. In 1591, when King James of Scotland was crossing from Denmark, a great tempest arose at sea. This was supposed to have been caused by a " christened cat " being placed in the vessel by witches. The following is an extract from an old pamphlet : " Againe it is confessed that the said christened cat was the cause that the Kings Majestie's shippe had a contrarie wind to the rest of the shippes in his companie, for when the rest of the shippes had a fair and good winde, then was the winde contrarie and altogether against his Majestie." Thus, in the past as in the present day, blame was laid upon the poor harmless puss, where no blame was due. In an old book called " Twenty Lookes over all the Roundheads of the World," pub- lished in 1643, we read : — " In the Reigne of Oueene Mary (at which time Popery was much exalted) then were the Round- heads (namely, the monks and friars) so odious 0 1 'i <3 o I 02 «« O £ " 10 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. to the people, that in derision of them a cat was taken on a Sabbath day, with her head shorne as a Fryer's and the likenesse of a vestment cast over her, with her feet tied together, and a round piece of paper like a singing Celse between them ; and thus was she hanged in a gallows in Cheap- side, neere to the Crosse, in the Parish of St. Matthew. Which cat, being taken down, was sent to Doctor Pendleton (who was then preaching at St. Paul's Cross), commanding it to be shown to the congregation. The Round-head Fryers cannot abide to heare of this cat." At the coronation of Eliza- beth there is an account given, in the Hatton corre- spondence, of an effigy of the Pope being carried through the streets and afterwards burnt with several live cats, which, we are told, '' squalled in a most hideous manner " as soon as they felt the fire. After a famous French trial in the seventeenth cen- tury, a woman condemned as a murderess was hung in an iron cage over a slow fire, and fourteen poor unoffending cats were made to share the same fate. It is difficult to con- ceive by what train of thought civilised beings could arrive at such a pitch of wicked and horrible cruelty. Why should a gentle, shrinking, graceful little creature be thus made the savage sport of devils in human form ? There seems, however, to have been one haven of rest for poor persecuted pussy during the Middle Ages, and that was in the nunneries. Here, at least, she would be kindly treated, let us hope. It is said that this fact has something to do with the cat's traditional association with old maids. And now let us quit this dark page of his- tory, where the shameful treatment of an inno- cent race makes the lover of the poor pussies sorrowful and indignant. It was in France TOMB OF A CAT WHICH BELONGED TO MADAME DE LESDIGUIERES. that, after the period when the cat was given over to the ways of the witch and the sorcerer, we find her yet again taking her proper place in the home and the heart of the highest in the land. Writers of natural history and others frequently denounce the cat as an animal in- capable of personal attachment, yet puss has wooed and won the friendship and affection of many notable men. Cats, the most politic, the most polite, and in proportion to their size the most powerful of beasts — real- ising almost literally Napo- leon's favourite maxim, " Iron hand in velvet glove " — have the permanent fame of being loved by that most eminent of Frenchmen, Cardinal Riche- lieu, who delighted to watch the frolics of a number of kit- tens by which he was gener- ally surrounded in his leisure hours. In this tendrcsse he- resembled a still more famous Churchman ! A cat went to sleep once, we are told, on the sleeve of Mahomet's robe. The hour of prayer arrived, and he chose rather to cut away his sleeve than to dis- turb the slumbers of his be- loved Muezza. Chateaubriand makes fre- quent mention of the cat in his " Memoires." He received a present of a cat from the Pope. Moncrieff wrote a series of quaintly worded letters on cats, and the book has some curious illustra- tions. In this we read of the pussies of many grand dames of the French Court of that day. We give an illustration taken from this book, which represents the tomb of a cat which be- longed to Madame Lesdiguieres, and bears this inscription : — UNE CHATTE JOLIE. Sa maitresse qui n'aima rien , L'aima jusques a la folie. Pourquoi le dire ? On le voit bien. CATS OF THE PAST ii Moncrieff had to suffer an immense amount of ridicule on account of his charming " Lettres sur les Chats," which the author himself calls "a gravely frivolous book." Victor Hugo had a favourite cat ho called " Chanome," and Gautier's cat slept in his bed, and always kept him company at meals. Petrarch loved his cat as he loved his Laura. Dr. Johnson u^>ed to indulge his cat Hodge with oyster^ which he would go out himself to purchase. Chestei- field provided for his cat in his will. Sir Walter Scott's love of dogs did not prevent him de- lighting in the company of a " conversable cat," and Hunse, of Hunsefield, seems to have possessed a large share of the great man's affection, and when he died his master wrote thus to Richardson : " Alack-a-day ! my poor cat, Hime, my acquaintance, and in some sort my friend of fifteen years, was snapped at even by that paynim, Nimrod. What could I say to him, but what Brantome said to some ferraillcur who had been too successful in a duel : 'Ah, mon grand ami, vous avez tue mon autre grand ami.' " Amongst famous French novelists several have been cat lovers, especially Dumas, who in his " Memoires" makes notable mention of " Le Docteur." Cowper, Shelley, Wordsworth, Swinburne, and Matthew Arnold all wrote lovingly of cats. But Shake- speare, although he makes forty-four distinct mentions of cats, never has a good word for poor pussy. In " All's Well that Ends Well " he gives vent to his dislike. Bertram rages forth :— " I could endure anything before me but a cat, and now he's cat to me." In " Cymbeline " occurs this passage : — " In killing creatures vile as cats and dogs " ; and in " Midsummer Night's Dream " Lysander is made to exclaim :— " Hang off, thou cat, thou burr, thou vile thing." Romeo cries out : — " Every cat and dog And little mouse, every unworthy thing." From these quotations alone we may infer that, at any rate, dogs and cats were not favour- ites with the great bard. There is only one mention of cats in Dante. He compares to cats the demons who, with their hooks, claw the "barterers" (i.e. abusers of their office as magis- trates), when these sinners try to emerge from the hot pitch wherein they are punished. He says of one of these wretches : — " Tra male gatte era venuto il sorco." (Inf. XXII., 58.) Trans- lation:— "Among wicked cats the mouse came." In the " Westlosthcher Divan " of Goethe, written in his old age, but full of youthful spirit and of the freshest allusions to Eastern things, the cat is called one of the four " favoured beasts/' i.e. animals in a state of grace, admit- ted into Paradise, in a verse very near the end of the poem, which being literally translated, reads thua :— " This cat of Abuherriras " (a friend of the prophet Mahomet) ''purrs about the Lord, and coaxes. Since he is ever a holy beast whom the Prophet stroked." Robert Listen, who, as everyone knows, was the leading London surgeon in the middle of the nineteenth century, was passionately attached to his cat, and used to introduce it to his guests at the dinner parties which, according to the custom of a past generation, he gave his medical friends. On these occasions the cat would gravely walk round the dinner table during dessert to be admired by the guests in succession, and it once happened that the top of its tail got into the wineglass of Dr. Anthony Todd Thoruson, Listen's famous colleague at University College Hospital. This man promptly struck the animal. Listen was so enraged that he started from his seat and denounced his guest in lan- guage more forcible than elegant. Jeremy Bentham, who introduced by their names to Lord Brougham the cats seated on chairs round his table, deserves honour, not only as the foremost of modern jurists but also because, in his " Principles of Morals and Legislation," he had expressed better than others the claims of brutes to kind treatment. The great scholar and eminent writer, St. George Mivart, has given the world a wonder- 12 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. fully comprehensive work on the Cat, and has used the maligned feline as his type for an in- troduction to the study of back-boned animals. It is he who remarks : — " We cannot, without becoming cats, perfectly understand the cat mind." Perhaps the unkindest picture given to us of a cat is from the pen of the naturalist Buffon. " The cat " (says this unsympathetic student) " is an unfaithful animal, kept only from necessity in order to suppress a less domestic and more unpleasant one, and THE CAT IN HERALDRY. (From Frank's Collection of Book Plates.) although these animals are pretty creatures, especially when they are young, they have a treacherous and perverse disposition, which increases with age, and is only disguised by training. They are inveterate thieves ; only when they are well brought up they become as cunning and flattering as human rascals." Chateaubriand, referring to these scathing remarks, says: — " Buffon has belied this animal. I am labouring at her rehabilitation, and hope to make her appear a tolerably good sort of beast." A charming reference to the ways of cats occurs in a curious and interesting book by a THE PRINTER'S MARK OF MELCHIOR SESSA, OF VENICE. (From a Print at the British Museum.) once famous Jesuit, Father Bougeant, who lived in the first half of the eighteenth century. There is an English translation of this work, which has passed also into other languages and several editions. This is the passage trans- lated :— " Such is one of those big-whiskered and well- furred torn cats, that you see quiet in a corner, digesting at his leisure, sleeping if it seems good to him, sometimes giving himself the pleasure of hunting, for the rest enjoying life peaceably, without being troubled by the events which agitate us, without tiring his mind by a thousand useless reflections, and little caring to communicate his thoughts to others. Truly it needs only that a female cat (une chatte) come on the scene to A MERCHANT S MARK. (From a Print at the British Museum.) CATS OF THE PAST. derange all his philosophy ; but are our philos- ophers wiser on such occasions ? " The cat, as the emblem of independence and liberty, has been used in heraldry, statuary, and signboards. In the sixteenth century a well-known firm of printers named Sessa, at Venice, adopted the device of a cat surrounded Maison du chat qui peche." In the Lombards' quarter of Paris, " Le Chat Noir " was for- merly a familiar figure above restaurants and confectioners. In England we often come across " The Cat and the Fiddle " as a sign- board to old country village inns, and in Cassell's " Old and New London " a writer by curious ornamentation, and Dibdin in one of says : — " Piccadilly was the place in which ' The his works tells us that whenever you see Sessa's cat you may be sure the book is a good one and worth reading. Ever since the days when the Romans carried on their banners the de- sign of a cat, this com- bative and courageous animal has been a fa- vourite symbol of war- riors and nobles. The wife of King Clovis, Clotilde,had a cat sable upon her armorial bearings, springing at a rat, and on the famous Katzen family's shield was a cat holding a mouse in its mouth. In Scotland the Clan Chattan was known by the emblem of a wild cat with the significant motto, " Touch not the cat, but " (meaning without) " the glove." Their chief was called Mohr au chat, or the great wild cat. M. Champfleury, dealing with cats in heraldry, tells us that the French Republic resumed heraldic possession of the cat and added it to its glorious shield of arms ; and ALICE AND THE CHESHIR1 CAT. Cat and Fiddle ' first appeared as a public- house sign. The story is that a Frenchwoman, a small shopkeeper, had a very faithful and favourite cat, and that in lack of any other sign, she put over her door the words : ' Voici tin chat fidele.' From some cause or other, the ' Chat Fidele ' soon became a popular sign in France, and was speedily Anglicised into From ''AH ; Italian, Gatto ; Portuguese and Spanish, Gato ; Polish, Kot ; Russian, Kots ; Turk- ish, Keti; Welsh, Cetti; Corn- ish, Katt ; American, Katz. In the English house and home we call her " puss," and it is the name which ap- peals most to our hearts. No woman likes to be called a " cat," but to be likened to a puss or pussy is suggestive of something or someone soft and pretty, with gentle, win- ning ways. Archbishop Whately has said that only one English noun had a true vocative case, " Nominative, MISS F. SIMPSON'S " BONNIE BOY. (Photo: Gunn &* Stuart, Richmond.') cat ; vocative, puss." I do not think that in any other country there is a pet name for the cat, just as there is no word in any foreign language that breathes the same tender truth to the hearts as " home." Puss and home ! The terms seem so closely connected with each other, and suggest peaceful hap- piness and restful repose. Truly, the history of the cat has been a strangely chequered one. Perhaps, because she is such a secret, complex, and independent creature she has remained somewhat of a puzzle to humankind, and is therefore to a great extent misunder- stood ; but those who will take the trouble to consider the cat and try to understand her, will find that puss is- none of those things she has been accused of being. It is only those who are in constant contact with cats who understand how intelli- gent they really are ; al- though their intelligence is CATS OF TO-DAY. quite in a different mould from that of the dog. I may mention that the household cat outnumbers, it is said, the household dog in London by the proportion of four to one. This fact may be accounted for by the non-taxation of cats. The question of the taxation of cats has very often been raised, and I do not think that anyone who really values his cat would object to pay a yearly tax ; but the proposal is as unpractical as it is ridiculous, and it is certain that taxation would not help in exterminating the poor, disreputable, half- starved members of the feline tribe, who have no fixed abode and whose only means of exist- ence is by plunder. The figure and number nine seems to be an important one in connection with cats. There is a popular saying that a cat has nine lives. The expostulating tabby in Gay's Fables says to the old beldame : — " 'Tis infamy to serve a hag, Cats are thought imps, her broom a nag ; And boys against our lives combine, Because, 'tis said, your cats have nine." Cats probably owe this reputation to their extraordinary powers of endurance, and cer- tain it is that they have a greater tenacity to life than any other animal. At the Batter- sea Home a dog and a cat have been placed in the lethal chamber, and it was observed that the dog died in five minutes, whereas the cat breathed for forty minutes longer. A short time ago I received the following letter from a cat fancier : — " At ii p.m. two kittens, a few hours old, were placed in a pail of water, and left there for rather over ten minutes. Seeing them at the bottom with their months open, it was taken for granted they were dead ; the bodies were then trans- ferred to the ashpit, and early next morning they were discovered to be alive and quite chirpy. Restoring them to the mother, they have grown nice, strong, healthy little kits, and have just- left for comfortable homes." In Thistleton Dyer's interesting book on " English Folk-lore," reference is made to- this subject. " Cats," he says, " from their great suppleness and aptitude to fall on their feet, are commonly said to have nine lives ; hence Ben Johnson, in ' Every Man in his Humour,' says, ' 'Tis a pity you had not ten lives — a cat's and your own.' ' " In the Middle Ages a witch was empow- ered to take cat's body nine times," so writes an eminent old zoologist. The "cat-o'-wme-tails" is a dreaded object to some light-fingered and heavy-handed miscreants. I have heard a magistrate remark that he considers this form of pun- ishment the best way in which to give hints " AT WORK AND PLAY (Photo: C. Reui, Wis 20 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. to the wicked. Garrotting was virtually stamped out by its use. Wife-beating would be less common if the brute-husband were treated to a taste of the cat-o'-nine-tails. This imple- ment of torture consists of nine pieces of cord put together, and in each cord are nine knots. Consequently every stroke inflicts a large number of long and severe marks not unlike the clawing and scratching of a savage cat, producing crossing and re-crossing wounds. In my long and varied experience of cats, I have noticed that more of these creatures succumb to the common enemy at about nine years of age than at any other period. We have heard of cats attaining the age of twenty years, but the following account sur- passes all previous re- cords of longevity in the feline world : — To THE EDITOR OF THE Stock-Keeper, Sir, — Seeing you have a column in your paper de- voted to cats, I thought it might interest your read- ers to hear that in our vil- lage there is a cat thirty- one years old. She is quite lively, and looks like living a few more years. It belongs to a poor widow, who told me she had it as a kitten when she married. (Her hus- band lived twenty-seven years, and has been dead four.) Newbury, Bucks. W. B. HERMAN. It is strange that the poor dead bodies of cats have often been used as objects of foolish and vulgar so-called sport. Dead cats and rotten eggs were, and are sometimes still, con- sidered legitimate missiles to make use of at borough and county elections. All sorts of stories are related of pussy's superhuman intelligence, but the most uncanny KITTEN BELONGING TO MRS. E. S. OWEN, DETROIT, MICHIGAN. BY "KlNG OF THE SILVERS" — "BLESSED DAMOZEL." (Pflota : Albany Art Union, New York.} one of very recent date I will refer to here. It may be remembered that in the winter of 1901 a vessel named the Salmon was wrecked. On the morning of the accident, this vessel was lying alongside the Sturgeon, and her two cats, who had all their lives shown the most perfect contentment with their home and surroundings, made desperate efforts to get on board the Sturgeon. The crew drove them off again and again, and the ship's dog attacked them, but they would not be deterred, and when the Salmon at last cast off, the two cats landed with one frantic and final spring on to the Sturgeon's deck. It seems absurd to argue that those cats knew of the coming dis- aster, yet why should they take such a sudden and utterly unreasonable aversion to the ship which had always been their home ? And why should they insist on making their way to another vessel from which they had been so inhospitably repulsed ? We have many proofs of the extraordinary ex- tent to which a cat's sense of hearing and smell are developed. On my voyage out to Australia flying fish would some- times fall on to the deck. The cats that are always somewhere about the ship might be comfortably curled up asleep below, but the peculiar sound would fetch them up in a greal hurry, and they would rush to secure the prize. The crew used to amuse themselves sometimes by trying to imitate the noise in various ways to deceive them ; but the cats were not to be " had " — they could distinguish the peculiar thud of the flying fish from all other sounds. Various theories have been put forward to account for the marvellous instinct which a THE ANTIQUARIES. (From t/ie painting by Madame Runner.) 2* 22 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. cat possesses, enabling her to find her way home although miles and miles of untraversed country lay between her and the place from which she has been taken. It is contended that a cat which is conveyed in a bag or blind- folded will have its sense of smell in full exer- cise, and will, by this means take note of the successive odours encountered on the way, and that these will leave in its mind sufficient information of the route so as to make it an easy matter for the animal to find its way back again. Be this as it may, many of us can state facts which are even stranger than fiction of mysterious reap- pearances of cats who, with a hom- ing instinct as true as any car- rier - pigeon, re- turn to the haven where they would be. The instinct of maternity is, perhaps, more largely developed in the cat than in any other animal. No creature shows such anx- iety for the safety and welfare of her offspring as she does, and often her natural timidness will give place to bold and fearless courage when her little ones have been in any difficulty or danger. Mivart tells us of a cat that plunged into a swiftly running stream and rescued her three drowning kittens, bringing them one by one in safety to the shore. During a fire in a London theatre, which took place a few years ago, a poor cat with her family was left for- gotten at the back of the stage. Three times the faithful mother rushed into the flaming building and reappeared each time with a kitten in her mouth. But alas! with fatal persistence the devoted creature returned to rescue the KEPWICK VIOLET AND " KEPWICK HYACINTH BLUES BELONGING TO THE HON. MRS. MACLAREN MORRISON. (Photo : J. R. Clarke, Think.) was proved, for after the fire was extinguished, the charred bodies of mother and child were found lying side by side. A clever writer has stated that " the human race may be divided into people who love cats and people who hate them ; the neutrals being few in numbers." This is very true. There are also differences of opinion as to whether cats are desirable inmates of a household or not, but there can be no question as to the great utility of these animals, and it is only natural to suppose that they were created for the pur- pose of suppress- ing rats and mice and other ver- min. There is a popular notion that if a cat is petted and well fed she will be- come less useful as a mouser. This is a fallacy, for the cat's in- clination is to hunt the mouse or rat, not for food, but for sport, and an ani- mal that is en- feebled byneglect and starvation is not in the best condition to successfully catch its prey. This love of sport is not, however, inherent in all cats, but is hereditary in the feline tribe as it is in the human race. It may not be generally known that the Government pays annual sums for the purpose of providing, keeping, and feeding numerous " harmless, necessary cats " in their public offices, dockyards, and stores, thereby attest- ing to the worth and capability of pussy's services. In the National Printing Office in France a considerable number of cats are employed in keeping the premises clear of rats and mice which would otherwise work havoc amongst remaining one, and that she reached the spot the stock of paper always stored in large OF TO-DAY. quantities. In Vienna, cats are placed on mice. Now rarely one is nibbled, and every active service in the municipal buildings. At morning dozens of lifeless bodies are cleared many of our great rail- way stations there is a feline staff engaged in the various warehouses and offices. The farmer will readily admit the usefulness of puss in his barns, stables, out- houses and fields Farmers are notori ous grumblers, but they would have gr ater cause for discontent and disappointment if rats and mice were al- lowed to live and thrive, and breed and multiply on their premises. The newly sown peas and corn stacks would suffer MISS SAVERYS BLUE PERSIAN KITTEN. (Photo: H Warschaiuski, Si Leonards-on-Sea.) away. Curiously enough these dead mice have their tails eaten off, for apparently this cat has a weakness for the appendage, whereas, usually the head is considered the delicate morsel amongst the fe- line race. It seems that although the cat is left alone with all the flut- tering birds at night, she never has attempt- ed to molest them in any way. I lately had occa- sion to visit one of our London theatres during the daytime, when it to a terrible extent, and the broods of ducklings was empty ; and observing a big brown cat and chickens would speedily vanish if puss did walking about amongst the stalls, I made not keep a vigilant eye and silently but surely some remark about him to the official who fulfil the duties of her calling. In the live stock de- partment of the Army and Navy Stores in Lon- don, an orange Persian cat may be seen strolling about amongst the cages of birds of every sort. The attendant informed me she had been on the premises three or four years, and had saved the com- pany a " tidy sum." Previ- accompanied me. He said they found it quite impossible to get along without a cat ; they had tried, but the place be- came overrun with mice. During pussy's occupation of the empty play- house plenty of bodies were dis- covered, but never a live mouse had been seen disporting itself. The cats in Gove r n m e n t service in Ame- A PAIR OF SHORT-HAIRED BROWN TABBIES. (Photo: T. Fall, Baker St., W.) rica are very ous to obtaining ner services the packets of numerous. The army has a regular corps of bird-seed disappeared like magic, for they them kept at the commissary depots of the were demolished wholesale by the swarms of great cities. It is customary for the officer THE BOOK OF THE CAT. in charge of each depot to submit to the War Department a request for an allowance for the cats of meat and milk. More than three hundred cats are in the employ of the Post Office Department, distributed among about fifty of the largest offices. The New York City office expends sixty dollars annually in cats'- meat. At Pittsburg, there is a "cold-storage" breed of cats, which has special qualifications for enduring extreme cold. These cats are short tailed, with long and heavy fur, and their eyebrows and whiskers are extraordinarily long and strong. It is said they do not thrive when transferred to an ordinary atmosphere. The following extract from the Daily Mail of February ist, 1902, gives us an account of a most exemplary, well trained, and up- CAT CALENDAR. to-date cat, and opens up a fresh (.By kind permission of Ra field for the utility and agility of our domestic pets — not an absolutely fresh field indeed, if one recalls the fact that Puss was already a " retriever " in ancient Egypt. A PING-PONG CAT. Hunting for balls is un- doubtedly the one great draw- back to ping-pong. Might I suggest a novel and easy method of accomplishing this difficult and unpleasant task ? My cat is now an expert in the art of finding ping-pong balls. Immediately the ball touches the floor the cat is after it, and brings it from its hiding-place to the side of the table at which I am playing, thus saving me from unneces- sary exertion. F. S. W. CAT CALENDAR. (By kind permission o/ Raphael Tuck &> Co.) The thought suggests itself that pussy's teeth and claws might work serious havoc amongst the ping-pong balls, and that some of these would be produced in a mutilated condition. Of all animals the cat appears most to re- sent being taught or trained to do tricks. Puss has a natural antipathy to be forced to do anything, or remain anywhere against her will. Hence the few exhibitions of really clever performing cats in comparison with the marvellous feats achieved by dogs. It has been stated that the cat is the hardest animal to teach ; it takes years to train a cat to perform some simple trick which a dog would learn in as many weeks. Once a cat is trained, it becomes a very valuable pos- session. We have all seen the Happy Family, consisting of monkeys, guinea-pigs, canaries, pigeons, and mice, whilst a cat is seated demurely in the midst of this incongruous assembly. No doubt some training was required to cause puss to disregard the natural instincts of her race. The cat is a most cleanly crea- ture, and perhaps more particular about her appearance than any other animal. As Miss Agnes Repplier, in her delightful book. " The Fireside Sphinx," says: "Pussy's adroitness is equalled only by her deli- cacy and tact. Her clean- liness and her careful atten- tion to her toilet show re- spect for herself and for us." One of the strangest and most profitable trades in London is the wholesale and retail business of horse- meat for cats. In barrows and carts the hawkers of this horse-flesh cry their wares throughout the city and suburbs, and find a ready sale for them. It is stated that 26,000 horses, maimed, or past work, are slaughtered and cut up every year to feed our household pets. Each horse means on an CATS OF TO-DAY. average 275 pounds of meat, and this is sold by pussy's butcher in half pennyworths skew- ered on bits of wood. The magnitude of this birthday. His occupation was also given — ' mouse-catcher, worker on his own account.' " A description of the ordinary domestic cat trade can be estimated by the fact that it keeps is hardly necessary, but before I pass on to constantly employed thirty wholesale sales- mention matters of general interest concern- men. I may here mention that a cats'-meat ing cats of to-day, I will give a quotation from men's supper was organised last year in London a Board School boy's essay, which speaks for by the editor of Our Cats, assisted by Mr. Louis itself : "The house-cat is a four-legged quadruped, the legs as_usual being at the corners. It is Wain and others ; and a most entertainment was given at the City of New York Restaurant. The applications for tickets what is sometimes called a tame animal, though were so numerous that 400 men had to be re- fused ; and when the 250 guests were seated, it was clearly proved that every available inch of accommodation had been utilised. Having been present, I can testify to the excellent supper and entertainment provided for the cats'-meat men of London. The most casual ob- server cannot have failed to remark the wonderful development of late years in " Catty " Christmas souvenirs, thus giving proof of the growth of love and admiration for pussy. We have cat al- manacks, cat calendars, and cat annuals, and I can testify to the innumerable Christmas CAT CALENDAR. {By kind permission of Raphael Tuck d-3 Co.) it feeds on mice and birds of prey. Its colours are striped, it does not bark, but breathes through its nose instead of its mouth: Cats also mow, which you have all heard. Cats have nine liveses, but which is seldom wanted in this country, coz' of Christian- ity. Cats eat meat and most anythink speshuelly where you can't afford; This is all about cats." Perhaps my readers may think that after such a lucid description of the subject in hand, further comments are unnecessary ! I will proceed, how- ever, to give a glance round at the Cat Fancy in general before men- tioning particulars of Clubs and Cats of the cards with designs of cats of all sorts and present day. The question has often been conditions which have found their way into asked whether the Cat Fancy will ever be- my hands expressive of good wishes at the come as popular and fashionable as the breed- festive season. ing of dogs, poultry, and birds ? I think this The official mind would probably frown at question may be answered in the affirmative, the suggestion that the census returns should when we consider that during last year a dozen be enlivened with incidental humour. How- and more large cat shows have been held in ever, after the last census, the following state- different parts of England and Scotland, to ment appeared in the press : — " An enumerator in going over a return paper found that the household cat had been included as a member of the family. It was described as ' Jim,' the relationship to the head of the say nothing of numerous mixed shows where a section for cats was provided. Every year the number of fanciers increases, and although this particular hobby is almost entirely confined to the gentler sex, yet it is really sur- family being ' lodger.' The entry then stated prising to find how many more men are be- that he was of the male sex, single, aged one last ginning to take an interest in the pussies, and 26 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. are keenly excited in the winnings of the household pet or the king of the cattery. As a friend once said to me, " You know what men are ; if only the cats win prizes, my hus- band does not mind, but it is a different matter if I return from a show with no award ; then he declares we must get rid of all the cats ! " I am afraid that cat fanciers must be looked upon as a rather quarrelsome set, interest has been manifested, better classifi- cation given, and a larger number of cats exhibited. It was, therefore, considered ad- visable to have some definite organisation, and the National Cat Club was instituted in 1887, with Mr. Harrison Weir as president. I will now proceed to give a list, which I believe to be complete and correct, of the various other clubs and societies in England and America which and there is no doubt that petty jealousies have been organised and which are all at this and spiteful gossip retard in many ways the development and im- provement of the fancy. Another question that is often asked is whether cats can be made to pay — or, in other words, whether cat breeding is a profit- able undertaking. From my own experi- ence, which has ex- tended over a number of years, I can unhesi- tatingly say I have de- rived not only much pleasure but a good deal of profit from keeping cats, and also I have started many MR. HARRISON WEIR. friends in the fancy (piuto-. c. E. corke, smenoaks.) who have gone on and prospered. The dangers that beset begin- well, near Bristol, ners are many, and the chief difficulty is to know how to limit the number of our pussies and so avoid overcrowding, or retaining poor stock which will not prove creditable or profit- able. Cat keeping on an extensive scale means a large outlay, followed by constant and un- tiring attention. I do not intend, however, in' this chapter to enter into any details as to the care and management of cats, for this and other subjects connected with their interests will be fully dealt with later on. In my preceding chapter I alluded to the first Cat Show held at the Crystal Palace in 1871. This exhibition of cats has become present time in thoroughly good working order. LIST OF CAT CLUBS AND SOCIETIES. The National Cat Club, founded 1887. Hon. sec., Mrs. A. Stennard-Robin- son, 5, Great James Street, Bedford Row, London, W.C. Annual subscrip- tion, i guinea. The Cat Club, founded 1898. Hon. sec., Mrs. Bagster, 15 A, Paternoster Row, London, E.G. An- nual subscription, i guinea. The Northern Counties' Cat Club, founded 1900. Hon. sec., Mrs. Herbert Ra.nsome, Altrincham. Annual subscription, IDS. The Silver and Smoke Persian Cat Society, founded 1900. Hon. sec., Mrs. H. V. James, Back- Annual subscription, 55. Black and White Club. Hon. sees., Miss Kerswill and Miss White Atkins. Entrance fee, is.; annual subscription, 45. The Blue Persian Cat Society, founded 1901. Hon. sec., Miss Frances Simpson, Durdans House, St. Margaret's-on-Thames. Annual subscription, 55. The Siamese Club, founded 1900. Hon. sec., Mrs. Baker, i3,Wyndham Place, Bryanston Square, W. Annual subscription, 4.5. ; to working classes, 2s. 6d. The Orange, Cream, Fawn and Tortoise-shell Society, founded 1900. Hon. sec., Miss Mildred Beal, Ronaldkirk Rectory, Darlington. Annual subscrip- tion, IDS. The Chinchilla Cat Club, founded May, 1901 . Hon. sec., Mrs. Balding, 92, Goldsmith Avenue, Acton. Annual subscription, 53. The Short-haired Cat Club, founded 1901. Hon. an annual fixture, and year by year greater sec., Mrs. Middleton, 67, Cheyne Court, Chelsea. CATS OF TO-DAY. 27 The Scottish Cat Club, founded 1894. Hon. sec., J. F. Dewar, 2, St. Patrick Square, Edinburgh. An- nual subscription, 53. The Midland Counties Cat Club, founded at Wolverhampton, 1901. Hon sec., Miss Cope, 136, Bristol Road, Birmingham. Annual subscription, 53. The British Cat Club, founded 1901: Hon. sec., Sir Claude Alexander, Faygate Wood, Sussex. Sub- scription, 53. The Manx Cat Club, founded 1901. Miss Hester Cochran,Witchampton,Wimborne. Subscription, 53. The Beresford Cat Club (Chicago), founded 1899. President, Mrs. Clinton Locke ; corresponding secre- tary, Mrs. A. Michelson, 220, East Sixtieth Street, Chicago. Annual subscription, resident members, 2 dollars ; non-resi- dent, i dollar. The Chicago Cat Club, founded 1899. President, Mrs. Leland Norton, Drexel Ken- nels, Drexel Boulevarde, Chicago. The Louisville Cat Club, founded 1900. Corresponding secretary, Miss E. Converse. Annual subscription, 50 cents. The Pacific Cat Club, found- ed 1900. Corresponding secre- tary, Mrs. A. H. Brod, 114, Brodcrick Street, San Francisco. Annual subscription, i dollar. The Atlantic Club, founded in New York, 1902. Correspond- ing secretary, Dr. Ottolengui, So, West Fortieth Street, New York. MR. LOUIS WAIN. (Photo : Lascelles &° Co.) Since the formation of the National Cat Club, many changes in its constitution have taken place. On the retirement of Mr. Harri- son Weir from the presidency, Mr. Louis Wain was appointed, and still holds the office. The N.C.C. is fortunate in having so energetic a hon. sec. and treasurer as Mrs. Stennard- Robinson, whose name is so well known in the " doggy " world. The following is a list of officers of the National Cat Club at the time V ice-Presidents. — The Right Hon. the Countess of Warwick, The Viscountess Maitland, The Mar- chioness of Dufferin and Ava, The Countess of Aberdeen, The Lady Hothfield, Lady Willoughby, Lady Reid, The Hon. Mrs. McLaren Morrison, The Lady Granville Gordon, Lady Decies, The Hon. Mrs. Baillie, Madame Ronner, Mr. Isaac Woodiwiss, Mr. Sam Woodiwiss. Committee. — Louis Wain (President), Lady Decies, Lady Alexander, The Hon. Mrs. McLaren Morrison, Mrs.Vallance, Mrs. Balding, Miss Hamilton, Dr. Roper, Mrs. Herring, Mrs. Ransome, Mrs. G. H. Walker. Hon. Sec. and Treasurer. — Mrs. A. Stennardj Robinson, 13, Wyndham Place, Bryanstone Square, W. (Tele- graphic address — "Bow-wow, London.") The National Cat Club was organised (i) to promote hon- esty in the breeding of Cats, so as to ensure purity in each dis- tinct breed or variety ; (2) to determine the classification re- quired, and to encourage the adoption of such classification by breeders,, exhibitors, judges, and the committees of all Cat Shows ; (3) to maintain and keep the National Register of Cats; (4) to assist the Showing and Breeding of Cats, by hold- ing Cat Shows under the best sanitary conditions, giving Championship and other prizes, and otherwise doing all in its power to protect and advance the interests of Cats and their owners. The National Cat Club.is also a Court of Inquiry and Appeal in all matters relating to Cats, or affect- ing the ownership of Cats, and so saves the expense to its Members of litigation. The National Cat Club founded its Stud Book some twelve years ago, and it is the only reliable source of information concerning the pedigree of Cats. The Registration Fee is is. for the Register of Names, but for the Stud Book the fee is 55. for Approved Cats exhibited under N.C.C. Rules. The two principal shows of the National of writing, and a summary of the objects for Cat Club are held annually at the Botanical which the Club was organised : — THE NATIONAL CAT CLUB. Patron. — H.H. Princess Victoria of Schleswig Holstein. President.- -Her Grace the Duchess of Bedford. Gardens in connection with the Ladies' Kennel Association in June, and at the Crystal Palace in October. In 1901 the total number of cats shown at the Palace was 601, and the entries numbered 1,021. There were 106 classes 28 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. provided for long- and short - haired cats. The following is the definition of the classes : — DEFINITION OF CLASSES. Open Classes. — Open to all Cats, Prize-winners or Novices. Limit Classes. — For Cats of any age that have not won Three First Prizes. Novice Classes. — For Cats of any age that have never won a First Prize at any Show. Special Novice Cats. — For Cats or Kittens over 6 months that have never won a Prize of any sort at a Crystal Palace Show. Neuter Classes. — For Gelded Cats. Stud Classes. — • For Male Cats that have sired Kittens which are entered a ad on exhibi- tion in this Show. BtoodQuenn Class. — For Queen Cats whose Kittens are entered in this Show. Selling Class. — For Cats of any colour or Sex to be sold at a price not exceeding 3 guineas in Long - haired or 2 guineas in Short:haired and Foreign. Ring Class. — For Cats shown in collar, and lead. Kitten. Classes. — Single entries to be over 3 months and under 8 months, unless other- wise stated. Brace. — For 2 Cats, age over 6 months. Team. — For three or more Cats, age over 6 months. No Cats can be entered in brace or teams unless also entered in one other class. The money prizes in each class are First, £i ; Second, ros. ; Third, 53. The list of special prizes, including Challenge Trophies and medals, numbered 262 at the last Crystal Palace Show in 1901. In addition to the two regular fixtures of the N .C.C. , other catshows are held in different places in connection with the Club and under its rules. LADY MARCUS (From a painting by The National Cat Club reigned alone until 1898, when Lady Marcus Beresford started and founded the Cat Club. This ardent cat lover has done more for pussy than anyone in the fancy. She is most lavish in her generosity and unwearying in her efforts to promote the welfare of the Club. It was Lady Marcus who first started the idea of holding cat shows in aid of charity. The Cat Club's first show, held at St. Stephen's Hall, Westminster, in 1899, was in aid of the Children's Guild of the Deptford Fund. In 1900 the fami- lies of the soldiers and sailors who had fallen in the Trans- vaal were benefited to a large extent by the proceeds of the show. In 1901 the Children's Hospital, Great Ormond Street, was the charity se- lected to receive a handsome donation of £100. The West- minster shows have always been splen- didly managed, a noticeable feature being the wonderful array of beautiful special prizes offered for competition. The following is the list of officials connected with the Cat Club : — THE CAT CLUB. (Founded by Lady Marcus Beresford.) The objects of the Club are the general good of the Cat, the promoting of true breeding of Cats, the hold- ing of a Winter Show, so that Cats may be exhibited at their best, and taking other steps that shall be for the welfare of the Cat. The annual Subscription is £i is., payable on election, and on the ist of January in each succeed- ing year. BERESFORD. Edward Hushes.) CATS OF TO-DAY. 29 A Stud Book and a Register of Cats are kept by the Club. Presidents. — Lily, Duchess of Marlborough : Edith, Duchess of Wellington ; Lord Marcus Beresforu. Vice-Presidents. — Isabella, Countess Howe ; Vis- countess Maitland, Viscountess Esher, Lady Ridley, Lady de Trafford, The Hon. Mrs. Bampfylde, Lady Lister, Lady Gooch, Mrs. Barnet, Mrs. Alfred files, Mrs. Walter Campbell, Mrs. Chaine, Mrs. George Dawkins, Mrs. Gary Elwes, Mrs. C. Hill, Mrs. King, Mrs. Nicholay, Mrs. Tottie, Mrs. Pestoa Whyte, Lord Walter Gordon Lennox, A, E. Bateman, Esq., Colonel Chaine, Henry King, Esq. and required to register their cats in each club if they exhibit at the respective shows. It would be a great benefit to the cat world in general and to the exhibitor in particular if some arrangement could be made whereby one independent register should be kept, and that both clubs might work together and assist each other in endeavouring to scrutinise and verify all entries made in the joint register, so that inaccuracies should be detected and fraud prevented. LITTER OF SIAMESE KITTENS. BELONGING TO LADY MARCUS BERESFORD. (Photo.: T. Fall, Baker St., W.) Committee. — Lady Marcus Beresford, Mrs. Vary Campbell, Mrs Dean, Mrs. Paul Hardy, Mrs. C. Hill, Miss Anderson Leake, Mrs. R. Blair Maconochie, Mrs. Neild, Mrs. Simon, Mrs. Mackenzie Stewart, Mr. L. P. C. Astley, Mr. Gambier Bolton, Rev. P. L. Cosway, Mr. W. R. Hawkins, Mr. E. W. Witt. Hon. Treasurer. — Lord Marcus Beresford. Hon. Secretary. — Mrs. C. J. Bagster, 15 A, Pater- noster Row, London, E.G. There is really ample room for two parent clubs, as the Fancy is making such rapid strides, and, no doubt, well-appointed shows with good classification do a great deal to benefit breeders and assist fanciers. Between the National Cat Club and the Cat Club there is one point of serious disagreement, namely, as regards reg- istration. At present members are expected The Northern Counties Cat Club is affiliated with the N.C.C., and has quite a large number of members. This enterprising club holds two shows in Manchester every year, which hitherto have been capitally managed by the energetic hon. sec. As a natural sequence a Midland Counties Club has lately been started, having its working centre at Birmingham. No doubt arrangements will be made for holding a cat show in this or some other equally central Midland town. The Scottish Cat Club is in a flourishing condition, and has been steadily working up members since 1894. A show is annually held in Edinburgh, and fanciers over the border are taking a much keener interest in cats. THE BOOK OF THE CAT. In America the fancy has gone ahead in a wonderful way. It was in 1895 that the first cat show of general interest was held at Madison Square Gardens, New York. There had pre- viously been some private attempts to have exhibitions of cats in connection with poultry and pigeon shows. In 1896 an American Cat Club was organised, which did some good work. Then Chicago started a Cat Club in January, 1899, and this was followed by a most success- ful enterprise on the part of Mrs. Clinton Locke, who founded the Beresford Cat Club, called after Lady Marcus Beresford, and now numbering about 200 members. In January, 1900, the club held its first big show. The classification was of a most comprehensive nature, and the list of special prizes a very liberal one. This show is now an annual fixture, and the Cat Club of England sends medals and prizes to be competed for. Many of the best cats ex- hibited at these shows have been exported from Eng- land, and Americans are very keen in trying to pro- cure the very best possible stock — high prices in many cases being offered to induce English fanciers to part with prize-winning specimens. The following is a list of officials of the BERESFORD CAT CLUB OF AMERICA. Officers. Mrs. Clinton Locke, 2825 Indiana Ave., (President); Mrs. Charles H. Lane, 5323 Madison Ave., (First Vice- President} ; Mrs. F. A. Howe, 3041 Grand Boulevard (Second Vice-President) ; Mrs. A. A. Michelson, 220 E. 6oth Street (Corresponding Secretary) ; Miss L. C. Johnstone, 5323 Madison Ave. (Recording Secretary) ; Mrs. Elwood H. Tolman, 5403 Madison Ave. (Trea- surer). Directors. Mrs. J.H.Pratt, 5816 Rosalie Court; Mrs. Lincoln Nicholson, Lee Centre, Illinois ; Miss Louise Fergus, "PUCK III. THE PROPERTY OF THE PRINCESS VICTORIA OF SCHLESWIG-HOLSTEIN. At the Cat Show held in January, 1902, as many as 75 classes were provided, and it is plain to see from these that Americans have not the same antipathy for broken colours — that is, cats with white markings — as we have in England, as there are classes specially for orange and white, and black and white cats. In another part of this work I shall refer to varieties and breeds of cats existing in America which differ from those in England. The Beresford Cat Club have an extremely well arranged stud book and register, which is pub- lished annually. I am sure that the Cat Fancy in Ame- rica has a great future before it, and we cannot help being greatly struck with the earn- estness, thoroughness, and enthusiasm with which Americans have taken up this hobby. When we con- sider the great distances in the States and the paucity of good stud cats, and the few opportunities of exhibit- ing at well organised shows, we cannot fail to admire the energy and enterprise dis- played by our American fellow-fanciers. Specialist Clubs for Cats are of very recent growth. The first was started by an ardent breeder of silver Persians in 1900. It was then called the Silver Society, and it included smokes and silver tabbies. The title of this society has since been changed to the Silver and Smoke Persian Cat Society. In the following year Blue Persian Breeders be- stirred themselves and formed a society for this most popular breed. In the same year the Orange, Cream, and Tortoiseshell Society, the Siamese Club, and the Chinchilla Club were in- augurated, also a Manx Club came into exist- ence, and two clubs for short-haired cats were started. Particulars concerning these special- ist societies and their objects will be found in 3220 Sheridan Road ; Mrs. Blanch P. Robinson, 6, Langley Place ; Mrs. Vincent E. Gregg, 736 North future chapters on the various breeds of cats. Park Avenue. It will be noticed bv the list of clubs given CATS OF TO-DAY. that for brown tabby and black and white Persians no societies have as yet been formed, but doubtless ere long these varieties will be gathered into the fold of specialist clubs. A good deal of discussion has taken place in"catty circles as to the desirability of having specialist societies, but I am sure a vast and marked improvement has taken place in the different breeds since their formation, and the fact of publishing a standard of points has certainly assisted breeders in coming to a more correct idea of what constitutes a good cat of a particular breed. The number of challenge prizes, medals and specials offered by these societies at various shows act as an incentive to exhibitors, and thus entries increase and competition becomes keener. Specialist cl,ubs are not altogether popular with the parent clubs, who regard them with rather a suspicious and jealous eye. They think that exhibitors may join these less expensive socie- ties and yet continue to show and win prizes with- out subscribing to the club that holds the show. No doubt there is something in this, and specialist clubs should be ready and willing not only to offer prizes for which their members only can compete, but they ought also to guarantee classes, and perhaps give a donation towards the expenses of the show. There have been quite a number of catty cases in our courts of late years, and these generally seem to cause considerable amuse- ment to the legal as well as to the public mind. At a recent trial, where a lady was wrongfully accused of starving a Persian cat, the magis- trate, wishing for information, inquired of the witness (who was a veterinary surgeon) how long a cat could live without food. The reply was, " I am sure I could not say, sir, for cats MRS. CLINTON LOCKE AND HER SIAMESE AND " BANGKOK." KITTENS "CALIF are the funniest animals we have to deal with." And it is very true that these creatures, being so complex, require to be specially studied, and our principal veterinaries, who lead busy lives, are just a little superior to the many ail- ments and infirmities of these too often despised animals. It is therefore a subject of satis- faction for cat fanciers that two clever and kind animal-loving men have taken up the doctoring of cats, and_by personal experience are learn- ing " pretty pussy's ways " in sickness and in health. Mr. Ward, of Manchester, and "Salvo," of Hertford Heath, are now two household names in the cat fancier's vocabulary. To the many excellent remedies prepared by these clever specialists I shall refer later on in my work. Suffice it here to say that when in doubt or diffi- culty about your pussy's state of health I would re- commend you to write to either of these common- sense practitioners. The cat literature of the present day has been steadily on the increase. The first paper to supply special cat columns was Fur and Feather, which, as its title infers, treats be- sides of birds, rabbits, poultry, cavies, mice. This weekly paper has a large circulation amongst the various fanciers. In 1899 Our Cats was started, and is widely read by the ever-growing circle of cat lovers, and claims the unique distinction of being " The only newsj paper in the world solely devoted to cats." In both these papers there are stud advertise- ments of cats and a register of visits of queens and births of kittens. In America the chief organs in the cat world are The Cat Journal, The Pet Stock News, and Field and Fancy. And now a few words on those most ex- cellent institutions which should appeal to the THE BOOK OF THE CAT. hearts of the animal loving public — I mean the homes for poor stray and starving cats. It is a mercy that there are now several of these refuges in our great metropolis. I have per- sonally visited Gordon Cottage at Argyle Road, Hammersmith, and the London Institution in Camden Town. The objects of both these institutions are practically the same, namely :— (i) To receive and collect homeless and diseased cats and painlessly destroy them. have been taken in. Not a day passes without several wretched cats having to be destroyed at once on admission, and 80 per cent, are destroyed within twenty-four hours of admit- tance. No charge is made to the poor, and only is. 6d. for a painless death in the lethal cham- ber is asked from those who can afford this most merciful mode of destroying life. The dead cats are cremated at the Battersea Dogs' Home at a charge of 3d. each body. A motor- THE CATS PLAYGROUND : ROYAL LONDON INSTITUTION FOR STARVING CATS AT CAMDEN TOWN. {Photo: Cassell &> Company. Limited.') (2) To provide a temporary home "for lost cats. (3) To board cats at a moderate weekly charge. The Camden Town Institution to which Her Majesty the Queen has graciously given Her Patronage, was founded by Mrs. Morgan in 1896, and up to the end of 1901 has received the enormous number of 47,212 lost and starving cats. The average received weekly is 300, and in one day as many as 91 cats car is employed to go round and collect stray cats, and will call at any house if due notice has been given to the hon. manageress. It is estimated that the number of cats in London is close upon three quarters of a million, of which from 80,000 to 100,000 are homeless. It is during the summer months, when house- holders leave town for their holidays, that poor pussy is forsaken and forgotten, and no pro- vision being made for her, she is forced to take to the streets, where she seeks in vain to stalk CATS OF TO-DAY. 33 the wily London sparrow or pick up any scraps from the gutter. The humbler folk very fre- quently manifest vastly greater solicitude for the Tom or the Tabby of their hearths than do their social superiors. All lovers of cats owe a debt of gratitude to those truly noble ladies who have begun and carry on such a merciful work in our midst. To attempt to alleviate suffering must appeal to all ; and even those In our sister isle there is a Cats' Home, established sixteen years ago by Miss Swifte in Dublin, and she has most gallantly carried out the beneficent objects with which she started her humane work. No doubt she and other founders of similar institutions have had to suffer a considerable amount of ridicule, for with many human beings the cat is regarded as little deserving of commiseration ROYAL LONDON' INSTITUTION FOR LOST AND STARVING CATS. (Photo : Cassell & Company, Limited.) who have an instinctive dislike to harmless cats cannot fail to see the immense benefit to be derived by the public at large from the noble endeavour to clear our London streets, squares, parks, and empty houses of these poor forlorn and friendless creatures. At. the Battersea Home for Lost Dogs there are also splendid arrangements for stray cats, and at a very small charge per week cats can be ^ taken in to board. The catteries are capitally arranged, and the feeding is ex- cellent. or kindness. It is, however, a sign of increased justice and benevolence that these homes for cats do exist and obtain public support, al- though the funds received are, according to all accounts, very inadequate to meet all the expenses. This must surely be partly because these splendid institutions are so little known to the general public. Our American cousins are not behindhand in their laudable endeavours to cope with the question of lost and starving cats, and an institution similar to our Battersea Home was 34 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. started in the early 'eighties in the district of Boston, and is called the " Ellen M. Gifford Sheltering Home for Animals." The lady giving her name to this humane institution left a large sum of money to endow the home, and over the office is a tablet bearing the following extract from one of Miss Gifford's letters about the time the home was opened :— It was as early as 1874 that this institution was founded, and in 1889 it was reorganised and incorporated as the " Morris Refuge for Homeless and Suffering Animals," having for its motto " The Lord is good to all, and His tender mercies are over all His works." The efforts of the charitable ladies who so ably assisted in the establishment of these in- THE CART OF THE ROYAL LONDON INSTITUTION FOR LOST AND STARVING CATS. (Photo: Cassell & Company, Limited.) " If only the waifs, the strays, the sick, the abused would be sure to get entrance to the home, and anybody could feel at liberty to bring in a starved or ill-treated animal and have it cared for without pay, my object would be attained. March 27, 1884." According to Miss Helen Winslow, the authoress of " Concerning Cats," there is another institution in Philadelphia which does not limit its good work to tending cats and dogs, but cares for all living and suffering animals, bringing relief to the unfortunate creatures by means of a painless death. stitutions have been followed by others, and a proposal to found a home for animals in Montreal has, I believe, proved successful. Miss Winslow tells us that there are several cat asylums and refuges in the Far West, and a Sheltering Home at Brighton, Mass. In 1901 a Cat Refuge was started in Chicago by a well-known cat-lover, Mrs. Leland Norton, and probably, as time goes on, some further organised attempt will be made to deal with the question of lost and starving cats in American towns. The love of the cat still lingers in Egypt, CATS OF TO-DAY. 35 in and I have been told that free rations to starv- ing cats are dealt out every day at the Palace of the Cadi and the Bazar of Khan Kheleel ; also that a cats' home has been founded Cairo for the lodg- ing and feeding of homeless cats. There was a re- port that in order to cope with the innumerable lost and starving cats the American Legis- lature had decided to enforce a bill for licensing cats, but if such a law came into existence in any country the re- sult would surely be that thousands of cats with good homes would be thrust out into the streets, and that rats and mice would multiply to an alarming extent. It is estimated that in New York city alone 60,000 cats depend for their daily food on gar- bage and the mice and rats that they capture. Therefore, if each cat catches three mice or rats a week, the sum total am ounts to over 9,000,000 a year ! I have often wondered why some of our numerous "distressed ladies" do not set up private homes for the care of cats. A really comfortable country home for cats is an enterprise in which many a woman, who is hopelessly at sea for some means of earning THE HON. PHILIP WODEHOUSE S " SILVER SAINT. (Photo : Clarke &• Co., Norwich.) an honest livelihood in this overcrowded work-a-day world, might thus combine pleasure with profit. Many fanciers feel the difficulty and well nigh impossibility of leaving their catteries for any length of time, and few have a per- manent and respon- sible caretaker on the premises. An opening, therefore, presents itself not only for boarding homes for cats, but for temporary helps who could be en- gaged by the week or month to take charge of the cat- tery during the ab- sence of the owner. Of course, such a person should have had experience with cats and kit- tens, and above all should be an animal lover. To dwellers in any of our large cities the sojourn in some country place would come as a boon and A BEVY OF BLUES BELONGING TO MISS SAVERV (Photo : ll'aschenki, St. Leonanls-on-Sea.) a blessing, and if the owner of thecattery is fully as- sured of the capa- bilities of the care - taker, then all anxiety of mind as to the wel- fare of the pets would be allayed. There is a secluded corner in Hyde Park known as the Dog's Cemetery, and amongst the many headstones I noticed two or three erected in memory of lost pussies who have been privileged to rest in this quiet burying ground. THE BOOK OF THE CAT. When we see poor pussies packed into dirty cages in the shops of dealers of beasts and birds in our great metropolis, and when we are made sad by the sight of the wretched starving cats of our streets, we can breathe no better wish for them than a speedy deliverance from their life of misery, even if it be to embark with the grim ferryman in their free transportation to the Feline Elysium. " There shall the worthies of the whiskered race, Elysian mice o'er floors of sapphire chace, 'Midst beds of aromatic marum stray, Or raptur'd rove beside the milky way." A French writer of the early part of the eighteenth century, a famous Jesuit Father, suggests a very strange theory on the old idea as to the nature of the soul of animals. I am sure that the question of a future existence for those pets who during so short a time in this world have been our faithful and loving com- panions must have often entered into the hearts and minds of true animal lovers. A wise and good man — a writer of some of our most beautiful hymns, and who passed to his rest within the last year — wrote and gave me these lines when he lost his faithful dog :— SANCHO : AN OLD FRIEND. A large brown Irish retriever : buried in the Vicarage Garden of St. Paul's, Hagger- ston : a stone to his memory is on the school wall, with this inscription : — • " In the centre of this lawn lies SANCHO, a gentleman in all but humanity ; thorough-bred, single in mind, true of heart ; for seventeen years the faithful and affectionate friend of his master, who loved him, and now for him ' faintly trusts the larger Hope ' contained, it may be, in Romans viii. 19-21. He died April 26, 1883." NOT sparse of friends the world has been to me By grace of GOD • sweetness and light to life Their love has given ; many a stormy strife, Many a pulseless torpor, on my sea, Through them — their presence or their memory— Have been or stilled or quickened ; and to thee, My Dog, the tribute, as the term, is due, My Friend ! not least of all dear, near, and true These seventeen years — and through the years to be Sure in my heart of immortality. Must this be all ? I' the great Day of the LORD, Shall aught that is of good and beauty now Be missing ? Shall not each gift be restored ? Paul says " the whole creation " — why not thou ? CATS' TOMBSTONES IN THK DOGS' CKMETKKV, HYDK PARK. (Photo : Cassell & Co., Ltd.) 37 TABBIKS UP A TKKK. 1'hotc: C. Reitt, Wishaia. I CHAPTER III. CARE AND MANAGEMENT. N the care, management, and feeding of haps with rice or Freeman's Scientific Food, raw meat twice or three times a week cut up into fairly small pieces, horse-flesh (if obtained cats no hard and fast rule can be laid down, for the dispositions and constitu- tions of these animals differ just as much as from a reliable source) twice a week. Lights, clo those of human beings. Fanciers must liver, or sardines may be given occasionally, therefore learn to treat their cats individually Sloppy food in any large quantity should be and not collectively ; they must study their avoided ; but oatmeal well boiled, cornflour, character and make allowances for the fads and fancies of the feline race. I am convinced that a varied diet is the best for cats, and fanciers should bear in mind the importance of regularity in the hours of feeding, whether two or three or four times a day. Fresh water should al- ways be supplied, and un- finished food should not be left standing about. For one or two pet cats the scraps from the table given with judgment will probably suffice ; but in the case of a large cattery with several inmates, some sort of system in feeding is necessary. I would sug- gest that the chief meal for two days a week should be fish, mixed per- BLUE PERSIAN. 3* PRESENTED BY Miss PATTERSON TO HER MAJESTY THE QUEEN. arrowroot, and several of the well-known foods, such as Neave's or Mellin's, make a nice change. Spratt's biscuits of various kinds, soaked and mixed with stock, are relished by some cats. Vegetables should be given frequently, and grass supplied, as green food purifies the blood and keeps the bowels in good condition. Persian cats require special attention as regards their coats, and should be combed and brushed regularly, and, if the fur becomes matted, the knots should be cut away. Avoid washing your cats ; there are other means of cleansing their coats, particulars of which will be given in the chapter on exhibiting. THE BOOK OF THE CAT. FEMALE CATS AND KITTENS. As regards the management of female cats, it is necessary to start from the time when they first arrive at maturity, viz. when they are first capable of becoming mothers. This usually takes place — or they " come in season," as it is called — after they are seven or eight months old ; and though cases have been known when this has happened before six months, it is very unusual. It may there- fore be laid down as a rule that if a kitten exhibits extraordinary high spirits, racing and tearing about, it should be carefully watched, and not allowed its freedom without super- vision, either out of doors or in the house. Queens may be known to be in season by several symptoms, such as rolling on the ground, rubbing up against furniture, increased affection for their owners, and often by the curious cries they utter, at times by a soft note of invitation, at other times by shouts of impatience or dis- tress which resound through the house. Cats should not be mated until they are nine or ten months old at least ; twelve months is a better age, though if they are insistent it will not do to put them off more than three times, as there are records of cats who, having been kept back on account of extreme youth, have been seriously ill or have never had families at all. On the other hand, it is possible these cats may have had the reproductive instinct abnor- mally strong, though for some cause or another they would always have been unfertile. Pow- ders are sold to quiet cats who are considered too young to become mothers, and two or three small doses of bromide have a decidedly calm- ing effect. This drug should, however, be given with caution, as it is a dangerous one in unskilled hands. Cats come in season about every three weeks during the spring and summer ; but in the autumn and early winter months nature seems to intend that they should rest ; therefore, as soon as the year has turned, and in very mild winters even before Christmas, no time should be lost in selecting the best sires for the various breeding queens, and arrangements made with their respective owners, so that as soon as ever a queen is ready she may be mated without delay, as some cats go off in two or three days, while others are not safe for a fortnight. If possible, it is well to select a stud cat near at hand, especially if your queen is timid and frightened, as a long railway journey may upset her. It is most essential that female cats should be freed from worms before being allowed to mate or breed, otherwise the kittens will probably fall victims to these pests by sucking in the disease with the mother's milk. Most cat fanciers know the symptoms which are suggestive of worms ; and whenever there is a reasonable suspicion of their presence, then it is best at once to resort to some of the many remedies to be obtained from veterinaries and cat specialists. A cat's period of gestation is nine weeks, but this is often extended to a day or two longer, so that it is best to expect a litter about nine weeks from the date of the queen's return from visiting the stud cat. An experienced breeder will most likely see symptoms of a cat coming in season, and will then do well to give a worm powder. Salvo's No. 3 powder may be given one morning, and the cat sent off the next day quite safely. Visiting queens should be despatched as early in the morning as possible and insured, to save delay on the road, with the owner's name and address in- side package, also the name of the cat, as poor pussie will be far happier if on her arrival' she hears herself called by her pet name. Tull instructions should be sent as to the return journey ; also it should be stated if the cat is kept out of doors or indoors, and what food she is accustomed to have, number of meals per diem, etc. If going a very long journey the queen should not be nailed into a box, or padlocked, as occasional delays occur, and the railway authorities will feed and look after an insured cat if packed in a hamper or box where they can get at the occupant. Boxes or hampers with skeleton lids are by far the best on this account. If the weather is very cold and a basket is used, it should be lined, and round the sides brown paper is an addi- tional safeguard against draughts, for which CARE AND MANAGEMENT. 39 all stations are proverbial. A very delicate cat or young kitten finds great comfort in winter from a hot-water bottle placed inside the hamper for it to rest against. Queens should have a good meal an hour or two before starting, as they often arrive upset with the journey, and in their strange new home will not at first touch any food. Do not put any food in the travelling basket. It is not well for a queen to mate just after a heavy meal. Fish and warm milk, if these agree with the queen, or a small meat meal, may be offered after a long, cold journey, and, if eaten, the queen should be allowed to rest an hour or two before introducing her to the stud cat. After mating, a queen should be kept quiet for a few days on her return home, as much apart from other cats as possible ; but no un- easiness need be felt if the visit does not seem to have quieted the queen, as she will settle down in a few days and cease to think about her mate. With regard to treatment of cats in kitten, some queens are gentle and quiet, and very careful of themselves, others are exceedingly bad-tempered, fighting and quar- relling, while some amuse themselves by climb- ing up high places and jumping down, be- having in such a wild and excitable fashion that they not only endanger their own lives, but run the risk of bringing maimed and deformed offspring into the world. Cats such as these should be kept isolated, if possible, or at most with only one other quiet queen, and all high shelves or tall articles of furniture should be removed. It is always well to be very careful in handling cats in kitten. They must never be lifted up by their fore legs, but when absolutely necessary to move or carry them, both hands should be used to do so, one being placed under the body by the shoulders to carry the weight, while the other hand gently supports the hind-quarters ; but the less a cat is lifted about the better. All medicines should be given quietly and quickly, so that there may be no struggling. The cat's head should be grasped firmly with the left hand, the fingers and thumb on each side of the corners of the mouth, and forced back on the shoulders with a firm pressure ; this will cause~heT to open her mouth, when medi- cine can be popped quickly down the throat from a spoon held in the right hand. In the case of a very restless cat, it is advisable to have an assis'tant in administering medicine. Amateurs would do well to practise giving water in a spoon to queens who are in health, so that they may become used to this simple method of administering medicine. Cats in kit require three or four meals daily of nour- ishing food — raw meat from four to six ounces night and morning, and fish and scraps and vegetables or biscuit, etc., for the midday meal. Half a teaspoonful of cod-liver oil on their food two or three times a week is very good for the queens in cold weather ; but if sickness ensues, of course the oil must be discontinued. Never suffer dianhce-a to go on THREE UTTLE MAIDS. (Photo: E. Landor, Ealing.) 4o THE BOOK OF THE CAT. unchecked. This applies to all cats and kittens of whatever age, sex, or condition, but is especially dangerous when a cat is in kit or nursing her young. Mr. Ward and Salvo prepare powders which will stop the diarrhoea, and if persevered with will restore the bowels to their normal condition. Change of diet is also very helpful. If the diarrhoea is very violent or persistent, or if no medicine can be procured, a small quantity of powdered chalk, as much as will lie on a sixpence, may be given every hour or two, three or four times ; but the primary cause, of which diarrhoea is only a symptom, should be sought out, and if not discoverable, the advice of a cat doctor should be obtained. Persistent diarrhoea (if not the accompani- ment of diseases, such as inflammation of the bowels, etc.), is usually caused by indigestion or worms, and sometimes by a stoppage of fur or food imperfectly digested, which nature in this way tries to get rid of ; and if this is the case, or there is even reason to suspect it may be, a dose or two of warm salad oil, a teaspoon ful every two hours, will often bring away the obstruction. Cats in kitten A PERILOUS PERCH. (1'hoto: C. Reid, Wishaw.) frequently suffer from constipation, for which also warm salad oil is far better than castor oil, as the latter is irritative to the bowels, and though acting as an aperient, the after effects are increased costiveness. Warm salad oil, given a few hours before the birth of kittens, is helpful to the mother. For at least a week before the kittens are expected, a nice cosy bed should be prepared in some retired spot ; and, to a novice, the caution would not be amiss — do not let a cat in kitten sleep on your bed, or she will either have her kittens there, or will drag the poor little things into the bed the first chance she gets. If a box is to be made ready for the cat, it should be of a fair size (about twenty-six inches by eighteen inches), and should be placed on its side, and a bit of wood about three inches deep nailed on to the bottom of the side, standing up to keep the bedding in its place and the kittens from rolling out. This box may be placed on a table or two chairs, so arranged that the cat can step in and out from another chair. The floor of the box should be covered with several thicknesses of flannel or blanket in the winter and paper in the summer. Avoid coloured materials, as the dye will come out if they get wet. A bolster may be placed at one side of the box stuffed with straw, or hay or paper torn up very small, to support the cat's back ; but should the weather be very cold and the mother delicate, a hot-water bottle covered with flannel may be used instead, and is a great comfort. A covering should be thrown over the box, which may be pulled down to hide the in- terior, as cats love to be screened from observation ; and also it is very essential that the tiny babies should be kept al- most in the dark for the first fortnight, after which time, when their eyes are open, the covering can be raised in the day and low- ered at night in cold weather. This box must be placed on the ground as soon as the CARE AND MANAGEMENT. kittens can walk about, but retaining the ledge already referred to, which will keep them from ground draughts to a great extent. A nice little box with run attached is the best house for a cat and kittens ; but as these cost about 253. each, a number of them become costly and beyond the means of some breeders. The bed described is the next best thing, far better for shy queens than a box or basket used in the ordinary way. An empty drawer makes a good place, but the kit- tens should be moved out of it as soon as they can see, as it is rather too dark and close after the blind period is past. A cat should sleep in whatever bed is ar- ranged for her for at least a week before the kittens are expected, and when that day arrives the queen should be carefully watched, as some cats will have their kittens anywhere if not looked after. For the sake of those new to the fancy, it may be as well to remark that cats become very restless, walking about some- times purring loudly, and looking in cupboards and dark corners, while occasionally the first noticeable indication that the event is about to come off is that the fur behind is wet, and if this should be the case no time should be lost in carrying the cat most carefully to her bed, as the kittens may then be expected any moment. Some animals like to be left entirely alone while giving birth to their young ; others, especially pets, prefer to have their owners near to them ; but if there is any uncertainty it is better to leave her to herself. Experienced breeders will know that should the labour be dry or very prolonged it is a great help to a cat to pass the hand firmly MRS. HARDY'S NEUTER " PHARAOH (Photo : Schutk's Photographic Galleries.) and slowly down the side during an expulsive pain, as the pressure will help the mother and hasten the birth of the kittens. After the first is born, the rest come compara- tively easily. Very occasionally there is a cross presentation ; but as only those really com- petent should attempt to do anything in this case, no time should be lost in sending for the nearest cat doctor or veterinary. After the first kitten~has arrived — the birth of which is usually heralded by a loud cry of pain from the mother — some milk should be made hot, and as soon as the new baby has been cleaned the mother will gladly drink this ; but on no account should cold or even luke- warm milk be given the same day, or, indeed, for two or three days. Nov- ices are sometimes start- led at seeing the cat eat- ing a lump of something which they fear may be a kitten ; but there is no occasion for alarm, as it is merely the after- birth, the consumption of which is probably Nature's provision for affording sustenance to the mother," as an animal in a wild state could get no food for at least several hours after the birth of its offspring. If a cat is wild or shy, it is better to leave her alone (with the exception of offering hot milk from time to time) until all the kittens are born, and they should not be examined or handled for some days. With a gentle queen the first kitten may be taken away when the second is born, well wrapped up in warm flannel and put by the fire, and so on, always leaving one kitten until the last is warm and dry, when the others should be returned to the mother. This plan is most necessary in cold weather THE BOOK OF THE CAT-. (especially if the kittens are born out-of-doors), for if the labour is easy and quick it is quite impossible for the queen to dry one kitten before the advent of the next, and by the time they are all born they are frequently stone cold, and so wet that the mother gives up the attempt to dry them in despair ; and many kittens, thought to be stillborn, have died in the night in this way. Kittens quite cold and nearly dead have been restored (and have lived to a good old age) by being taken at once to the fire and warmed and dried, and though at first life may appear extinct, time and patience will work wonders. If the kittens are taken away from the mother at birth as described above, it is a good opportunity for destroying any that are not wanted, because of sex or colour. When the litter is given to the mother she should be offered milk again, and should after: that be left alone several hours; but she will most likely welcome a few kind words and loving pats as a reward for- all- she has 'gone through, and will then cuddle down; contentedly with her little ones. ; In giving milk do not take the mother out, or even make he'r get .up to drink it, on the day of her confinement ; ; if' she cannot reach it comfortably, Taise her head and shoulders with one hand; until 'she can reach the saucer held itt the"0trfer~canvenicntly, and do not be in a hurryV'as she knows' well the temperature the milk ought to" be, arid will not take it if too hot or too cold. Milk should be given night and morning, and offered during the day, for some days after the kittens are born. Cats that never like it at other times are thankful for it when nursing ; but, on the other hand, cats that have been fond of milk will turn away from it at" these times. Queens usually come out every few hours for food, and their meat or ordinary meal should be ready for them, as they will want to eat it quickly and return to their little ones. After the second or third day a warm, clean blanket should be substituted for the one on which the kittens were born, and it is well to do this when the mother is present, as some cats resent interference during their absence. As soon as the kittens are about a week old, a finger should be passed over their eyes, and if there is a little ridge on the lids, the eye should be moistened with eye-lotion twice daily with a camel-hair brush. If, after ten days, they do not open as is usual, the eyes should be sponged with warm water, as in this case they must have become glued together with mucus, which should be cleared away, and the eye moistened with eye-lotion, taking care a little goes well into the eye. The lid should then be smeared with olive oil to pre- vent adhesion. It is this adhesion of the lids which causes inflammation, and the eyes must be frequently attended to, so that they may be kept open, avoiding any very strong light. If the kittens are born indoors in the summer, windows should be kept open during the day, and when the little creatures are about a fort- night old put them out in the sunshine for an hour or so daily. The mother must be as well fed as she was before the kittens were born, but carefully notice if she suffers from diarrhoea, for if this is the case, and change of diet does not cure it, you may be certain that she is nursing too many kittens, and if some of them are not speedily removed you will lose them all. If a foster-mother can be procured, by all means have one, accompanied by one of her own kittens if possible. Make a cosy bed for her, warming the blanket, and leave her in it till night, when, if she seems settled down, give her two or more kittens as the case may be, removing her own the following night. Do not attempt to interfere with the kittens while the mother is away, and act very gently, talking to, and stroking her so that she may not resent your interference. If no foster- mother can be procured, Mr. Ward, of Man- chester, has a clever little appliance which he claims can be used instead of a foster-mother. Some fanciers may take upon themselves the task of bringing up the kittens by hand, and in that case wrap them up in warm flannel, keeping them by the fire by day, and giving them a hot bottle at night, feeding with weak milk and water about every two hours (this should be about half and half), with a O jjj D -S < "3 U <0 5.1 44 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. teaspoonful of lime-water to each cup of milk and water. It should be given warm, not hot, and the milk scalded, not boiled. In London or large towns unsweetened condensed milk is better than cow's milk, as the colouring or preservative acids used by dairymen in the latter is very injurious to kittens. This con- densed milk should be much diluted, and flavoured with small quantities of salt and sugar. If too strong or too sweet, the food will cause diarrhoea. Kittens will soon learn to suck out of an eggspoon ; but do not give too much at once, or force the food down their little throats when they object to take any more. At about five weeks old the kittens will begin to lap and possibly to eat. Many fanciers are delighted if they will eat and drink before a month old, and some make the serious mistake of trying to coax the little ones to eat solid food at this tender age. Such persons do not stop to think how weak are all the digestive organs of these tiny creatures. The milk of the mother supplies all that is needful for their growth and well-being until such time as Nature makes itself heard in her demands for further nourishment, and if substantial food is given to them too soon, or too strong, it merely goes through the stomach, passing out into the bowels undigested, decomposes, and forms slimy mucus which is the hotbed for worms, even if it does not set up inflammation of the bowels. More kittens die from worms and consumption of the bowels than from any other complaint, and much of this loss of life is directly traceable to strong food at too tender an age. Lung disease, gastric catarrh, gastro-enter- itis, are all directly or indirectly set up by the non-assimilation of food ; hence the supreme importance of giving nourishment which can be digested easily. After six weeks scraped raw beef may be given (if the kittens want to eat) three times daily in very small quantities, about half a teaspoonful to start with, and they may have warm milk and water with lime in it. This should be followed by Mellin's, or Benger's Frame Food, as directed for infants. It is advisable not to allow kittens to overload their stomachs, but to feed them about four times daily. If healthy they will eat eagerly, but not ravenously ; a kitten who is greed}' and precipitates itself into the saucer in its anxiety to get its dinner may be suspected of worms, and when about eight weeks old a course of Salvo's No. I powders may be given with safety. As soon as the kittens are about a month old, a shallow tin of dry earth or ashes (I do not recommend sawdust) should be provided for them, and it will well repay their owners to spend some portion of the day with the little ones and lift them into the earth-pan when necessary. If this is done two or three times, the lesson is probably learnt for life. Kittens are naturally clean, and will get out of their beds, and run about crying loudly for some accommodation for their wants ; and if this is neglected the seeds of dirty habits are sown, and the poor untaught little ones reap a sad harvest of cuffs and sometimes kicks from servants, who naturally dislike the trouble caused by dirty house pets. Even in catteries cleanly habits in cats are much to be desired. If a cat or kitten gets into dirty ways, it should never be beaten and put into the tin, but should be gently stroked and coaxed into good habits. Those who only keep one or two queens will find that if they spend a few minutes playing with the kittens before their meals, they will be well rewarded by the quicker growth and better digestion of the little ones ; but, of course, this is out of the question in a large cattery. In summer, kittens should be combed daily with a small tooth comb, as the insects which inhabit their coats not only worry them and cause them to scratch out their fur, but they convey disease from one to another, to say nothing of sucking out so much blood that the poor little creatures become absolutely anaemic, and in this state they fall an easy prey to the first disease that attacks them. Fleas were formerly treated as irritating but other- wise harmless insects ; but we are assured on the best authority that they are a dangerous medium of disease, and that tape-worms are CARE AND MANAGEMENT. 45 generated in dogs and cats by their means. The poor animals, wildly resenting the annoy- ance of these pests, hunt for them with teeth and tongue, and, swallowing their enemy, may also swallow a number of undeveloped tape- worms, which in their larval or grub state are secreted in the abdomen of the flea. Tape- worms are said to undergo certain metamor- phoses or transformations, and require to pass through the body of some other creature than the one they exist in in their mature state of being. It is a great mistake to keep kittens in heated rooms, and worse still to allow them to be close to a fire by day and then to let the room get cold at night. An even temperature, cold and dry, is better than sud- den changes ; cats and kittens love warmth and comfort, but, at the same time, all ex- tremes of heat and cold are bad. Never neglect the first symptoms of illness ; note the signs, and if you are not able to dose the invalid yourself send off a wire to some competent cat doctor describing the form the indisposition has taken, and while waiting for medicine no harm can be done by giving as much carbonate of soda as will lie on a threepenny-bit in a little water two or three times daily. Salvo has lately advertised a medicine which is said to be very valuable for giving on the first signs of a cat or kitten being out of sorts, and which, he says, will take down fever, stop colds, and modify attacks of bronchitis, pneumonia, etc. ; and for such fragile little beings as kittens fanciers would do well to keep this medicine by them. People often say that their cats and kittens seem ill or out of sorts, and allow this sort of thing to go on quite calmly for a week or so, when one KITTB;NS BELONGING TO MISS BROMI.EV day they wake up to the fact that the poor creature is very seriously ill, and they then send off in a hurry for medicine which fre- quently arrives too late ; and the sufferer may be beyond all human aid. Double pneumonia, which is perhaps the quickest and most fatal of all diseases, is not so sudden but that it is ushered in by various symptoms, beginning often a week before the attack becomes acute. An animal will seem cold, will creep near the fire, or sit in the fender, mope about, refusing to play, sit in a hunch with its back up, or is very sleepy and stupid ; the fur is rough ; there may be sickness, and the evacuations are of a bright yellow colour ; perhaps it has not quite finished its meals for a few days ; and the nose is hot and dry, and, if taken up, the cat feels hot and dry all over. When there are several of these symptoms, no time should be lost in administering the reme- dies named above every hour or two until suit- able remedies can be obtained ; but do not rely upon them alone, or think if you give them persistently they will pull the" animal through the illness, for they will not, special remedies being needed for special symptoms and for various stages of disease. No two animals are exactly alike, and the experienced cat doctor will prescribe carefully for each individual cat in the same way as a physician will give different prescrip- tions to suit the needs of different patients. One thing should never be neglected, and this is keeping up the strength from the first with beef-tea, eggs and milk, Brand's Essence, or animal Kreochyle — a teaspoonful every hour. As soon as an animal has refused two meals, begin feeding with spoon, as it will have so much more strength with which 46 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. to battle against disease if fed up well from the first. People who desire to sell kittens for profit will do well to part with them at about two months old, before they start teething, for at this period of their little lives fresh troubles begin. Occasionally they suffer from fits, but though these are sometimes caused by cutting their teeth, they are oftener due to the presence of worms. If the gums are swollen and inflamed, a quarter of one of Steedman's in noxious gases which escape through the skin, causing eczema, or in many cases pro- ducing inflammation of the bowels or enteritis. Nothing needs more careful attention than the diet of kittens, and nothing is so little studied. It would be no exaggeration to say- that all disease, apart from outside or acci- dental causes, such as draughts, cold winds, contagion, etc., is in the first place set up by undigested food, and even what may be railed external causes would often not be harm- N'KUTER PETS OWNED KY MRS. HASTINGS LEES. (Photo: The Royal Central Photo Co., Bournemouth.) teething powders will soothe them, or a few doses of bromide, as prescribed before for kittens desiring to mate too early, may be given, and excitable kittens should be kept quiet. If kittens are troubled with diarrhoea, all starchy food should be avoided, as it is never easily digested by animals. The reason of this is not far to seek, when we know that the saliva partly digests starch, while the juices of the stomach act directly on meat. Animals, instead of masticating their food. by which means the saliva acts vipon it, often bolt it, and it goes into the stomach and is passed out into the large bowel practically undigested, where it decomposes, working off ful to an animal if the digestive organs were in proper working order. Remember, it is not the quantity of food a kitten takes that benefits it. The secret of its health and well- being is in the quantity it digests. A kitten should only digest certain things in certain proportions, and whatever remains undigested produces irritation, and in this case the kitten cannot possibly develop, and is generally weakly and fretful. Those who have never cared much for cats will be interested and amused if they bring up a family of kittens, and the love and trust of the little creatures will well repay them for all their care. CARE AND MANAGEMENT. 47 STUD CATS. A male cat should not be allowed to mate under a year old, and if you wish to keep your stud in good condition do not allow more than two, or at most three, lady visitors a week. There is no doubt that a really reliable stud cat is a very profitable possession. The most essential recommendations are a sound constitution and absolute health, combined with a good pedigree and a list of prize-win- ning progeny. It is necessary to exhibit your stud cat at the best cat shows from time to time, and thus to keep him before the public. It is also advisable to advertise him in the cat papers, and it is often useful to have a photograph to forward to fanciers who may be unable otherwise to obtain any idea of your cat. Needless to say that for stud pur- poses a cat should possess the highest possible qualifications of the breed to which he be- longs, and a massive frame and broad head are most desirable in all stud cats. It is a good plan to allow the visiting queen to be within sight of the male for a short time before she is put in the stud cat's house, and for this purpose it is convenient to have a small movable pen or hutch to place where the two pussies can hold catty conversation, A stud cat cannot, for many and obvious reasons, be allowed his full freedom ; but it is essential that his dwelling place should have as long and roomy an exercise ground as pos- sible. It is also possible with some male cats to tether them out-of-doors for a short period during the day, in which case great care should be taken to have the lead only as long as will permit of exercise within a safe distance of dangerous pitfalls or spreading trees and shrubs. The best time for mating is about one hour atter feeding. It is most important that stud cats should be in good coat at the time of mating, and that they should be free from worms. The usual fee for a visit to a stud cat is £i is., and this should be sent at the same time as the request for permission to send a queen. A second visit is generally considered allowable if the first one has proved unsuccess- ful. An additional amount of food may be given to a cat whilst he is being used at stud, and always remember to provide grass in some form or other in your stud cat's house. There is no universal remedy for all cats, neither can there be any rule for feeding them. Different cats need different treatment, and those which are kept in a captive state, as are stud cats, should not be fed on the same lines as those tfrnt are allowed full liberty. NEUTER CATS. Opinions differ as to the best period for a cat to be made neuter, but it is generally considered advisable to have the operation performed between the ages of five and eight months. A male cat can be kept as a house- hold pet till he is about nine or ten months old without any unpleasantness, but after that period he must be relegated to an outside cattery or stud house. It is cruel to put off gelding a cat till he shows signs of wishing to mate, A duly qualified veterinary ought to be employed, and an anaesthetic used. The cat should be kept on a low diet for a day or two before 'and after the operation. It is very seldom that any evil effects ensue, and after a few days the puss is quite himself again. Neuter cats grow to an immense size, and the Persian varieties develop great length of fur, which is generally not shed so frequently or to such an extent as in the males and females. Neuter cats are very docile, and generally rather lazy- and listless ; for this reason they are not accounted such good mousers. Female cats can also be rendered sexless, but in their case the operation is more likely to be attended with dangerous results. I have heard it stated that a female cat ought to be allowed one litter of kittens before being oper- ated upon. There are not. many very fine neuters on exhibition at our shows, and this fact may perhaps be accounted for by reason of fanciers picking out weedy and altogether below the mark specimens of their litters to be gelded because they do not consider them worth keeping to breed from. In this way several poor specimens of neuters are to be 48 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. seen with indifferent markings, white spots, incorrect coloured eyes, and long noses. For a home pet there is, of course, nothing to come up to a fine neuter cat who will not roam, who does not attract amorous females, and who is content to lie for hours stretched out on the drawing-room rug or the kitchen hearth, the admired of all admirers. From the lips of many rioted breeders of Persian cats who have been troubled by wandering males and prolific females, I have heard the exclamation, " I shall end by keeping only neuters ! " Cat owners in general, and lovers of neuters in particular, might do worse than agitate for more consideration to be extended to these grand pets at our leading shows, and I cannot help thinking that a neuter club or society might be formed to assist in this and other objects connected with the general improve- ment of our neuter cats. CAROLLING. (Photo : Mrs. S. F. Clarke.) 49 ' IN A PLAYFUL SORT OF WAY. (Photo: E. Landof, Baling.) CHAPTER IV. HOUSING OF CATS. ' T^HE proper housing of valuable stock J_ is the first essential subject to be studied by the beginner in the cat fancy, and one requiring both careful thought and attention. For I do not hesitate to say that, of all the domestic animals, the cat is the most difficult to keep healthy and happy in the unnatural condition of total or partial confinement. Belonging to the ferae, its ori- ginal and savage nature still shows glimpses, not wholly tamed, in its independence of character and its roving habits ; while yet its civilised side shows the keenest appreci- ation of the comforts to be found in the home life. A house cat that enjoys its free- dom to go out as it pleases, to climb the garden walls, and anon to lie in purring con- tentment before the kitchen hearth, is a creature ailing little. It is the pedigreed pets, in their luxurious prisons, that too often fall a prey to disease. To establish a cattery, therefore, that shall be a pleasure and a pride to the owner, and not a source of worry and grief over perpetual illness amongst the in- mates, it is necessary in the very first incep- tion to study the chief needs of cat nature. Let us consider these in order. How our typical healthy cattery may be best arranged. It must be dry — was ever a cat yet seen of choice sitting in the wet ? It must have ample space, both of houses and runs, and inducements for exercise — a well-branched dead tree sunk in the gravelled run is good, besides divers posts, shelves, and benches. Let the aspect be bright, with lots of sunshine. A cat is a devotee of the sun — it is the life of young growing things, and the greatest de- stroyer of disease germs ; and it is very easy by coverings or the growth of climbing plants to provide temporary shade during the height of summer. For this last, nothing is better than that most useful and least fastidious king THE BOOK OF THE CAT. of climbers, the Virginian creeper, as it bestows its leafy shade just when required, and har- bours no damp, as the growth of thick, tall trees is apt to do. Lastly, let the outlook of the cattery be cheerful. Do not select a spot so far from the house life that the attendant who feeds and cleans is practically the only person the cats see in the twenty-four hours. A cat cat fancier is fortunate enough to be able to disregard expense, he can indulge in brick houses with every appliance for comfort and elegance of construction. For others, who can supply a working plan, an intelligent local carpenter (when found) can do much. Occa- sionally, also, it is possible to convert a portion of existing stabling to very efficient uses. But I must advise the beginner, as regards this A MUSICAL PARTY. (Photo : E. Landor, Ealing.) loves to observe, preferably from some secure high perch, whence it may see all that passes — to exchange greetings with the dogs, the gardener, the maids, the tradesmen coming to the door, and thus fill its imprisoned hours with interest. If you disregard this, and put your cats out of sight in some back yard, they will mope badly, and also grow very stupid. These principal requirements being borne in mind, individual fancy of building and arrangement may follow. Every breeder of experience has his own ideas of best design, according to means and circumstance. If a last suggestion, to be careful. If the stabling is modern, and possesses the main requisites I have already spoken about (of dryness, and space, and cheerful light), then all is, and will be, well. But if, as is often the case, the stable of temptation is old, perhaps unused for some years, is dark, with more than a suspicion of damp, and a very certain habitat of rats, then our fancier is emphatically warned against making any trial of it. short of pulling down and rebuilding. Let him rest assured, it would in the end mean the loss of money, time, care, and, most likely, breeding stock HOUSING OF CATS. too, and certain ill-health among the poor in- mates. I know a case in point where a cat fancier thus utilised a stable. A converted portion of old stabling that looked most de- sirable, and kept scrupulously clean, was used for a number of young kittens. Very soon a peculiar and most violent form of skin disease appeared amongst them, at first as mere scurfy patches, but swiftly assuming the form of contagious fever, which spread with frightful rapidity, infecting every cat with whom they came in contact. Not until after many deaths, and the most cruel sufferings of those- who struggled through the disease, was it at last discovered to be acute blood poisoning, produced by the exhalation of sewer gas from an old sewer running underneath the floors. Rats were probably responsible, either by gnawing through the pipes, or coming up into the cattery, themselves stricken with the foul disease. The site of the cattery selected, the pre- paration of the ground may be advisable, certainly on all clay soils. To ensure perfect dryncss, the top soil should be removed a foot or so and filled in with brick rubble or builders' rubbish. On this foundation, cement con- crete or asphalt may be laid down. Person- ally, for runs and floors, I prefer the cement ; it is easier to keep clean — a bucket of water can swill it from end to end, while it dries much faster than the asphalt. Asphalt in outside runs is apt to soften in the summer sun, and depress into holes, and within the houses the smell of the tar remains strong for some months. The cost of the two is much about the same, but in very damp situations the asphalt is preferable, as it prevents all ground-damp rising through. Now to plan out a medium-size cattery that shall be simple in construction and not ruin- ous to the modest beginner, let us suppose we have at our disposal a fair length of brick wall — say 60 to 70 feet in length — facing south, on slightly sloping ground. Our first proceeding will be to level and render damp- proof by a foot of rubble, as heretofore sug- gested, a strip n feet wide and about 45 feet along the wall, and to surface this strip with cement or asphalt. Upon this, and against the wall, we will erect our houses, a long wooden shed with lean-to roof, divided into three main divisions by matchboarding par- titions, and with a smaller house at either end, as shown in plan. A, the sleeping-room ; B, a playroom for queens and kittens ; and C, the third apart- ment for kittening, or cats it is desirable to isolate awhile. The smaller houses at the outside ends reserved for stud cats. D, doors from one apartment to another of wood. The outside woodwork is of i-inch feather-edged matchboarding, well-seasoned deal, a roof of wood, felted and tarred, being preferable to the use of corrugated iron, which is very hot in summer and very cold in winter ; an annual dressing of sand and tar keeps the felt water- tight for many years. Allow good wide eaves, and have gutter pipes all round. Inside, line the walls with wall felt, and limevvash ; or an inner lining of i-inch matchboarding, allow- ing a two-inch space to be packed with saw- dust, keeps the house very warm and dry. For the brick back wall, .j-inch matchboard- ing should be sufficient as lining. The dimen- sions of the sleeping-room, A, are 12 feet long by ii feet wide, and a wire frame partition with door subdivides this again into two equal parts. ! Against the back wall, at a height of about 20 inches from the floor, runs a broad shelf 4 feet wide, having inch-mesh wire net- ting frontage, half to open on hinges, and movable wooden partitions sliding in a slot ; these for the sleeping-pens, each 4 feet deep by 3 feet wide, two on either side the wire frame partition, or convertible into one 4 feet by 6 by removal of sliding wooden division. It will be warmer for the occupants if these pens are roofed in at a height of 3 feet. Cover the bench with oilcloth before putting up the divisions. This can be washed over daily if necessary, and will dry in a few moments, thus avoiding the dangers of scrubbing wood in damp weather. As nothing offensive can soak in, a pure atmosphere is preserved, and risk of infection is greatly minimised. THE BOOK OF THE CAT. A comfortable sleeping box or basket should be provided for each pen, filled in winter with plenty of sweet hay, and in summer with sheets of newspaper or brown paper. A cat loves to repose on paper, and it has the advantage of being cheaply renewable and easily burnt after a day or two's use. Never use old packing straw for bedding. It is frequently full of infectious germs, and many skin complaints have been traced to its use. Neither are cushions, blankets, old bits of carpet, matting, etc., to be recommended. They are apt to become damp in prolonged wet weather, and retain both dirt and odour. A sanitary tin to hold dry earth or sawdust should be placed in each cat house, emptied and washed out every morning by the attendant, when the floors are also swept out cr washed over. A fair-sized window, to open, must be in the front, and a door, the upper half of which might also be of glass, to open out into a gravel run. Outside wooden shutters for cold nights are a great help in keeping the house warm, and should be provided. Having arranged our first room, the playing room, B, next must come under consideration. This being the central division, the felt lining could here be dispensed with, and instead the boards can either be plainly stained and var- nished— which is also easy to keep perfectly clean — or Willesden damp-proof paper might be nailed over the walls. This paper, made at the Willesden Company's works, Willesden Junction, N.W., is made in several good colours for interior lining, and a house so hung looks very comfortable, and shows to advan- tage such mural decorations as show prize cards, photos of winners, etc. The frontage of this room is to be entirely glazed, in small panes set in a wooden framework, with a 6-inch high weather board at floor to protect from draughts, the glass protected on the inside by wire netting fastened over it. A window here to open outwards with a bolt, and fairly high up, to ensure fresh air in rainy weather without the wet and damp driving in on a level with the cats ; a half-glass door also to run, but no outside shutters will be here needed, the cats net occupying this room at night. Cover the asphalt floor with lino- leum or oilcloth, and put up some shelves 15 inches wide, fairly high up, but within leaping distance, against the walls ; a mov- able bench too, to place the cats upon fcr brushing and attending to them. Old chairs that can be spared from the house might end their service here ; or if the luxury of a plain wicker chair could be permitted, and furnished with one or two cushions in washable slip covers, it would be as pleasant for the owner when making her visits as for the pussies them- selves. A ball for the kittens, a reel hanging from a string, will stimulate healthy romps, even amongst the staid grown-up cats, when weary of indoor dozing. Room C C is primarily intended for the interesting occasions when new little prize- winners are -expected. This is subdivided by- wire as in sleeping-room, but the partition three feet from back wall should be of wood, to ensure privacy to the anxious mother, and to temper the light ; oilcloth on floor. For the littering nests themselves I describe, and advise my friends to make trial of, the following plan. Have a sort of shallow wooden box, or tray with sides, made about 4 feet 6 inches long by 24 inches high and 4-inch sides. This is stained, varnished, and mounted on wooden feet at the four corners about two inches high ; a good bed of hay is put in it, the box is put in a quiet corner away from the light, and a truss of new straw placed upright at one end of ^he box, leaning against the angle of the wall. A little of the straw at the bottom may be pulled out to suggest the idea of a hole to the cat ; but as a rule she takes to the noticn brilliantly, and will set to work to dig out a nest for herself with the greatest zest. In this the kittens are born, safe in a cosy nest at the end of a tunnel of straw. There is ample ventilation; they ore protected from all draughts, so that doors may be left open to the fresh air with impunity ; and they rnv in the dark, as kittens naturally should be till they walk out into the daylight of their own 54 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. desire to explore the world. Then the rest of the tray forms a glorious playground for the first week or two, when one adventurous mite finds out he can climb up the shallow sides, and tumble out on a large strange world of floor and trot after mamma. A well-known fancier tells me she has not had one litter with weak or bad eyes since she adopted the straw truss plan. One of these trays might be placed each side of the wooden partition, and if necessary to shut a nervous or surly cat up with her family, one might be enclosed in a wire front- age with door, as the sleeping-pens were ar- ranged. Let there be a good large window in this room, as the kittens, when running about, will want all the sunshine and air possible. This run should be of asphalt, for dryness and warmth, with plenty of play places arranged in it. An old barrel with the bottom knocked out affords great games, also the tree I have before spoken of ; a tree-stump or two, or a heap of dry brushwood stacked in a corner, will supply those climbing and hiding holes kittens so greatly enjoy, and afford protection from winds. A grass run and a gravelled one are designed in the plan, each having access to the other, and will allow the cats ample exercising ground according to weather. An oval flower-bed in the centre of the grass plot, planted with some evergreen bushes, is a good idea. It affords shelter, and the cats can dig in the dry earth. For the benches in the gravel run, an old outhouse door, painted and mounted on stout legs, makes a very good one, which the cats love to sit upon. The stud houses are simple : a wired-in space of 12 feet by n feet contains a house wiih lean-to roof 4 feet by 8 feet long, iitted with sleeping bench and box, wired win- dows, door for attendant, and small trap- door for cat. En passant, all doors should be fitted with good locks, and locked up after feeding at night is done. The stud run is gravelled, but a border of grass might be left on two sides — grass is such a necessity for cats in confinement, and they prefer to select it growing for themselves. The design here suggested is capable of either modification or extension. The plan can be enlarged to any extent. For instance, if desired, an attendant's cottage could be built at one end instead of the stud house, and comprise a special kitchen, and also an upper room, fitted with convenient pens for a hospital for the sick members — a very necessary adjunct to the cattery, as a sick cat should be at once re- moved from its healthy companions and kept in a place quite apart. More stud houses could be arranged at an angle on one side of the chief runs, or, if only a very few cats are intended to be kept, one of the divisions could be dispensed with, perhaps, and the dimensions of the other two made smaller. But whatever your ambitions may be, great or small, when you are about it have the work well done. The heating of catteries is a rather vexed question, many famous breeders affirming that stock raised without it are healthier and harder ; others maintaining that a certain amount of heat is a necessity for producing a good coat. A very experienced breeder once told me the heaviest-coated kittens she ever bred were reared over some hot-water pipes, :n a temperature of 70° ! With adult cats having partial freedom and allowed to come into the house in severe weather, and with stud cats, I consider the no-heat plan decidedly the best ; but I do not think it possible to rear young stock during the colder part of the year in an outdoor cattery without artificial heat. It is the damp of the English winter which proves so fatal, and damp can- not be kept out of the very best constructed houses except by the admission of dry heat. Kittens that are cold will not play, and if you see them huddled together on a cold day looking listless and uneasy, instead of romping, be sure it is fire heat they need. A thermometer should hang in each house, and the heat be carefully regulated by that, a minimum of 48° and a maximum of 55° being suggested. In houses where a flue is practic- able, a stove of the Tortoise pattern is to be recommended, but it needs a high guard around HOUSING OF CATS. 55 it. For a long range of brick-built houses, an outside flue and boiler, with hot-water pipes running the length of the cattery, would be found of most service, as it maintains an even and medium warmth throughout, keeps the building perfectly dry, and can be stoked with less trouble. In small wooden houses, very excellent results are given by the use of an oil stove with hot- water apparatus, such as are supplied for small greenhouses. The lamp will usually burn twenty -four hours without attention, is un-get-at-able by the cats, who can neither singe their tails nor knock it over during the wildest gambols, and if kept clean and looked to with care will not cause the slight- est odour. A quart of paraffin in one of these oil stoves will burn twenty - four hours, and heat a building 12 feet by 10 feet to 50°. Now, in concluding this little discourse upon catteries, the final word of advice is always to remem- ber the importance of absolute cleanliness. There should never be the least offensive smell in the cattery, and if such be noticed on entering the houses in the morn- ing, discover the cause and remedy it at once. And do not rely solely upon disinfect- A LITTER BOX. A USEFUL CAT HOUSE. sote in any quantity, or carbolic, I do not approve of, except in cases of illness of an infectious type, when stronger measures are obligatory. Xo dirty food dishes, no unchanged water, no soil of any kind, should ever be left about on flooring or bedding. Let your cattery be kept as scrupulously clean and sweet as a hos- pital, then will your cats thrive and kit- tens be healthy and sturdy. Do not elect to start a cattery unless you yourself intend to bestow both time and trouble upon it. In this, as in every other occupation or hobby, the one golden rule is, " Whatsoever thy hand findeth to do, do it with all thy might." APPLIANCES. In the preceding section on the cat- tery proper, I have not spoken of the very useful variety of portable houses which are now made a speciality of many firms, considering them more or less as accessories to the well appointed cattery. But in small town gardens, where space is valuable and it is not convenient to build a large permanent structure, it is quite possible to succeed extremely well when two ants to do this. Too frequently this is but or three cats only are kept by using these overcoming a bad smell by a stronger, the evil portable houses. They also have the advan- remaining. A good and non-injurious disin- tage of being removable and a " tenant's fectant should always be used in the water for fixture" in the event of leaving one's house, the daily cleansing of pans and floors, etc. A very good house is one built by Camphaleyne or Salubrene are both safe and Messrs. Boulton and Paul, of Norwich (see effective, but disinfectants that contain creo- illustration). It is a very pretty and well THE BOOK OF THE CAT. designed structure, and would be exceedingly ornamental in a sheltered corner of the garden. In putting up, however, it should be stood •upon brick piers to raise it at least four inches from the ground, or the wooden flooring would soon show damp. Cats kept in these small houses, it must be understood, should have their liberty at least a portion of every fine and dry day, the runs being wholly inadequate for a cat to be shut in continuously without further scope for exercise. Another illustration is a handy portable hutch, intended to be used chiefly in a house or room, although it is also convenient for penning young kittens out-of-doors on a sunny day. the wire run prevent- ing their straying away. It consists of a sleeping-box and small wire run hooked on, and can be made at the cost of a few shillings. The sleeping-box is 24 inches long by 17 inches wide and 22 inches high, is raised three inches from floor by a false bottom, and has a large door at back opening with a brass catch. In front, two side-pieces reduce the entry to 12 inches. A handle screwed on the top of the box is convenient for carrying. The run is 3 feet 6 inches by 24 inches-, made in four sections, two sides, top and end piece, all fitted and hooked together with i-inch mesh wire netting that it may be easily taken apart for carrying or storing away. It makes a useful sleeping-pen, too, for young toms that are inclined to quarrel together, and so have to be shut up separately at night. All the wood- work is stained and varnished, and a square of oilcloth laid on the floor of the sleeping-box. The next appliance to be considered is a somewhat gruesome adjunct to the cattery, and belongs to the darker side of our hobby. In spite of every care, illness and death must A POKTABLK HUTCH. enter now and again, when we are fain to retire worsted from the conflict with disease, and the wisest and kindest thing to do is to put our pet to sleep. The illustration given on the opposite page depicts a lethal box, as used at the Royal London Institution for Lost and Starving Cats at Camden Town, and is capable of holding twelve animals at a time. Mr. Ward, the well-known feline specialist of Manchester, has patented a lethal box of more moderate dimensions. Mr. Ward, not yet having an illustration of it, kindly writes me the description as follows : — " The box inside is 15 inches by 12 inches by 12 inches. A sheet of glass is inserted in the lid, so that the operator in a y watch the process. The vapour — coal gas passed through chloroform— enters through a tube at end. Two minutes is sufficient time." Fanciers, I think, will agree that this simple peace-giving box is not among the least of Mr. W'ard's kindly ministrations to the cats he loves so well. Few amongst us can bear to see unmoved the terrible last pains of a pet who in its days of health delighted us with its beauty. Feeding utensils we turn to next. For them nothing is more satisfactory than the unbreakable enamelled ware in white or blue —except, perhaps, for the water pans, for which it is scarcely weighty enough, and it not infrequently happens that a gay and frolicsome company of kittens will knock against them, sending them spinning, and the water is spilt upon the floor. The circular, heavy glazed earthenware dishes, spittoon-shaped, and generally in- scribed " Pussy," are excellent, and cannot be overturned. Besides the plates and saucers for feeding, HOUSING OF CATS. 57 let the cats have also a saucepan of their own, a deep stewpan-shaped one. of blue enamel, large enough to cook a sheep's head with biscuits. Cook will be far less prone to grum- ble at the necessary cooking for the cats — I speak here of a small cattery, when no attend- ant is kept — if her saucepans are not pressed into the service. But see that all are kept scrupulously clean, nothing " left over " in thesaucepan to be- come sour or tainted in hot weather ; and after each meal is cooked, the sauce- pin should be boiled out with soda and scoured clean. Earth tins. A great mistake made in these necessary items is having them too deep. I have seen an old zinc foot- bath supplied to two months old kittens with quite six inches of sawdust in it, and the owner wondered why she could not teach her kittens to be cleanly in their habits ! A 4 inch deep tray is quite deep enough, and this should not be tilled more than Uvn thirds full, or the cat rakes so much earth out on the floor. Neither do they require to be very large, as their weight when filled with soil makes them very cumbersome to move, and they get the more quickly knocked out of shape. The best size is about 17 inches by 14 inches and 4 inches deep, made in stout galvanised iron, with a rim round the edge, and these might be painted some light colour with Aspinall's enamel paint. (I advocate " light paint." as any dirt stains are seen at I.KTHAL CHAMUKK, ROYAL LONDON INSTITI'TION HOME FOR LOST AND STARVING CATS. (Photo : Cassell & Company, Limited.) once.) They will then last free from rust, and can be washed out every morning. Two or three tins of smaller size — say, 12 inches by 8 inches by 2 1- inches — are suggested for kittens, or for placing in small pens in an emergency. Baking tins answer this purpose. After washing, it is well to stand these trays in the air to sweeten, as if they smell disagree- able the cats will not u~e them. Messrs. Whiteley supply these zinc tins, or they can be made by any local ironmonger to di- mensions given. Hot - water appli- ances. These are very necessary in the cattery, and should by no means be for- gotten. Many a sick cat's life has been saved, and the critical corner in an illness turned, by the timely comfort and strength bestowed by the hot- water bottle or bag, or even a brick made hot in the oven and wrapped up. In the event of winter lit- ters, too, a hot-water bag should be always in readiness, in case it is advisable to remove the first-born kittens from the mother for a few hours. Heat will restore a seemingly dead kitten, as I have said before. The outside dwellers also, how they appreciate on a bitter winter's night the hot bottle or wrapped up hot brick to keep them cosy ! I know a luxurious stud cat who has a hot-water tin made to fit his sleeping box, which is filled by the maid every cold night and slid beneath his hay bed. Assuredly, there is no greater safeguard against winter's chills and THE BOOK OF THE CAT. SPRATT'S TRAVELLING BASKET. changes of temperature than to provide for your pets sleeping warmly and comfortably at night. The hot-bottle plan has many advantages over the heating of the sleeping houses by stove or lamp during the night. It is better for the animals themselves, as the air is not ex- hausted, and they are not so prone to take a chill going from heated air to the outside rawness of a w i n t e r's morning. It is much safer, and it is also much more economical. Personally I prefer the indiarubber bag to the old-fashioned stone bottle, and in the smaller sizes (which are quite large enough) are not much more expensive than the latter. If not filled too full, and wrapped in a wash- able cover — flannelette is very good — it can be laid flat under the hay, and the cat will remain upon it all night. In the case of a sick cat the cover should always be of flannel, to avoid any chill as the bag grows colder. Then, in our list of appliances, proper travel- ling baskets must come under consideration. I say " proper " advisedly, for how hetero- geneous is the collection of hampers, .boxes, baskets — I had almost added bundles — one sees brought in by the officials during the re- ceiving hours before a big show ! Every variety of package, very many of which are exactly what they ought not to be. Some unnecessarily elaborate, polished wooden cases with brass fittings — handsome and durable no doubt, but far too cumbersome, and by their very weight inflicting much jar on the occupant when moved about ; while others are a disgrace to anyone pretending to care about a cat or even to know what a cat is, many deserving to be straightway brought under the notice of the Society for the Pre- vention of Cruelty to Animals. I have seen big heavy cats jammed into margarine hampers, a thin wicker receptacle whose sides slope inwards like a flower-pot, where the animal must have suffered agonies of cramp in a veritable chamber of " little ease." Others are sent weary distances in shallow, rough grocery boxes with a few holes bored for ventilation, subject to be thrown about in transit, first on one side then oil the oth'er, the lid perchance nailed on, giving thereby much extra trouble to the penning officials. Little wonder if the cat arrives bruised, shaken, frightened nearly to death, and very probably wild and savage. Now, as evil is wrought bv want of thought (and common sense) as well as want of heart, I have thought it well to comment on these very wrong and stupid ways of sending our cats on their journeys before advising better arrangements. Here are two illustrations of excellent travelling baskets, which fulfil pretty nearly all requirements for cats travelling singly. The first is made by Messrs. Spratt, and has an inner skeleton lid, which is much to be recommended when sending a vicious or very timid cat that is likely to make a bolt on the basket being opened. The second, bee- hive shaped, is de- signed by Mrs. Paul Hardy, of Chobham. It is of strong white wicker, the lid fas- tening with a rim of about two inches deep over the body of the basket, aper- tures in the rim allowing the wicker loops of the fastenings to project ; when the cane stick is thrust through these the basket is absolutely secure — not a paw can get out. This beehive shape has several advantages. The cat can stand up and stretch itself at ease, when tired of lying down. The handle being A USEFUL CAT HASKET. 1 Q H I 5 o F g X J tn o« u ffi u 1 to THE BOOK OF THE CAT. at the apex, it is carried — even by porters — without the cat being tilted off its legs ; whilst the dome top prevents any other package being piled upon it — a disadvantage the flat-typed hamper always has. I line my baskets out- side with brown paper or oil baize up to the rim, and inside with curtaiji serge, leaving the lid free for ventilation. TTien, with plenty of hay at the bottom of the basket, the cat will travel from one end of England to the other in comfort and safety, with no danger of taking cold even if left about draughty platforms or in parcel offices. This basket is made by Messrs. Bull, of Guildford, at a very moderate cost, and lasts for years. These baskets are, of course, intended for one cat only, or a pair of kittens. A really safe and capable travelling arrangement for a litter with the mother has yet, I think, to be devised. I have seen none I think good. The double compartment hamper I much dis- like. The handles are perforce at each end, necessitating two carriers — who never do it — so the hamper is dragged by the porter or official with one end tilted (the other cat being nearly upside down), is leant up against other luggage, or dropped flat with a bang. \Vith young kittens inside this leads to fatalities. A label for the travelling basket seems an insignificant item to mention, but an efficient one is as important as that proverbial nail fcr whose absence the horse and the kingdom were lost. I have just made the acquaintance of a first-rate label, devised and sent out by a Mr. Foalstone, at sixpence per dozen, from the Aerefair Engineering Works, near Ruabon. It is a stout linen label, printed " Valuable Live Cat " in big block letters ; below is " Urgent " in red — a good idea, red being more likely to attract the casual eye of the railway official. Spaces are left below for line of travel, via, etc., and date and time of despatch. It is revers- ible, so the sender can fill up witli the return address if necessary. I always prefer to fasten the label down at both ends, flat to the basket : it is less likely to be torn away than when left hanging loose from one eyelet. It is by due attention to the details that cat fanciers can to some extent mitigate the dangers and risks that must necessarily attend the transit of live stock by rail. 6i WAKING BKACTIKS. (Pholo: Mrs. S. F. Clarke.-; CHAPTER V. EXHIBITING. MONGST cat fanciers there is a laudable ambition not only to breed good stock but to exhibit it. Certainly there is vastly more gratification and satisfaction in obtaining high honours for cats and kittens that we have bred ourselves, rather than for those specimens which money has purchased. If we consider that our cats have sufficiently good points to merit their being entered for a show, we must bear in mind that all the beauty and form and feature will be thrown away unless our pussies are in good show condition. For exhibition purposes condition means everything, and this is more especially the case with the long-haired breeds. A first-class specimen whose coat is ragged and matted cannot fail to suffer in the judges' estimation when compared with another cat, of inferior quality perhaps as regards points, but yet in the pink of condition, with its coat well groomed, its eye bright, its fur soft and silky. In the present day many of the sp imens penned are so close together in point of breed merit that a very little turns the scale one way or the other. I have often said to myself, when judging a class of cats, "This exhibit would be a winner but for its condi- tion," and I have had to put it down in the list. There is no doubt that with long-haired cats a fine full coat will cover a multitude of sins, but it cannot alter a long nose or pool- shape and bad-coloured eye ; and in urging the importance of condition, I at the same time deprecate the awarding of prizes to cats that have nothing to recommend them but their pelage. Seeing, therefore, that a handsome specimen may go to the wall for the lack of attention on the part of the owner, it behoves all cat1 fanciers and would-be exhibitors to do everything in their power to make their cats look their very best, so that their pets may be things of beauty in the show pen. In the dog, rabbit, and pigeon fancy a great deal more attention is given to condition than amongst cat fanciers, who need waking up to the fact that nothing goes so far to propitiate a judge as superb show form and general good appear- ance. There may be standards of points for the guidance of the awards, but assuredly a common-sense judge will look with disfavour on a specimen with excellence of breed and correct colour of eye if his coat is draggled and 62 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. matted, his tail dirty, and his fur soiled. We have only to run our minds back to the various exhibits of well-known fanciers at our large shows, and we shall find that the most per- sistently successful exhibitors have been those who have sent their cats to the shows in the best condition. Some fanciers, wishing to help on entries at a show, will exhibit their Persian cats when quite out of coat. This is a mistake ; send your entry money if you like to the secretary, but keep your coatless cats at home. As regards the short-haired breeds, these cats should have coats with a gloss and brilliancy like that of a well-groomed horse, shining like satin ; a spiky appearance in the fur denotes poor condition in both long and short breeds. In getting cats ready for exhibition owners should look to their comforts in every way. Their houses and beds should be kept clean, their coats combed and brushed daily. At- tention shouid be paid to their ears, for if these are neglected a cat will continually scratch them, and thus injure its appearance by tear- ing out its fur. Some fanciers are in favour of washing their cats, but when we take into consideration the usually delicate constitutions of Persian cats, and the restless, impatient nature of these animals, it behoves us to try to find some other effectual means of cleansing their coats, which in the case of white and silver cats are naturally easily soiled. Experi- ence has taught me that very good results can be obtained by damping the coats with a soft cloth dipped in a weak solution of ammonia and water. Follow this up by rubbing some white powder into the fur and well fingering the parts that are at all greasy. Pears' white precipitated fuller's earth is the best prepara- tion, and is perfectly harmless. To clean away the powder use a fairly soft brush, and after this process has been gone through several times your cat will be fit for show. Another method of cleaning long-haired cats is to heat a quantity of bran in the oven. Put it into a large bowl or footbath, and stand the puss in it. Rub the hot bran well amongst the fur for some minutes, and afterwards carefully brush it out. This treatment will give a soft and silky appearance to the coat, but for light- coloured cats the powder is more cleansing. Cats require to be educated to the show pen, and it is very necessary in some cases to give a course of training. For this purpose it is well to obtain a similar pen to those used at shows, and to place your puss in this for an hour or two daily. In time he will learn to come and sit and look out of his temporary prison, and when lie makes his d/'but he will not spoil his chances by crouching at the back of the show pen, or vex his would-be admirers, who may have recourse to the use of an um- brella or stick to make the exhibit move into a more convenient and conspicuous position. Taking it for granted you have decided to send your cat to a show, the first step is to register it in the club under whose rules the show is to be held. At present the National Cat Club and the Cat Club both require separate registration, the charge being one shilling. It is, however, to be hoped that the earnest wish of all cat fanciers and exhibitors will ere long be fulfilled, and that one register will be kept by an independent person, so that pedigrees can be verified and mistakes rectified, and the confusion caused by a double regis- tration will cease to worry and perplex the cat-loving community. Registration forms are supplied by the secretaries of the respective clubs, and you must fill in the particulars of your cats as set forth on the forms, a sample of which is here given, together with the regis- tration rules of the National Cat Club : — REGISTRATION. The registration rules of the National Cat Club are as follow : — I. Every Cat exhibited at a show under National Cat Club Rules must (except such as are exhibited exclusively in Local Classes, or exhibited in Classes exclusively for litters of kittens), previous to the time of entry for such show, have been entered in a registry kept by the National Cat Club at their offices. A charge of is. each shall be made for regis- tration. In such registry shall be inserted the name and breed of the cat, and its breeder's name, the date of birth, names of sire and dam, and of grand-sires and grand-dams, and if the dam was served by two or more cats their several names must be stated. If the age, pedigree, or breeder's name be not known the cat must be registered as breeder, EXHIBITING. age or pedigree " unknown," any or all, as the case may be. If the name of a cat be changed, or an old name re-assumed, such cat must be again registered and identified before exhibition in its altered name. 2. A name which has been duly registered in accordance with Rule i cannot be again accepted for registration of a cat of the same breed, without the addition of a distinguishing number, prefix, or affix, for a period of five years, calculated from the first day of the year next after the one in which the name was last registered ; but the name of a cat after publication in "Our Cats" and the Stud Book, or which has become eligible for free entry therein, cannot again be assumed. N.13. — The name of a cat that has become eligible for free entry in the Stud Booh in any year shall not be changed after the 3ist of December of that year. Cats do not receive a number on registration. Numbers are only assigned to Prize Winners or cats entered in the Stud Book on its publication, on payment of a fee of Five Shillings, in addition to One Shilling for registration. The application for registration must be made on a form as follows : — XIMDKK OK BREED AS PER LIST IN MARGIN _COLOUR I wish to register the following (Sex) by the name of Previously registered by the name of The various varieties as recognised by the Club are as follow : — Signature af Oancr (Mr., Mrs. or Miss) Address LATE OWNER (if any) SIRE I G. SIRE OWNER 01- SIKE DAM DAM OWNER OF DAM DATE OF BIRTH } G. SlRE_ _JG. DAM_ NAME & ADDRESS OF BREEDER NOTE. — If this name cannot be registered, I select one of the following, and nama them in the order named : (i) Only one cat must bo entered on one form, which must be forwarded with a remittance of one shilling to -Mrs. A. Stennard Robinson, Hon. Sec., at 5, Great James Street, Bedford Row, London, W.C. LONG-HAIRED CATS. 15. BLACK. 16. WHITE. 17. BLUE. 18. ORANGE. 19. CREAM. 20. SABLE. 21. SMOKE. 22. TABBY. 23. SPOTTED. 24. CHINCHILLA. 25. TORTOISESHELL. 26. BlCOLOUR. 27. TRICOLOUR. SHORT-HAIRED CATS. 1. SIAMESE. 2. BLUE. 3. MANX. 4. FOREIGN. 5. TABBY. 6. SPOTTED. 7. BICOLOUR. 8. TRICOLOUR. Q. TORTOISKSHELL. 10. BLACK. 11. WHITE. 12. SABLE. 13. TICKS. 14. ABYSSINIAN. It will be seen that you are requested to give more than one name, and it is very desirable in the first instance to select an uncommon one, which may be considered your cat's exhibition title, but you will doubtless have some short pet name for home use. A prefix, probably the name of the town or village in which you live, can be used to specially identify your cat. For this an extra charge is made. It is well to fill in the pedigree as far as possible, and every exhibitor should strive to obtain correct particulars of date of birth and name of breeder of 'the cat to be exhibited. It is a pity to label your cat " unknown," if with a small amount of trouble exact details can be ob- tained. At any rate, it is important to state the names of the two parents. The age of kittens should be counted by months — that is, say, from the 2Oth to the 20th. Having registered your cat, you receive a notification of such registration, and whether you are intending to exhibit or not it is very necessary and advisable that your cat should be duly registered in at least one of the parent clubs. A separate fee is charged for each cat or kitten in each class, and the amount must be forwarded at the same time as the entry is made. The following is a copy of the entry form used at the Cat Club's Show at Brighton in 1901, and I may mention that the fee for registration has since been raised from 6d. to is. : — 64 THE BOOK OF THE CAT. ENTRIES CLOSE MONDAY, NOVEMBER 4th, igoi. BRIGHTON CHAMPIONSHIP SHOW OF THE CAT CLUB, TO BE HKLD AT MELLISOVS HALL, WEST STREET, BRIGHTON, ON WEDNESDAY AND THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13™ AND i4TH, 1901, Under the Exhibition Rules of The Cat Club. RULE AS TO REGISTRATION OF NAMES OF CATS AND KITTENS. Every Cat or Kitten exhibited at a Show under The Cat Club Exhibition Rules MUST be Registered at the Cat Club. Fee 6d. Every Cat or Kitten which may have changed ownership since Registration MUST, before Exhibition, be Transferred to its new owner in the books of The Cat Club, Fee One Shilling. To change the name of a Cat or Kitten, when allowable, the fee is One Shilling. See The Cat Club Exhibition Rules, Nos. i to 6, in the Schedule. CERTIFICATE OF ENTRY. E f)U'fbj_)