THE DOMESTIC CAT. 197 
a wood or a warren may be infested with Cats living in a wild state, yet, in almost every 
case, they are only Domestic Cats in which the savage part of their nature has predom1- 
nated, and conquered the assumed habits of domestication. They have acted as men 
sometimes act under similar temptation, and have voluntarily taken to a savage life. As 
far as is at present known, the Egyptian Cat, for which see p. 192, is the origin of our 
Domestic Cat. 
In the long past times, when the Egyptian nation was at the head of the civilized 
world, the “ Felis maniculata ” was universally domesticated in their homes, while at the 
comparatively later days of English history the Domestic Cat was so scarce in England 
that royal edicts were issued for its preservation. Yet in those days, A.D. 948, the wild 
Cat was rife throughout the British Islands, and was reckoned as a noxious animal, 
which must be destroyed, and not a useful one which must be protected. It is conjec- 
tured that the Domestic Cat was imported from Egypt into Greece and Rome, and from 
thence to England. 
In the eyes of any one who has really examined, and can support the character of the 
Domestic Cat, she must appear to be a sadly calumniated creature. 
She is generally contrasted with the dog, much to her disfavour. His docility, 
affectionate disposition, and forgiveness of injuries; his reliability of character, and his 
wonderful intellectual powers are spoken of, as truly they deserve, with great enthusiasm 
and respect. But these amiable traits of character are brought into violent contrast with 
sundry ill-conditioned qualities which are attributed to the Cat, and wrongly so. The 
Cat is held up to reprobation as a selfish animal, seeking her own comfort and disregardful 
of others ; attached only to localities, and bearing no real affection for her owners. She is 
said to be sly and treacherous, hiding her talons in her velvety paws as long as she is 
in a good temper, but ready to use them upon her best friends if she is crossed in her 
humours. 
Whatever may have been the experience of those who gave so slanderous a character 
to the Cat, my own rather wide acquaintance with this animal has led me to very 
different conclusions. The Cats with which I have been most familiar have been as 
docile, tractable, and good-tempered as any dog could be, and displayed an amount of 
intellectual power which would be equalled by very few dogs, and surpassed by none. 
With regard to the comparatively good and bad temper of the Cat and dog, there is 
as much to be said in favour of the former as of the latter animal, while, as to their mental 
capacities, the scale certainly does not preponderate so decidedly on the side of the dog 
as is generally imagined. Nor is my own experience a solitary one, for in almost every 
instance where my friends have possessed favourite Cats the result has been the same. 
For example, the following lines are an extract from a letter, which was sent to me, 
narrating the habits of two of these animals :— . 
“T must now tell you something about our Mincing Lane Cats. Their home was the 
cellar, and their habits and surroundings, as you may imagine from the locality, were 
decidedly commercial. We had one cunning old black fellow, whose wisdom was acquired 
by sad experience. In early youth he must have been very careless; he was then always 
getting in the way of the men and the wine cases, and frequent were the disasters he 
suffered from coming into collision with moving bodies. His ribs had been often fractured, 
and when Nature repaired them she must have handed them over to the care of her 
‘prentice hand,’ for the work was done in rather a rough and knotty manner. This 
battered and suffering pussy was at last assisted by a younger hero, who, profiting by 
the teachings of his senior, managed to avoid the scrapes which had tortured the one who 
was self-educated. 
These two Cats, senior and junior, appeared to swear (Cats will swear) eternal 
friendship at first sight. An interchange of good offices between them was at once 
established. ‘Senior’ taught ‘junior’ to avoid men’s feet, and wine cases in motion, and 
pointed out the favourite hunting grounds, while ‘junior’ offered to his mentor the aid 
of his activity and physical prowess. 
Senior had a cultivated and epicurean taste for mice, which he was too old to catch ; 
