"294 THE BOOK OF A NATURALIST 



about the friendship of the poets, and the attempt to live up 

 to their interest in him is playing havoc with his sincerity, and 

 making him only less of a nevrose than the quite unnecessary 

 cat. His earlier difficulty with the Egyptians is a warning 

 that ought to serve for all time. If he ate up Apis it was but 

 as a rough and ready way of inviting the worshippers of Apis 

 to leave him alone." 



