lo GENTLENESS AND KINDNESS. 



otherwise, you generally lose three to four pieces of skin 

 from your hand ; the cat knows he has done it, and feels 

 revenged. Some cats do not like their ears touched, others 

 their backs, others their tails. I have one now (Fritz) ; he 

 has such a great dislike to having his tail touched that if we 

 only point to it and say " Tail ! " he growls, and if repeated 

 he will get up and go out of the room, even though he was 

 enjoying the comfort of his basket before a good fire. By 

 avoiding anything that is known to tease an animal, no 

 matter what, it will be found that is the true way, combined 

 with gentle treatment and oft caressing, to tame and to 

 make them love you, even those whose temper is none of 

 the best. This is equally applicable to horses, cows, and 

 dogs as to cats. Gentleness and kindness will work wonders 

 with animals, and, I take it, is not lost on human beings. 



The distance cats will travel to find and regain the home 

 they have been taken from is surprising. One my groom 

 begged of me, as he said he had no cat at home, and he 

 was fond of " the dear thing," but he really wanted to be 

 rid of it, as I found afterwards. He took the poor animal 

 away in a hamper, and after carrying it some three miles 

 through London streets, threw it into the Surrey Canal. 

 That cat was sitting wet and dirty outside the stable when 

 he came in the morning, and went in joyfully on his open- 

 ing the door, ran up to and climbed on to the back of its 

 favourite, the horse, who neighed a "welcome home." The 

 man left that week. 



Another instance, and I could give many more, but this 

 will suffice. It is said that if you wish an old cat to stay 

 you should have the mother with the kitten or kittens, but 

 this sometimes fails to keep her. Having a fancy for a 

 beautiful brown tabby, I purchased her and kitten from a 

 cottager living two miles and a half away. The next day I 

 let her out, keeping the kitten in a basket before the fire. 

 In half an hour mother and child were gone, and though 

 she had to carry her little one through woods, hedgerows, 

 across grass and arable fields, she arrived home with her 

 young charge quite safely the following day, though evidently 



