148 The Book of Cats. 



that she should have only taken two, the exact 

 number she had been deprived of. 



A lady had a tortoiseshell Cat and a black and 

 white one. A few years ago, the latter was ob- 

 served to carry her kitten, when two or three days 

 old, to her companion, who brought it up with her 

 own kitten, though of a different age, with all the 

 tenderness of a mother. This was done time after 

 time, for several years ; but last year it was reversed, 

 the black and white Cat taking her turn to dis- 

 charge the duties of wet-nurse to the kitten of the 

 other. It is probable that a deficiency of milk was 

 the cause of the Cats not suckling their young. 

 I find in the Leisure Hour this story : — 

 *' A lady of the writer's acquaintance was once 

 walking amid the scenery of the Isle of Wight, 

 when she observed a little kitten curled up on a 

 mossy bank, in all the security of a mid-day nap. 

 It was a beautiful little creature, and the lady 

 gently approached, in order to stroke it, when 

 suddenly down swooped a hawk, pounced upon the 

 sleeping kitten, and completely hid it from her 

 sight. It was a kestrel : our friend was greatly 

 shocked, and tried to rescue the little victim ; but 

 the kestrel stood at bay and refused to move. 

 There he stood on the bank, firmly facing her, and 



