The Book of Cats. iSl 



There shall the worthies of the whiskered race 

 Elysian mice o'er floors of sapphire chase, 

 Midst beds of aromatic marum stray, 

 Or raptur'd rove beside the milky way. 

 Kittens, than eastern houris fairer seen, 

 Whose bright eyes glisten with immortal green. 

 Shall smooth for tabby swains their yielding fur, 

 And, to their amorous mews, assenting purr ; — 

 There, like Alcmena's, shall Grimalkin's son 

 In bliss repose, — his mousing labours done, 

 Fate, envy, curs, time, tide, and traps defy, 

 And caterwaul to all eternity." 



To conclude this Chapter, an incident which toak 

 place only a few days ago, in Essex, at a village 

 within forty miles of London, and which came 

 under the personal knowledge of the writer, may 

 be adduced, to show that, however witchcraft may 

 have been laughed away — and laughter has been 

 more effectual to rid the world of it than rope or 

 stake — there are still to be found individuals who 

 believe in the evil powers of hook-nosed crones, 

 black Cats, and broom-sticks. 



In a squalid hut lived a miserable dame, whose 

 only claims to a demoniacal connection were her 

 excessive age and her sombre Cat. Whether the 

 nei2"hbours thoug;ht the Cat was more of a witch 

 than the woman, or whether they had a wholesome 

 dread of the punishment inflicted upon murderers. 



