The Book of Cats, 281 



punished. Sometimes it has only five cords." 

 The following passage occurs in Mr. Sala's Waterloo 

 to the Peninsula : — " A Dutch king, they say, intro- 

 duced the cat-o'-nine tails in the British army : ere 

 the Nassauer's coming the scourge had three 

 thongs." 



There is a little story of feline affection for 

 which I should have found a place in an earlier 

 chapter. A lady had a Cat which she called " the 

 Methodist Parson." It used for years regularly to 

 go away every Sunday morning, and return to its 

 home on the next (the Monday) morning. It was 

 never known to miss for a series of years, going 

 away on the Sunday morning, except upon one 

 occasion, when it stopped at home on the Sunday, 

 and went away on the Monday morning. After 

 this it never returned. In the same lady's house 

 upon a certain occasion, for some reason or other, 

 the water was turned off. It was in the evening, 

 and she had the tap of the water-butt turned on, 

 with a tub under it, thinking they would get water 

 when they wanted it. The family went to bed, 

 forgetting that the water-tap was left turned on. 

 In the course of the night the Cat came to the 

 lady's bedroom door, making a great noise, mewing. 

 Her husband got up several times, and drove it 



