65 



the people who asserted they had no rats really had them at the 

 time, although they did not realize it, as there are many more 

 rats than are seen by human eyes. Mr. McMahon, in this 

 canvass, found a village where quantities of fowls were kept and 

 where cats were depended on to exterminate the rats. Every- 

 body there seemed to believe that cats were effective as rat 

 exterminators, and no one seemed to be using traps or poisons. 

 The village was canvassed quite thoroughly, and every place was 

 found infested by rats, while in nearly every place cats were 

 kept. The evidence did not confirm the popular belief in the cat. 



These statistics were taken in summer and early fall, before 

 the rats began to come into buildings for the winter. A census 

 taken in December probably would have revealed a larger num- 

 ber of places infested. Most people are not anxious to admit 

 that there are rats in their dwellings.- The above facts consid- 

 ered, it is probable that some of the figures given unduly favor 

 the cat. 



Turning now^ to the observers who filled out the questionnaire, 

 a large part of whom are town or city people, we find the fol- 

 lowing : — 



Reports, 324 



Keep cats, 99 



Number kept, 132 



Do not keep cats, 225 



Average niunber of cats per family of correspondents keeping cats, . 1.3 



Cats per family in neighborhood, reports, 360 



Total number of cats on these reports, 515 



Average number of cats per family in neighborhood, . . . .1.4 



Rats numerous, 78 



Rats common, 151 



Rats rare, 137 



Rats have decreased since cats were obtained, 164 



Rats have not decreased since cats were obtained, 94 



Believe cats exterminate or drive out rats, 71 



Beheve cats do not exterminate or drive out rats, ..... 221 



Mice have decreased since cats were obtained, 190 



Mice have not decreased since cats were obtained, 71 



Believe cats exterminate or drive out mice, 84 



Believe cat-s do not exterminate or drive out mice, 217 



Have both cats and rats, 65 



Cats kept as pets alone, 84 



Cats kept as mousers, 39 



Cats kept as both pets and mousers, 169 



A typographical error in the questionnaire makes it impossible 

 in most cases to get the maximum number of rats or mice killed 

 by a cat in one day, as the question regarding rats reads, "How 



