74 



OUR DOMESTIC ANIMALS 



It is not known how this animal first came 

 to Europe. It is certain that before the Middle 

 Ages it was already domesticated, but not ex- 

 clusively for hunting rats and mice, because 

 half-tamed weasels fastened to a chain were 

 still used for that purpose. Its small size and 

 gentle and insinuating 

 manners probabl}- 

 helped to open the 

 doors of houses to this 

 always rather rapa- 

 cious animal. At some 

 period in the world's 

 history before our era 

 the cat was tamed, 

 at any rate certainly 

 before it came to 

 Europe. It could not 

 have been a slight 

 matter to tame a race 

 naturally so wild and 

 sly ; the honor prob- 

 ably belongs to that 

 ancient Eg}'ptian peo- 

 ple, so strange and 

 yet so interesting, the 

 building of whose gigantic works is lost in the 

 night of time. Thus we can only feel our way 

 in the darkness when we try to discover the 

 relations of that people with savage or half- 

 savage animals. 



The domestic cat differs too much from the 

 wild cat, still existing, to enable us to draw 

 conclusions from this domestication. The wild 

 cat exists as the domestic cat does, but the 

 link between them escapes our knowledge com- 

 pletely. There is a species of cat, the Nubian 

 cat, met with in the north of Africa, the shape 

 of whose skull has a strong resemblance to that 

 of the domestic cat ; and possibly it might 

 form a bridge over the abyss made by the 

 c|uestion of the descent of cats. In the opinion 

 of several learned men the Nubian cat was re- 

 lated to the ancient Egyptian cat. He is small, 

 and the mummied cats of Egypt, discovered 

 here and there, were a small species. The 

 Nubian cat is easy to domesticate, though it is 

 still rare in Europe. Its color (an important 



liLl'F.-W'HITi:, LllXli 

 From p.iinting 



factor in distinguishing cats) is a tawn)- gra\' 

 or yellow, becoming lighter on the flanks and 

 white on the stomach. It has transversal black 

 stripes, and on the neck similar stripes run- 

 ning longitudinally. The tail has three black 

 rings, and the tip is also black. 



In certain parts of 

 Germany a n o t h e r 

 species of wild cat is 

 found that commits 

 great ravages among 

 feathered and furry 

 game when he ven- 

 tures to quit the for- 

 ests. This species, 

 which is larger and 

 more square in shape 

 than the domestic cat, 

 is of a dark color, 

 except on the throat, 

 which is spotted with 

 white. The cat of the 

 steppes, though do- 

 mesticated here and 

 there in Siberia, may 

 be regarded as half 

 wild on account of its savage and combative 

 nature. The cat was, therefore, probably intro- 

 duced into Europe completely tamed from the 

 south and southeast ; but it has never been 

 generally valued like the dog. There are even 

 regions in the north of Germany where its life 

 is not safe ; it is in this country, in France, 

 England, and the south of Europe that it is 

 most valued. A predilection for dogs is sel- 

 dom accompanied with much sympathy for 

 cats, and vice versa. 



Yet many famous personages, Mohammed, 

 for example, have held them in affection. One 

 day a cat of his was sleeping on the skirt of his 

 sacerdotal garment when the signal for prayer 

 was given from the cupola of the mosque; the 

 prophet, whose duty it was to rise and go to 

 perform that ceremony, cut off the skirt of his 

 garment that he might not wake the animal. 

 Richelieu was also a great friend of cats. Col- 

 bert never worked without putting one or two 

 on his table ; as soon as they began to purr he 



Haiki.ii M.M.i: C.\T 

 by E. I.andur 



