204 PRESCIENCE OF THE CAT. 



times. He took the Cat in his arms, and when he attempted to put her down, she clung 

 tightly to his breast, and gave him to understand in her own feline language that she 

 was going home with him. Six hours after this return of the wanderer the mill was 

 discovered to be on fire, and in a short time was reduced to a heap of blackened and 

 smouldering ruins. 



Since that time the Cat has remained complacently with her former companions at 

 Biggiesknowe, in spite of the ancient adage, which says that, " in Biggiesknowe, there is 

 neither a bannock (/. e., oatmeal cake) to borrow nor lend." Reference will be made 

 to this mill in a future portion of this work. a 



An objection may be made to the term " prescience " in this case, on the grounds 

 that the fire might possibly have been smouldering when the Cat left the mill, and that 

 the creature might have taken the alarm from seeing the fire in existence, and not from a 

 prospective intimation of the future conflagration. But even supposing that this con- 

 jecture were true, it must be remembered that Cats are remarkable for their strong 

 attachment to a fire, and that this animal would rather be attracted than alarmed by the 

 grateful warmth of the burning wood. Moreover, from the time when the Cat found 

 her former master to that when the fire was discovered, six hours had passed, and we 

 may reasonably conclude that the animal had left the mill for some little time before 

 renewing her broken acquaintance. It would be hardly probable that if the fire had 

 been sufficiently powerful to make the Cat decamp from her residence, so many hours 

 would have elapsed before the flames manifested themselves. 



Among other differences between the habits of wild and domesticated animals, the 

 effect which fire has upon them is very remarkable. We all know how the domestic 

 Cat is always found near the fire, perched on the hearth-rug, or sometimes sitting inside 

 the fender, to the imminent danger of her fur and whiskers. Yet there is nothing 

 which so utterly terrifies the wild felidae as the blaze of a glowing fire. Surrounded by 

 a fiery circle the traveller sleeps secure, the waving flames being a stronger barrier 

 between himself and the fierce hungry beasts than would be afforded by stone or wood 

 of ten times the height. 



Another Cat, also an inhabitant of Scotland, exhibited a mysterious intuitive power, 

 which equalled, if not surpassed, that which has just been narrated. 



She was the property of a newly-married couple, .who resided towards the north of 

 Scotland, where the country narrows considerably by reason of the deeply-cut inlets of 

 the surrounding sea. Their cottage was at no great distance from the sea, and there 

 they remained for some months. After a while the householders changed their locality, 

 and took up their residence in a house near the opposite coast. As the intervening 

 country was so hilly and rugged that there would have been much difficulty in trans- 

 porting the household goods, the aid of a ship was called in, and after giving their 

 Cat to a neighbor, the man and his wife proceeded by sea to their new home. After 

 they had been settled for some weeks, they were surprised by the sudden appearance 

 of their Cat, which presented itself at their door, weary, ragged, and half-starved. As 

 might be expected, she was joyfully received, and soon recovered her good looks. 



It is hardly possible to conceive whence the animal could have obtained her informa- 

 tion. Even if the usual means of land transport had been taken, it would have been 

 most wonderful that the Cat should have been able to trace the line of journey. But 

 when, as in the present instance, the human travellers went by water, and the feline 

 traveller went by land, there seems to be no clue to the guiding power which directed 

 the animal in its course, and brought it safely to the desired goal. 



A rather quaint use was lately made of the strange capacity which is possessed by 

 Cats of finding their way home under difficulties which would cause almost every other 

 animal to fail. Eighteen cats, belonging to different persons, were put in baskets, and 

 carried by night to a distance of three miles, when they were set at liberty at a given 

 moment. A wager was laid upon them, and the Cat that got home first was to be the 

 winner. One of the animals arrived at its residence within an hour, and carried off 

 the prize. Three only delayed their arrival until the next morning. 



Although the natural disagreement of Cat and dog is so great that it has passed into a 

 proverb, these two animals will generally become very friendly if they are inhabitants 



