CATS OF TO-DAY. 



33 



the wily London sparrow or pick up any scraps 

 from the gutter. The humbler folk very fre- 

 quently manifest vastly greater solicitude for 

 the Tom or the Tabby of their hearths than do 

 their social superiors. All lovers of cats owe a 

 debt of gratitude to those truly noble ladies 

 who have begun and carry on such a merciful 

 work in our midst. To attempt to alleviate 

 suffering must appeal to all ; and even those 



In our sister isle there is a Cats' Home, 

 established sixteen years ago by Miss Swifte 

 in Dublin, and she has most gallantly carried 

 out the beneficent objects with which she 

 started her humane work. No doubt she and 

 other founders of similar institutions have had 

 to suffer a considerable amount of ridicule, 

 for with many human beings the cat is 

 regarded as little deserving of commiseration 



ROYAL LONDON' INSTITUTION FOR LOST AND STARVING CATS. 



(Photo : Cassell & Company, Limited.) 



who have an instinctive dislike to harmless 

 cats cannot fail to see the immense benefit 

 to be derived by the public at large from 

 the noble endeavour to clear our London 

 streets, squares, parks, and empty houses of 

 these poor forlorn and friendless creatures. 



At. the Battersea Home for Lost Dogs there 

 are also splendid arrangements for stray cats, 

 and at a very small charge per week cats can 

 be ^ taken in to board. The catteries are 

 capitally arranged, and the feeding is ex- 

 cellent. 



or kindness. It is, however, a sign of increased 

 justice and benevolence that these homes for 

 cats do exist and obtain public support, al- 

 though the funds received are, according to 

 all accounts, very inadequate to meet all 

 the expenses. This must surely be partly 

 because these splendid institutions are so 

 little known to the general public. 



Our American cousins are not behindhand 

 in their laudable endeavours to cope with the 

 question of lost and starving cats, and an 

 institution similar to our Battersea Home was 



