Concerning the ^^ Pretty Lady" 



There are many remarkable stories of cats who 

 find their way home across almost impossible roads 

 and enormous distances. There is a saying, believed 

 by many people, " You can't lose a cat," which can 

 be proved by hundreds of remarkable returns. But 

 the Pretty Lady had absolutely no sense of locality. 

 She had always lived indoors and had never been 

 allowed to roam the neighborhood. It was five 

 weeks before we found trace of her, and then only 

 by accident. My sister was passing a field of grain, 

 and caught a glimpse of a small creature which she 

 at first thought to be a woodchuck. She turned and 

 looked at it, and called " Pussy, pussy," when with a 

 heart-breaking little cry of utter delight and surprise, 

 our beloved cat came toward her. From the first, 

 the wide expanse of the country had confused her ; 

 she had evidently " lost her bearings " and was prob- 

 ably all the time within fifteen minutes' walk of the 

 farm-house. 



When found, she was only a shadow of herself, 

 and for the first and only time in her life we could 

 count her ribs. She was wild with delight, and clung 

 to my sister's arms as though fearing to lose her; 

 and in all the fuss that was made over her return, no 

 human being could have showed more affection, or 

 more satisfaction at finding her old friends again. 



That she really was lost, and had no sense of local- 

 ity to guide her home, was proven by her conduct 

 after she returned to her Boston home. I had pre- 



