CONCERNING CATS 
ISTORY does not record the name of the 
person who first conceived the idea of 
domesticating the cat. All we know with 
certainty is that the individual in question 
was not an Englishman. Some people, learned in phil- 
ology, assert that pussy was first domesticated in 
Persia. The evidence upon which this theory is 
based is the name “Puss,” which is alleged to be a 
corruption of “ Perse.” Personally, I would not hang 
a dog, much less consign a cat to Persia, upon such 
evidence. 
Wherever it was first domesticated, the cat soon 
came to occupy a high position in human esteem. 
This is proved by the fact that cat mummies have 
been discovered in Egypt, where temples were dedi- 
cated to the quadruped. How the creature succeeded 
in thus ingratiating itself isa mystery to me. I have 
studied the ways of the animal for some years, and 
have been unable to discover a shred of respectability 
about pussy’s character. It is true that I admire the 
magnificent way in which the cat always falls on its 
feet when thrown out of the window. I once saw a cat 
flung from the third floor of a London house. Puss fell 
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