rubbed itself against his legs and went in also. 

 On obtaining a light, he recognised in this 

 stranger his own lost kitten. Not long after this, 

 a boy whose leg had been severely bitten by a 

 large dog was brought to the surgery. Whilst 

 his leg was being dressed, the cat entered the 

 room, on which the patient immediately ex- 

 claimed — " Why ! that's my master's cat!" The 

 boy was questioned closely; and his statement 

 was, that his master had, in a state of drunken- 

 ness, when passing the surgery door, taken up 

 the kitten, put it in his coat pocket, and carried it 

 home. Its restoration took place, from the circum- 

 stance of the female servant having entered the 

 village followed by the cat. Passing her old mas- 

 ter's house, her memory at once told her where she 

 was, and here she tarried till the door was 

 opened as I have described. The cat was, for 

 her sagacity, christened " Wit." She exhibited 

 throughout her life some remarkably good traits, 

 — among others, she once secured a favorite 

 canary of her master's in her mouth, until a 

 strange cat who had entered the house unper- 

 ceived, was driven out. Eventually poor Pussy 

 died of cancer, at Thames Ditton, where all her 

 virtues are faithfully recorded, and lovingly re- 

 membered. Surely, Mr. Editor, cats possess 

 occasionally something more than instinct? — 

 Verax. 



Sunburn. — Dear Mr. Editor, I heard my brother 

 say, yesterday, that you were called the " custos 

 morum puellarum." Not knowing what he meant 

 by the expression, I made him first write down 

 the words, and then tell me the meaning after- 

 wards. By this I shall not have committed 

 myself in incorrect Latin, nor mistake your 

 character as " custodian of the morals, manners, 

 habits, and thoughts of us young ladies." You 

 see how friendly I am towards you. In this I 

 am selfish, for I want you to be friendly towards 

 me. [Why not ?] My face is at present free 

 from freckles or disfigurements of any kind; 

 but I am told that if I go out in the sun, or 

 walk in the garden in the daytime, " my beauti- 

 ful complexion" will be ruined. This is ever- 

 lastingly dinned in my ears. Now, I love a 

 nice walk; and I am so full of animal spirits, 

 that I am really tired of being confined to the 

 house. Can you, " dear Mr. Kidd," tell me how 

 to prevent sunburn? There are reasons, entre 

 nous, why " my pretty face" should not be burnt, 

 or scorched, or freckled, or tanned. Comprenez 

 vous? — Eliza F. 



[" Comprenez vous?" Assure'ment, oui! Made- 

 moiselle. We are perfectly clairvoyant. That 

 you have a sweet countenance we will take for 

 granted; for such candor as yours would not say 

 so, were it otherwise. But how to enjoy Nature, 

 and preserve your beautiful complexion — " aye, 

 there's the rub ! " How perplexing it is, to think 

 that a fair lady cannot even exchange a laughing- 

 look, with the sun, but she must suffer for the 

 innocent frolic ! 



Vain-glorious rose, thy boast forbear, 

 Trust not May, though heavenly fair, 

 Now laugh amid thy leaves— but know 

 Thy beauteous ruin thence shall flow. 



Yet so it is. Such are all our pleasures; 

 punishment and pain uniformly following close 



upon human delight. We love, dearly love, to 

 see a pure, delicate, and transparent complexion. 

 It awakens all the pretty associations of lilies 

 gemmed with dew, and roses breathing their 

 aromatic odors in the freshness of a summer 

 morning. Yet must not such a face dare to enjoy 

 a summer ramble, nor romp among the tanned 

 and sun-baked haycocks. In your case, we are 

 not asked for an opinion ; else should we indi- 

 vidually confess to the singularity of liking a little 

 dash of sunburn, or a dotting of nice, delicate 

 little freckles on the brow of beauty. Lord 

 Byron has said of Italy: "thy very weeds are 

 beautiful; thy wreck a glory." So say we of a 

 fair face upon which Apollo has imprinted his 

 summer mark. As a rule, we believe that the 

 predisposition to sunburn arises from the super- 

 abundance of bile which the heat of summer so 

 often produces. In such case, you must apply 

 to your domestic physician ; for if the system be 

 deranged, or your limbs languid and soon 

 wearied, no hope have you to escape from sun- 

 burn by the use of a preventive wash. We have 

 not much faith in these latter, but are told that the 

 following is one of the best of the good: — "Take 

 tAvo drachms of borax, one of Roman alum, one 

 of camphor, half an ounce of sugar-candy (white), 

 and a pound of ox -gall. Mix and stir these well 

 together for about ten minutes, and repeat this 

 three or four times a-day for a fortnight, till it 

 appears clear and transparent. Strain through 

 blotting-paper, and bottle up for use. Every time 

 you go out where the sun shines, the face should 

 be washed with this. Bear in lively remembrance, 

 Miss Eliza, that white veils have a tendency 

 to increase sunburn and freckles, by their in- 

 creasing — as they do — the intensity of the sun's 

 light. They are also very injurious to the sight; 

 and will in a short time spoil the freshness, and 

 dim the lustre of the most brilliant eyes. Of 

 the two, the now-fashionable " uglies" (ugly, 

 indeed !) or "shrouds," as they are more properly 

 called, are preferable to shield the face from the 

 heat. We do not say " wear them," for we 

 detest and abhor them ; we merely say they are 

 preferable to white veils, where protection of the 

 countenance is a matter of importance.] 



Canaries' Eggs without Shells. — I have only 

 just commenced taking your Paper, Mr. Editor; 

 and am therefore ignorant as to whether or not 

 you have treated on the cause of this evil. If 

 you have, will you be so kind as to refer me 

 to chapter and verse, as I have several pairs of 

 beautiful birds, and have four or five eggs laid, 

 deficient of shells. Have you written at any 

 length about the treatment of Canaries while 

 breeding ? — Penelope. 



[By all means procure our first half-yearly 

 Volume. By referring to the Index, you will 

 find at page 298 what you wish to know with 

 respect to " soft eggs ;" and under the head of 

 " Canary," are references out of number for, 

 directions as to their care and management. Our 

 periodical is not ephemeral. It will be as useful 

 twenty years hence, as at the present time ; inas- 

 much as all the information it contains is prac- 

 tical. You are quite welcome to " consult us" 

 whenever you so will.] 





