On the Life of a Domestic Gat. 



379 



any permanent interruption of their amity till his death, 

 which took place on 27th October 1864. 



I kept a record of her kittenings. They were 25 in 

 number, comprising 78 individuals. The first occurred on 

 1st December 1853, and the last on 25th December 1864. 

 They are as follows : — 



1853, Dec. 1. Three— 2 red, 1 black. 



1854, Mar. 31. Four— 3 black, 1 red. 



1855, Apr. 28. Three— 2 tortoise, 1 red. 



„ July 16. Four— 2 black, 1 red, 1 tortoise. 



1856, Jan. 17. Three— 2 black, 1 tortoise. 



„ Apr. 26. Four — 2 red, 1 black and white, 1 black and brown. 

 „ Nov. 16. Three — 1 black, 1 white, 1 black and white. 



1857, Mar. 14. Four— 3 black and white, 1 tortoise. 



„ July 31. Three — 1 black, 1 red, 1 black and white. 

 „ Dec. 15. Three— 1 black, 1 white, 1 white and brown. 



1858, Apr. 26. Two— Both white. 



,, Dec. 16. Two — 1 nearly white, 1 nearly black. 



1859, Apr. 25. Two— Both white. 



1860, Mar. 6. Three— 2 white, 1 black and white. 

 ,, July 16. Four — 2 white, 1 yellow, 1 black. 



1861, Jan. 26. Three — 1 black, 1 white, 1 black and white. 

 „ June 9. Four — 1 black, 1 black and white, 2 white. 



1862, Jan. 14. Three — All pure white. 



„ May 17. Three — 1 white, 1 black and white, 1 tortoise?. 

 ,, Oct. 13. One— Red. 



1863, Mar. 9. Four— 2 white, 1 gray, 1 red 



„ Sept. 8. Four — All more or less tortoise. 



1864, Feb. 4. Four — 3 gray, 1 reddish (2 of them malformed). 

 ,, June 20. Two — Both black and white. 



,, Dec. 25. Three — 1 nearly black, 1 nearly white, 1 tortoise. 



This record is perfectly accurate as to dates and numbers, 

 although there may be some mistakes as to the colours. 

 The inspection was generally hasty. We always brought 

 up one of the kittens, partly for the sake of the mother, and 

 also because her progeny was valued by our neighbours, as 

 possessing some of her own good qualities. We see that 

 the average of the kittenings was two in the year ; the ave- 

 rage numbers were between three and four ; the colours 

 were — of white 21, black 16, black and white 12, red 11, and 

 yellow 1 (which was probably the same), tortoise 11, grey 4, 

 black and brown 1, white and brown 1. The inequality of 

 the intervals between the kittenings (2| months being the 



