414 



JAVA CAT. 



May l8tli. Tliu wliulc ol' yestmlay, the civa- 

 teire m& reported m ^ absent without leave 

 but early this mOTttof iba found in the cabin 

 of the second officer, asleep upon a jacket* He 

 appears sufficiently tame to be h'\i at lifjertv, so 

 1 did not immure him in a cage again, hut kept 

 a plece^ of long string attached to one of tlie liiud 

 legSj m m lo Kmit hia extent of range, when I 



found it necessary. 



Whilst writing in niy cahin, tht! animal was 

 either lying down Lpiietly asleep, or vhv. came to 

 see what I was ahoiit, thrusting its little sharp 

 snout among my papers, and amn^uig hjm^df 

 by playing- with my pens and pencils*. 



The animal is called Mussotifj, at Java, 

 and 1 found it was also known !>y the same name 

 among the natives on the north-east coast of 

 Smxuitm I. h Be&3 mi d^^Va^ i^Sfrj tmt with 

 the ton^u^likarthejea.tj ^^^^y nf^t It im hem 

 much, handled ; aii4 seems also to possess the 

 caution aiul svcrvtlmmess of that trilie. It growls 

 savagely M'heu disturbed or teazed. It lapped 

 S0tKt0 coffee one moruiug^ but became li^ Sdoii 

 after. 



It seems to be a fretful, Impatient, little ctea- 



tore, and when it docs !iot gi-t its wants (gra- 

 tified, becomes terribly out of temj>erj" or 



