April 19, iy&2.] 
FOREST AND STREAM. 
806 
gara," Sanscrit for "the- animal that h always cleaning 
itself.'" It has been assumed that its exceptional tidiness 
is an inheritance from ancestors that secured immunity 
thereby from noxious vermin; but the most scrupulous 
cleanliness is no bar to an access of fleas, probably the 
parasite that is most in evidence. Moreover, such striv- 
ing should have impelled a resort to bathing, which more 
efficient protection, although of frequent indulgence with 
the tiger, is repellant to the lesser cat. This opposition of 
habit may be largely attributed to the differing character 
of the two animals' coats, the tiger's bristly hair readily 
drying after immersion, while the fine and abundant fur 
of his puny cousin is retentive of moisture. Discomfort 
is occasioned by the slowly drying pelt, which is left 
in a rough and unsightly condition, and to this latter 
circumstance much of the creature's aversion to a wetting 
is probably due. 
In its ancestral state the cat exercised a choice of com- 
panionship, and, in its selection of a mate, was, doubtless, 
influenced by a bright and glossy coat, of which its appre- 
ciation was perhaps as keen as is our own of the sheen 
of silk or satin. Most birds will preen themselves with 
as much elaboration as cats, and, in all probability, for 
the same reason. They will carefully oil and adjust each 
particular feather, so that their plumage appears smooth 
and shining, whereupon, with conscious pride, they will 
display themselves to their kind, and to a similar motive 
may the strenuous feline toilet be reasonably ascribed. 
The' nature of the cat's original habitat should also 
have furthered its addiction to toilsome purification. Oc- 
cupying grassy levels, subject to heavy dews, it probably 
acquired the habit of giving its wet, tousled and unsightly 
coat some approach to seemliness by rubbing itself against 
the most available object. Those that most assiduously 
endeavored to resume their accustomed sleekness of ap- 
pearance, were those that were most favored by their 
critical companions, were those that contributed most to 
the continuance of the species, and, also, to the lmpart- 
ment of its most notable peculiarity. 
The feline habit of scratching at the bottom of trees, 
posts table legs, etc, appears also to be an ablutionary 
operation. The mode adopted is certainly calculated to 
effect a thorough purification of its claws, a curious 
feature being the creature's frequent selection of a special 
post or tree to which it will generally confine itself, often 
with marked results. Tigers and jaguars will deeply 
score, with long, vertical fissures, specially selected trees, 
the practice, in Darwin's opinion, 4 being resorted to with 
the object of removing ragged projections from the claws. 
It would seem as likely, however, to be a sanitary precau- 
tion for in a hot climate the clearance of all putrescent 
matter from the claws of the primitive animal, their ab- 
solute freedom from taint, was a vital necessity, other- 
wise a simple prick, self-inflicted or otherwise, with prob- 
ably resulting infection, would obviously have been of 
great disadvantage to the species. , . . 
Cats are generally particolored, and when white is a 
component marking, it is very rarely found at the tail 
tip; although in similar case, it usually forms the dogs 
terminal coloration. An explanation of these antithetical 
features is afforded by the opposite habits of the two 
animals, the dog's conspicuous caudal conclusion serving, 
according to Dr. Robinson, to indicate his whereabouts 
to his companions; the "wigwag" signals thereby dis- 
played above the tall grass being more perceptible to the 
scattered members of the pack with a white than with a 
darker termination. The cat's detached existence involved 
directly opposite conditions ; its prey was stalked in solitary 
prowl. Before launching itself thereupon, its body and 
the greater portion of its tail become tense; but the 
creature's nervousness, at such critical time, was mani- 
fested in an agitation of the caudal extremity, and thus 
such movement in a crouching cat is commonly accepted 
as a "s'ign of an early spring." It is evident that the 
involuntary vibration of a white tail tip being, by reason 
of its greater conspicuousness, more calculated to alarm 
the intended prey than that of a dark one, would only 
exceptionally occur. Darwin's allusion to this pre- 
monitory oscillation is not explanatory. 6 Inasmuch as 
the tail tip in the larger cats is usually a darker portion, 
the habit is probably common to all of the feline sister- 
hood, and implies an inheritance from a common ancestor 
in whom it existed as an extravagant tail lashing ; the sub- 
sequent modification being the result of a selection of 
individuals most free from so disadvantageous a habit. 
Dr. Robinson's explication, in his "Wild Traits in Tame 
Animals," of the Dundrearian conundrum, "Why does a 
dog wag his tail?" while probably correct, has obviously 
no application to the agitation of the cat's. vertebral con- 
tinuation. With both species, the tail is an emotional 
exponent ; but the proverbial antagonism, or rather, the 
opposite nature of the cat and dog is, in this instance, of 
extreme expression; what implies pleasure in the one in- 
dicates anger in the other. The cat's nimbleness and 
agility, its ready maintenance of a seemingly precarious 
balance, is largely due to the use of its tail, the caudal 
movement, at critical times, insuring the animal's equi- 
poise. A cat's progress along a fence, affording no foot- 
ing save the upturned edge of a tongued board, is a 
series of swayings or tail lashings; the last being com- 
pensating movements, or balance restorers. It is not an 
unreasonable inference, therefore, that an excitation of 
anger or displeasure, involving a disturbance of emo- 
tional equilibrium, should have the same expression as a 
disturbance of the physical balance. All, however, is 
speculation and conjecture, for Darwin very properly 
remarks, "No cause can be assigned, with certainty, for 
the tail being lashed or curled from side to side." 6 
The cat's curiosity is not improbably the outcome of its 
former need of constant watchfulness and scrutiny _ of 
details. Its inquisitiveness, though not carried to simian 
extremes, is often amusing. With most cats the ad- 
vent, in a room that they frequent, of a new piece of 
furniture or other unusual object, excites this desire for 
knowledge. The strange object is subjected to a minute 
inspection, to numerous sniffings, and is felt of by whisker 
contacts, the long bristles being tactile organs. Such ab- 
sorption in its surroundings is, however, dependent upon 
the animal's kind treatment ; it must be enabled to look 
upon the room as its own. Not improbably its wild an- 
cestor was accustomed to familiarize itself with objects 
3 "Max Muller's Lectures," I.. 419. 
'"Voyage of the Beagle." p. 126. 
5 "Origin of the Species," Vol. I., p. 254; also "Expression of the 
Emotions," p. 126. 
•"Expression of the Emotions in Man and Animals," p, 126. 
in the immediate vicinity of its abode ; and when, at night, 
it sallied forth, it rioted slight disturbances of local 
features, as possibly due to the vicinage of an enemy or 
of the prey it sought. 
Compared with that of the dog, the cat's appreciation 
of odors is aesthetic; it delights in the scent of various 
plant emanations, and may often be seen sniffing leaves, 
grasses, etc. In its nightly peregrinations its former ob- 
servation not unlikely included the more marked fea- 
tures of the vegetation through which it passed. Odors, 
in many cases, must have been indicative of localities; 
the cat's nocturnal vision, though acute, had need of an 
associated sense. Moreover, being a reposeful animal, a 
patient watcher, haunting, within limited areas, coverts 
varying in plant formation, a familiar acquaintance with 
their emanations was unavoidable. The dog, on the con- 
trary, by reason of his jackal ancestry, delights in foul 
animal odors, and reeking with carrion, will seek to share 
his olfactory pleasures with human kind. 
In comparison with its canine associate, the cat appears 
to advantage in another, and not generally admitted, re- 
spect — it is apparently less bloodthirsty and cruel. A 
sheep-killing dog will steal away from its kennel and, 
visiting a distant fold, will revel in slaughter like a ter- 
rier in a rat pit, or its wild brethren in a herd of deer. 
A cat lacks the canine delight in killing, its forbearance, 
however, can not reasonably be attributed to a merciful 
disposition ; but to its instinctive desire to retreat to a 
place of security with its capture. Such is the habit of 
the larger cats; and the remotely inherited instinct, even 
in the security of its home, will, for a few moments, im- 
pel the house cat to walk about with its prey in its 
mouth, as_ though seeking a proper place of deposit. 
The cat's habit of playing with its captive prey is pecu- 
liar to the species, none of the larger felidas, as a rule, 
being disposed to waste their energies with an unsatis- 
fied appetite, in such a seemingly objectless and ill-time'd 
diversion. A tiger may roll, with gratified appreciation, 
when his quarry has been duly lodged in his interior de- 
partment, and after thus returning thanks, will go his 
ways; like a sensible brute, he acts upon the principle, 
"business first and pleasure afterward." One royal beast 
that was observed by a hunter in hiding, was an excep- 
tion. Evidently not very hungry, he approached a decey 
goat tied to a stake, and, discovering its plight, proceeded 
to gambol about, at times leaping over his terrified vic- 
tim, and renewing his antics upon the other side, not, 
however, harming, or even touching, the poor creature 
until he administered its mercy stroke. 
The possession, by a species, of an inherited instinct, 
implies some associated advantage, either past or pres- 
ent, and, therefore, it is doubtful if the cat worries its 
captive simply for the pleasure thereby afforded. Of the 
scores of species of burrowing rodents among which, in 
its former wild state, it found its subsistence, the ma- 
jority are bold and courageous; the little lemming, for 
instance, will face any antagonist, however mighty. Most 
of these self-assertive species vociferate loudly when 
handled or touched, and not improbably their outcry 
would tend to induce the emergence of some of their 
underground companions. The ancestral cat, therefore, 
by teasing its prey and provoking its clamor, would assure 
itself a better subsistence, a more probable survival, and 
consequently enlarged opportunities of continuing its 
kind. 
Romanes, in his "Animal Intelligence," gives an account 
of a tomcat _ using a fledgling as a decoy for the old 
birds; touching their captive progeny now and then 
with his paw, whenever it ceased to flutter and cry, so 
that the parents, which were flying about in great dis- 
tress, might be induced to come within reach. The emi- 
nent naturalist evidently assumed that the animal's action 
was prompted by a process of intelligent reasoning, and 
not, as seems probable, by an ancestral instinct. 
In the cat's play with a disabled mouse it will usually 
withdraw a distance and, squatting low, intently watch 
the cripple's movements. With the ancestral animal this 
apparent abandonment of its stricken prey was, not unlike- 
ly, a further device to lure the companions of its victim 
from their burrow. A solitary mouse could but scantily 
minister to the need of a hungry cat, hence its probable 
employment as a bait for others. 
Although grimalkin partakes of many of the charac- 
teristics of the tiger or "king of cats," it differs from its 
sovereign in its appreciation of leisure. Equally agile and 
active upon occasion, it luxuriates in repose; the tiger, 
however, is restless, like the leopard, it will pace its cage. 
The cat's calm, its dignity and deliberation, its abstinence 
from fussy, fidgetty or unnecessary movement, are in- 
cident to its habit of patient watchfulness. The ancestral 
animal's protracted vigils, its prolonged maintenance of 
statuesque immobility, while awaiting the emergence of a 
rodent from its burrow, naturally engendered that phil- 
osophic serenity, that snug composure, so characteristic 
of its descendant. 
In his wild state, the dog submitted to the tyranny of 
recognized superiors to whom he would, on occasion, ab- 
jectly cringe and fawn. Thus habituated to subjection, he 
has humility; he accepts punishment from his master, 
and servilely licks the chastising hand. The solitary 
feline hunter of a remote age was, however, a law unto 
itself; it had its home, its local attachment, its sense 
of proprietorship in its vicinage, it was independent and 
self-reliant. Chastisement, therefore, is an affront to the 
cat's pride, and, if of severity, is deeply resented. If a 
dog is severely punished, or otherwise hurt, he howls; if 
in sore pain or fright, he yelps shrilly; his distressful 
cries, of varying urgency, being far-away echoes of appeals 
to his associates for assistance. The lone cat, having no 
such resource, had no such cry; it, therefore, accepts its 
punishment, or endures its pain, in silence. 
Cats are in disfavor with many because they disdain to 
minister to man's arrogance, to feed his sense of animal 
sovereignty, his lordship over creation. Just as ages of 
tyranny have induced in the dog a cringing servitude, so 
too, it is possible that in the course of indefinite time 
man's arbitrary control may mould the feline disposition 
to humility and slavish subserviency. Those, however, 
who esteem the cat's self-respecting pride, with its asso^ 
ciated cleanliness, daintiness and elevated sensibility, who 
admire a dignity asserted without arrogance, a spirit and 
an independence reflected in an aristocratic bearing, and a' 
manifestation of grace and elegance in every attitude of 
movement or of repose, will wish that the day of its 
abasement may never dawn. A. H. Gouraud. 
Brooklyn, N. Y. 
Field Columbian Museum* 
The annual report of the Director to the Board of 
Trustees of the Field Columbian Museum for the year 
ipop and 1901 is just out. It is a handsome volume of 
eighty pages, copiously illustrated by beautiful half-tones 
of many interesting objects. 
The year has been a successful one for the museum. 
The lecture course was kept up from October to April, 
and ther have been additions to the collections in many 
directions. Of these a large number are in ethnology, and 
others in zoology, botany and geology. The field expedi- 
tions, for which the museum has been so noted, have been 
continued, and with very great success. The work of 
installation and of cataloguing and labeling continues, 
and very mtich has been done in the way of displaying 
some of the museum's specimens of gigantic vertebrate 
fossils. 
The illustrations show the methods of mounting and 
displaying the collections. A notable example of admir- 
able taxidermy is the group of African wart hogs which 
faces page 39. List of gifts and other accessions make up 
the remainder of a very interesting paper. 
f An Odd Musktat. 
West Roxbury. Mass., April 5.— Editor Forest and 
Stream: Recently I caught a muskrat, the like of which 
I never saw before. The back and top of the head were 
black, while the belly was darker than usual, but the un- 
derparts of the hind legs were a beautiful creamy color. 
I asked several persons if they had ever seen one like it 
and they said no. Perhaps some of your readers can 
inform me whether this is at all common. 
Mtjbkodosa. 
[Probably a partial albino muskrat.] 
— $ — 
Proprietor* of shooting resorts will find it profitable to advertise 
lem m Forest and Stream. 
Hunting the Blue Quail 
We had been penetrating for an hour a vast tangle of 
fifty varieties of prickly pear, cat-claw, mesquite, huisache 
and such shrubs, a tangle so thick and interwoven that a 
cotton-tail must exert his wits to have gotten through, 
when suddenly I was warned by a rapid, sullen whir, 
like the sound of a sewing machine as it runs down. 
"Jump!" exclaimed Sandy, suiting his own action to his 
words with surprising agility for a cowpuncher afoot. 
I jumped. I had heard the whirring sound before, 
though not amid the chapparal of southwestern Texas. 
The rattlesnake is a chivalrous foe, and always gives 
warning of its intended attack; but its lightning-like 
lunge is apt to follow immediately on the shivery buzz 
with which it heralds its anger. 
At the same instant, too, there was a commotion ahead, 
a blue cloud shot up into the air like a puff of smoke 
from a hidden mortar, and both our guns spoke. 
"Missed!" growled Sandy, ruefully. "Did you" get one 
pardnef ?" 
"I got the rattler," I replied, kicking the writhing body 
of the headless reptile to one side. But I could no more 
have shot one of those darting streaks of blue than I 
could have bagged the flash of a sunbeam! 
Sandy cursed the rattler. He didn't pay them any 
particular attention, except to jump when one sprung 
its rattle; but as a measure of safety the sensible man. 
bagging quails in the chapparal or amid the cactus, will 
wear heavy leggings reaching to his knees. It is seldom 
that the rattlesnake strikes higher, although it has been 
known to puncture a tall man square in his breast. 
The eastern border of the territory of the blue, or 
Mexican, quail, as far as Texas is concerned, is pretty 
sharply defined by the Nueces River, which runs a gen- 
erally southeastern course, some one hundred miles from 
the Rio Grande, and in the main parallel with it. It is 
not much hunted by man on account of the difficulty of 
getting at it. Owing to its fecundity it would swarm in 
millions over all the country which it favors but for the 
fact that western Texas is singularly populous with 
destructive animals, and they are cunning and determined 
enough to keep the blue quaH hordes within proper 
bounds. 
The quail hunter who is used to the wide brown 
•fields and straight flying birds of the more settled parts 
of the country, has little appreciation of the difference 
between that hunting and this. It is a characteristic of 
the ordinary brown quail bred always within the sound 
of human industry, that it will fly as straight as a chalk 
line when flushed, unless some obstacle intervenes. It 
is a characteristic of the quail bred in semi-solitudes that 
its flight is always more eccentric, as well as stronger, 
than that of its more civilized cousin. This is an espe- 
cial characteristic of the blue quail, and it is apt to de- 
velop as much ziz-zag in the air as a streak of forked 
lightning, and is about as easy to shoot for the unini- 
tiated. It never flies so crooked as the snipe, but it 
never flies a straight course, and invariably there is some 
sort of a swing to it, which aids it in escaping shot 
while its swiftness is phenomenal. 
The hunter who gets his one bird out of two all day 
long must be able to shoot within one second of the first 
sound of the buzzing roar which follows the upspring- 
ing of the quarry. No time is afforded to get the bird 
exactly on the end of the barrel and hold it there while 
enjoying the pleasurable anticipation of a certain kill- 
ing. That man kills blue quails most who keeps both 
eyes wide open, looks only at the whirring target and 
never sees the gun barrels at all. 
Quick powder, a calm gaze at the mark, and the habit 
of pressing the trigger as soon as the gun butt is firmly 
^gainst the shoulder, will do much to help a man alone- 
iA straight stocked weapon is the only kind to use be- 
cause the blue quail when it flushes will spring to a height 
of fifteen feet, and will often go twice "as high straight 
up in the air. Its spread of wing and its strong muscles 
shoot its body skyward like a rocket. It is often the* 
