CAT-AND-DOG LOVE.
[To THE EDITOR OF TUB "SPECTATOR.")
Sin,—Would you allow me, as a cat-fancier of nearly thirty years' standing, to corroborate, by a personal experience, Mr. Balfour's testimony in your last issue to the possibility of a genuine attachment between a cat and a dog? A few weeks ago, I called upon a bachelor friend who has two pets, a handsome black female cat, of the name of "Kate," and a bright little terrier, responding to the call of "David," My friend assured me that they lived on the most affectionate terms. They were certainly not demonstrative, but they were importations from Scotland, and refrained from " spooning " before folk. The character of the attachment was soon tested. Another acquaint- ance entered the room, accompanied by a terrier of about the same size as "David," although not of the same variety. This dog made at once for the cat, then resting in front of the fire. She backed against the wall, and prepared for a fight, in which, if I may judge from her size, she would have been victorious. But she was saved the trouble of using her claws. Before she could utter a feline equivalent for" Jack Robinson," before the door could be closed, "David" rushed at the intruder, and literally ran him out of the room and down two flights of stairs, with a rapidity worthy of a member of the Irish Constabulary. By the time be returned, his Dulcinea had arranged herself for another nap, but she opened one eye as her companion took his place by her side, and,—
" Betwixt her darkness and his brightness,
There passed a mutual glance of great politeness."
I witnessed a similar scene some years ago in a country inn in the north of Scotland. On that occasion, one dog defended against another a favourite cat and a favourite hen.
Speaking of cats, can any one say what has become of the late Pope's black cat, " Morello" ? Did he die before his master, or has some one adopted him? Chateaubriand, as everybody knows, adopted "Micetto," the grey favourite of Leo XII.—I am, Sir, &c.,
Previous page
