Caroline Fuller

“ THE first day on the train Weejums sat up in Eunice’s lap like any other traveller, enjoying the view, and spitting at the engines that passed. And when the sleeping-car conductor came along, she was smuggled under the seat in the hopes that he might not guess what that innocent-looking lunch-basket contained. But he did, because while he was examining the tickets, Weejums got out of the basket, and sharpened her claws on his leg. He jumped a little, and said, “I am sorry, madam, but that cat will have to go into the baggage-car to-night. We never allow animals on a sleeper.” ”

“ Perhaps the time when one first discovers that pets are only pets, and not real people, as one had supposed, is the saddest moment of one’s little life,—especially when it often turns out that the best-loved animal is not at all valuable, and must be left behind.
Many tears were shed by the younger children, and a few in private by Franklin, as the rabbits were made over to “Beansy,” and Cyclone was carried off triumphantly by a boy who had long desired him. ”

“ Winslow returned to the house, her blue eye was closed so tight that no one could possibly have guessed it was not green.
“They say that’s a bright cat,” said Kenneth, scornfully, “but the other day after she’d eaten a mouse, she went around calling it to come back, just as if ’t was a kitten.”
“They all sit in a row and admire her, while she scratches her ribbon,” said Franklin. “They like to watch the bow go round under her chin, and up behind the other ear.”
“Then they say, ‛Oh, isn’t it cunning!’” said Eunice.
“Children, don’t laugh at the people in the house. ”

“ Eunice spent delightful hours in getting up the wedding garments,—little white satin blankets cut like dog blankets, except with not so much “yoke,” as rabbits’ heads are screwed so close to their bodies. Samuel’s dress-suit was trimmed with pink baby-ribbon, laid on plain, and the bride’s robe with lace; and she wore a white veil, with orange blossoms, which made her look a lighter shade of maltese than she really was.
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The effect was most beautiful until the groom tried to eat some of the orange blossoms, and they had to be pried out of his mouth with a match, and sewed on again. ”

“ SHE had not really minded being an Alley Cat until the kittens came. But every one who has had children knows that one feels being poor much more keenly on their account, than on one’s own. And the strawless corner of a deserted shed did not seem a suitable bed for her mother’s grandchildren.
The Alley Cat took no pride in her own appearance. Indeed, it had been said when she was born that her mother, the blooded tortoise-shell of a beautiful home, had never produced such a terrible kitten. She would [2] not have been allowed to live, if an accident had not deprived her mother of the others. ”

“ Eunice asked.
“Pretty? She was a regular Christmas card! and as full of airs as any mistress of the White House. Why, her feet were so little you’d scarcely know she had ’em, and her mane was all crinkly and wavy like a lady’s hair.”
“What color was she?” asked Kenneth.
“Brown, with a bell-shaped mark of white on her forehead. And spirited? Why, she’d sling Swedes all over the prairie, even when she was an old horse. She didn’t take after her son.”
“Tell the story about her,” said Eunice. ”

“ John Alden always hurried to the scene, hoping every time that he might pass for a rabbit; but Eunice addressed him with contempt, as “Johnny-that-rooster-hum,” and drove him off, heedless of his reproachful squawks.
But Flossy and Skip ate together, for it was quite useless to try and separate them.
“That’s a curious friendship,” Mrs. Wood said; “I never heard of a case like it before.”
“I don’t think it’s strange at all,” Franklin said. “She respects him because he can dig, and he admires her because she can lay eggs. ”

“ But I’ve always been the old-fashioned feline kind of cat that likes a home.”
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“One sees a great deal of life,” said Torn-nose, thoughtfully.
“Yes, but only the worst side. You have told me yourself that those whom you trusted often hurled banana skins at you.”
“I’m sorry you’re going to the lake,” said Torn-nose. “Being round with you and Weejums has given me more home comfort than I have known since mother died.”
“You ought to give up being a travelling man, and settle down somewhere,” said Clytie. “Any one would be proud to own you, and it’s the cat that makes the home.” ”

“ Rabbits love milk as well as cats do, so it was easy for Franklin to grab the runaway by his long ears, and bear him off to his box, with a milky nose and an indignant heart. Then he rushed into the house to see if his mother and sister had come home. But they were not there, and Franklin feared that they might have gone to some strange and distant place in search of a rabbit. He was much relieved when a car stopped, and Mrs. Wood and [41] Eunice got off; for they were not carrying anything but some bundles from the dry-goods store, and five cents’ worth of candy for Kenneth. ”

“ A ring formed to see that there was fair play; for although they all pitied Kenneth, they couldn’t help respecting a boy who said, “Don’t haff ter,” to Patsy McGann.
Everybody knows that there are two kinds of strength in a fight,—one that comes from training, and one from splendid rage, and Kenneth’s was of the latter order. When his nose began to bleed, he wept with fury, which was very effective, as it made the blood seem ever so much more. And when Patsy muttered, “Calico,” between his blows, Kenneth answered, “Tortoise-shell!” ”

“ When the door of the locker was left open, she would creep inside for a nap, and once or twice she went rowing with the boys, before they discovered her presence.
Ivanhoe and Clytie preferred to play on land, and indulged in regular gymnastic feats through the trees and shrubbery. Whenever [116] Mrs. Wood went anywhere in the evening, they both escorted her, and dashed out from unexpected places with saucy tails, and whiskers stiff with mischief. ”

“ Weejums cast one glance at the carpenters who were finishing some repairs in the house, and departed to the woods, where she remained for three days. She had never cared for the society of men, possibly because there were none in the family.
While she was away, Mustard and Elijah learned to eat fish, and spit at her when she returned. They were orange-colored babies, with corn-flower blue eyes, and looked like nice, warm muffins.
Every morning, Eunice and Kenneth fished off the dock, while Franklin pulled around in his half of the boat, and put on airs. ”

“ She’s so sweet, you know!”
“I know better than any one,” said Eunice, seriously. “You see, she’s my cat. Of course you wouldn’t exactly understand my feelings about her—if you never had a cat.”
Weejums was delighted to see Eunice, but howled wrathfully when, after luncheon, she was thrust into her basket and carried back to the hated boarding-house.
“It won’t be for long,” Eunice whispered in her ear, as she was banished to the laundry, instead of being allowed to spend the evening in the parlor. ”

“ But when Eunice laid her in the hole, and covered her very carefully with earth,—all but the head,—her look of rage was something comical. It was not that she [139] was uncomfortable, but seemed to feel the implied insult, and growled like a little earthquake all the time. Her only comfort was that Torn-nose was not there to witness it.
Eunice poured a little earth over her head and forehead without getting it in her eyes, and when she was finally dug out, no one would suspect that she had ever heard of a skunk. But Mustard and Elijah distrusted her for some time. ”

“ Senator Hicks was waiting for them on the porch, and delighted Eunice by coming to meet her. He was a large, soft pussy with a comfortable stomach, and limp white paws that dangled adorably over one’s arm. And he would purr, even when his mouth was pressed against one’s ear,—a moist, windy purr, most tickling and sweet.
The other farm cat was named Andrew Banks, Jr., and no one had ever heard him purr. He lived in the barn, and caught immense rats, with his double toes like mittens. ”

“ They found Cousin David sitting in the kitchen with Kenneth on his lap.
“Well, here you are at last!” he said. “Kenny’s been scared to death about you. Poor little chap, he’s been crying!”
“Ain’t neither,” said Kenneth, kicking his leg.
“Well, let’s have some bread and butter,” said Grandmother, hanging up the lantern. “David, you get some milk from the pantry, and don’t disturb the cream pans.”
“Grandma,” said Eunice, as they sat eating in the candlelight, “What makes you love Chucklehead more than the other horses? He’s the homeliest.” ”

“ Franklin said to Beansy, for Stamper was the Overture’s club name, “and I’ll put Dulcie in the cupola. Then he’ll have to go up, and she’ll have to come down.”
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The cupola had a top that came off, something like the cover of a baking-powder tin, and Dulcie was thrust in, with a terrific kicking and scrambling of resentful hind legs. But she was no fun at all afterwards, for she sat perfectly still in a frightened bunch, with her nose wiggling very fast,and did not try to move.
“Stamper’s all right, though,” Beansy said, with his face against the wire-netting. “He’s going upstairs.” ”

“ Franklin began, and then he heard a shout of laughter from Eunice and Bridget and Kenneth, who were watching him from the shed. Mrs. Wood was there, too, smiling at his astonishment.
“They’re chickens,” she explained. “Grandmother thought you didn’t spend enough time out of doors.”
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“When did they come?” Franklin asked.
“Last night. And the house was built yesterday, while you were over at Fred’s. That’s Grandma’s present too.”
“Well, I’ll be—thunderstruck!” Franklin exclaimed. “Oh, I say, what a bully padlock! Isn’t Grandmother a brick? Are they in there now?” ”

“ Coom down!” she called. “All the rabbits do be floatin’ ’round on boxes!”
Each rabbit was enthroned, sullen and dignified, on a box of its own; while the cats sat in a disgusted row on top of the coal-bin. It was such a funny sight that the children laughed even louder than Biddy, although they were worried for the safety of their pets.
“How’ll we ever get them out?” Eunice asked.
There was a pattering of feet behind them, and Cyclone came down to join the party.
“Here—I know!” said Franklin, seizing him by the collar. “Look, Cyclone! Seek—seek! Go fetch ’em in.” ”

“ CHAPTER ELEVEN THE SON OF SILVER BELL
IT seemed only a little later when Mustard wakened Eunice by a sudden jump, and she saw three bars of light moving across her wall. The light came from the yard, and the person who carried it must have been going toward the barn.
“Well, I suppose it’s morning,” she thought. “They always milk early.” But when she looked out, the stars were still shining, and there was not a sound to be heard. ”

“ It may be thought that homely cats have no feelings; but this is not the case, for homely cats, like plain people, are sensitive, and have even more feelings than others. So one day when some particularly unkind remark had been made about the brindled kitten with yellow sides, she left her home and ran away to become an alley cat. ”

“ But of course I eat in the kitchen.”
“Ah!” said the barn cat, with another sigh, “what it means to have a home! Now I presume that they never throw hot dishwater at you.”
“Never,” said Weejums, in horror; “I am treated as one of the family.”
“Alas,” said the barn cat sadly, thinking of his own life.
“But I’ve run away so far that I don’t know how to get back, and fear that I shall never see my dear little kittens again.” And Weejums began to weep.
“Their age?” asked the barn cat, briefly. ”

“ CHAPTER TWELVE CLYTIE, THE CAT WITH MITTENS
CLYTIE was a cat who might certainly be called young for her age. She had frisked through a thoughtless kitten-hood with Ivanhoe, and now spent many hours in playing with Neddy, the white rat, for whom she had conceived an early passion. Neddy’s real name was Editor, because he sat up nights; and he differed from other rats in having a sense of humor. Clytie did not know this however; she only thought it must be fine to have pink eyes, and a tail that never swelled, no matter how embarrassed one might be. ”

“ Minoose kept this mouse behind the guitar case under the piano, and would scramble half-way up the portieres with it, switching his tail at the same time. But Ivanhoe did not admire him for any of these little boy attempts to show off. Ivanhoe had manners, and won Weejums’ heart because of his gallant ways, and also because his tail was longer than those of her own children.
But Mrs. Wood decided that he should go, as soon as she could find some one who was willing to own him; so one day, after the cabbage-and-lettuce woman had called, Ivanhoe was missing. ”

“ Clytie missed them for a time, and then the charm of being an only cat began to grow on her. The doctors petted her; the nurses made her a fine gingham collar of the stuff like their uniforms, to show that she belonged to the hospital staff.
Torn-nose came often to see her, and gave [185] her some valuable hints about keeping mice out of the basements; it seems that there is a certain way of catching them that saves time and strength, when one has to do it by the quantity. ”