relates the following painful incident: "A native, being employed in
repairing a ship lying in the Bengal river, carelessly put his legs off
the stage upon which he was seated, at the side of the vessel, and
being engaged in conversation with his wife and child, who were on
board, forgot the danger of his situation. As he proceeded in his
labors, it was necessary to lower the stage, until it came within a few
feet only of the water. He had not been in this position many minutes,
when a monstrous alligator rose suddenly above the surface of the river,
and before the poor man perceived the animal, seized one of his legs,
snapped it off, just above the knee, and descended into the water. The
man then tried to get on board the ship, but in vain. The pain, the
terror, the loss of his limb, so entirely prostrated his strength, that
all his efforts were useless. The wife hung terror-stricken over the
side of the vessel, not knowing what to do, calling for assistance, and
shrieking distractedly. The boy, with more presence of mind, clung to
his father, and endeavored, with all his little strength, to lift him
up. The cries of the woman at length brought some persons to ascertain
what was the matter. At this moment the monster appeared again. The son
redoubled his exertions to drag his father from his terrible situation,
but with as little success as before. Some of the people who were
attracted to the spot, threw stones, sticks, or any thing that happened
to be in their way, at the alligator, while the wife, thinking that the
deliverance of her husband was now certain, hastened to the shore to
seek the surgeon. As the monster advanced, the child became convulsed
with terror, and at length was hardly able, by his exertions, to sustain
the weight of his father's body. He called loudly for assistance, but
either through surprise or fear, his cries were unheeded. Still
continuing to defend himself in a measure from the attacks of the
alligator, the sufferer became exhausted from pain and loss of blood.
The terrible animal seized the other leg. The boy still kept his hold,
and contrived to throw a rope round the body of his nearly expiring
father, so as to prevent him from being pulled into the river. At this
instant the wife returned with the surgeon. But, alas! they came too
late. The poor Indian recognized his wife, gave one parting look, then
sunk in death on the bosom of his child."
[Illustration: THE ALLIGATOR.]
Mr. Audubon, the distinguished naturalist, has given some of the most
interesting facts in connection with the alligator that have come to my
knowledge. He says: "A friend having intimated a wish to have the heart
of one of these animals, to study its comparative anatomy, I one
afternoon went out about half a mile from the plantation, and seeing an
alligator that I thought I could put whole into a hogshead of spirits, I
shot it immediately on the skull-bone. It tumbled over from the log on
which it had been basking into the water, and, with the assistance of
two negroes, I had it out in a few minutes, apparently dead. A strong
rope was fastened round its neck, and in this condition, I had it
dragged home across logs, thrown over fences, and handled without the
least fear. Some young ladies there, anxious to see the inside of its
mouth, requested that the mouth should be propped open with a stick put
vertically; this was attempted, but at this instant the first stunning
effect of the wound was over, and the animal thrashed and snapped its
jaws furiously, although it did not advance a foot. I have frequently
been very much amused when fishing in a bayou, where alligators were
numerous, by throwing a blown bladder on the water toward the nearest
one. The alligator makes for it, flaps it toward its mouth, or attempts
seizing it at once, but all in vain. The light bladder slides off; in a
few minutes many alligators are trying to seize this, and their
evolutions are quite interesting. They then put one in mind of a crowd
of boys running after a football. A black bottle is sometimes thrown in
also, tightly corked; but the alligator seizes this easily, and you hear
the glass give way under its teeth, as if ground in a coarse mill. They
are easily caught by negroes, who most expertly throw a rope over their
heads when swimming close to shore, and haul them out instantly."
A writer in the Liberia Herald, according to his account of the matter,
had a pretty good opportunity to observe some of the habits of the
alligator. "Coming down the river," he says, "a few days ago, we espied
an alligator lying with his body on the sloping margin of the river, his
lower jaw submerged in the water, while the upper was extended in the
air, showing a formidable array of teeth. We stopped to gaze at him.
Anon, a hapless fish ventured within the dread chasm, when the
treacherous jaws suddenly closed, and severed the fish asunder. The
native boys who were with us, took the occasion to assign the reason of
some of the alligator's movements. They say he lies with his mouth open,
to attract a certain insect which floats upon the surface of the water.
These collect in large numbers around his mouth; fishes feed upon them,
and when lured by the desired prey within the vortex, they become a prey
themselves."
There is a singular adventure with an alligator recorded by the captain
of a vessel on the coast of Guinea. It is as follows: "The ocean was
very smooth, and the heat very great. Campbell, who had been drinking
too much, was obstinately bent on going overboard to bathe, and although
we used every means in our power to persuade him to the contrary, he
dashed into the water, and had swam some distance from the vessel, when
we on board discovered an alligator making toward him, behind a rock
that stood some distance from the shore. His escape I now considered
impossible, and I applied to Johnson to know how we should act, who,
like myself, affirmed the impossibility of saving him, and instantly
seized upon a loaded musket, to shoot the poor fellow before he fell
into the jaws of the monster. I did not, however, consent to this, but
waited, with horror, the event; yet, willing to do all in my power, I
ordered the boat to be hoisted out, and we fired two shots at the
approaching alligator, but without effect, for they glided over his
scaly covering like hail-stones on a tiled house, and the progress of
the creature was by no means impeded. The report of the piece, and the
noise of the blacks from the sloop, soon made Campbell acquainted with
his danger; he saw the creature making toward him, and, with all the
strength and skill he was master of, he made for the shore. And now the
moment arrived, in which a scene was exhibited beyond the power of my
pen to describe. On approaching within a very short distance of some
canes and shrubs that covered the bank, while closely pursued by the
alligator, a fierce and ferocious tiger sprang toward him, at the
instant the jaws of his first enemy were extended to devour him. At this
awful moment Campbell was preserved. The eager tiger, by overleaping,
fell into the gripe of the alligator. A horrible conflict then ensued.
The water was colored with the blood of the tiger, whose efforts to tear
the scaly covering of the alligator were unavailing, while the latter
had also the advantage of keeping his adversary under water, by which
the victory was presently obtained; for the tiger's death was now
effected. They both sank to the bottom, and we saw no more of the
alligator. Campbell was recovered, and instantly conveyed on board; he
did not speak while in the boat, though his danger had completely
sobered him. But the moment he leaped on the deck, he fell on his knees,
and returned thanks to the Providence who had so protected him; and,
what is most singular, from that moment to the time I am now writing, he
has never been seen the least intoxicated, nor has been heard to utter a
single oath."
[Illustration: CHAPTER END DECORATION]
The Cat.
Cats, say what you will against them, have some excellent traits of
character. They are capable of the strongest attachment. A cat which had
been brought up in a family, became extremely attached to the oldest
child, a little boy who was very fond of playing with her. She bore with
the utmost patience all the rough treatment of the mischievous child,
without ever making the least resistance. As the cat grew up, she used
to catch mice, and bring them alive into the room where the little boy
was, to amuse him with her prey. If he showed an inclination to take the
mouse from her, she let it run, and waited to see whether he was able to
catch it. If he did not, she darted at it, caught it, and again laid it
before him. In this manner the sport continued, as long as the child
showed any taste for it.
At length, the boy was attacked with the small-pox, and during the early
stages of his disorder, the cat rarely left his bed-side; but as his
danger increased, it was thought necessary to remove the cat, and lock
her up. The child died. On the following day, the cat, having escaped
from her confinement, immediately ran to the apartment where she hoped
to find her playmate. Disappointed in her expectations, she sought for
him, with symptoms of great uneasiness and loud lamentations, all over
the house, till she came to the door of the room in which the corpse
lay. Here she lay down in silent grief, till she was again locked up. As
soon as the child was buried, and the cat set at liberty, she
disappeared; and it was not till a fortnight after that event, that she
returned to the well-known apartment, sad and emaciated. She refused to
take any nourishment, and soon ran away again, with dismal cries. At
length, compelled by hunger, she made her appearance one day at
dinner-time, and continued to visit the house after that, every day, at
about the same hour, but always left as soon as she had eaten the food
that was given her. No one knew where she spent the rest of her time,
until she was found, one day, under the wall of the burying-ground,
close to the grave of her favorite; and so strong was the attachment of
the cat to her lost friend, that, till his parents removed to another
place, nearly five years afterward, she never, except in the severest
winter weather, passed the night any where else than in the
burying-ground, at her little friend's grave.
Here is another story of a cat who exhibited in a similar way her love
for her deceased master. The incidents of this story, which, it is
believed, are strictly true, occurred in the north of Scotland. Some
years ago, a poor man residing in that country, whose habits of life had
always been of the most retired description, giving way to the natural
despondency of his disposition, put an end to his existence. The only
other inmate of his cottage was a favorite cat. When the deed was
discovered, the cat was found assiduously watching over her late
master's body, and it was with some difficulty she could be driven away.
The appalling deed naturally excited a great deal of attention in the
surrounding neighborhood; and on the day after the body was deposited in
the grave, which was made at the outside of the church-yard, a number of
school-boys ventured thither, to view the resting-place of one who had
at times been the subject of village wonder, and whose recent act of
self-destruction was invested with additional interest. At first, no one
was brave enough to venture near; but at last, the appearance of a hole
in the side of the grave irresistibly attracted their attention. Having
been minutely examined, it was at length determined that it must have
been the work of some body-snatcher; and the story having spread, the
grave was minutely examined, but as the body had not been removed, the
community considered themselves fortunate in having made so narrow an
escape. The turf was replaced, and the grave again carefully covered up.
On the following morning the turf was again displaced, and a hole,
deeper than before, yawned in the side of the sad receptacle.
Speculation was soon busy at work, and all sorts of explanations were
suggested. In the midst of their speculations, alarmed, perhaps, by the
noise of the disputants, poor Puss darted from the hole, much to the
confusion of some of the most noisy and dogmatic expounders of the
mystery. Again the turf was replaced, and again and again was it removed
by the unceasing efforts of the faithful cat to share the resting-place
of her deceased master. It was at last found necessary to shoot her, it
being found impossible otherwise to put a stop to her unceasing
importunities.
The enmity of the cat and dog is proverbial. Yet instances have been
known in which the closest friendship has been formed between them. A
French author of a work on the Language of Brutes tells the following
story: "I had a cat and dog, which became so attached to each other,
that they would never willingly be asunder. Whenever the dog got any
choice morsel of food, he was sure to divide it with his whiskered
friend. They always ate sociably out of one plate, slept in the same
bed, and daily walked out together. Wishing to put this apparently
sincere friendship to the proof, I one day took the cat by herself into
my room, while I had the dog guarded in another apartment. I entertained
the cat in a most sumptuous manner, being desirous to see what sort of a
meal she would make without her friend, who had hitherto been her
constant table companion. The cat enjoyed the treat with great glee, and
seemed to have entirely forgotten the dog. I had had a partridge for
dinner, half of which I intended to keep for supper. My wife covered it
with a plate, and put it into a cupboard, the door of which she did not
lock. The cat left the room, and I walked out upon business. My wife,
meanwhile, sat at work in an adjoining apartment. When I returned home,
she related to me the following circumstances: The cat, having hastily
left the dining-room, went to the dog, and mewed uncommonly loud, and in
different tones of voice; which the dog, from time to time, answered
with a short bark. They both then went to the door of the room where the
cat had dined, and waited till it was opened. One of my children opened
the door, and immediately the two friends entered the apartment. The
mewing of the cat excited my wife's attention. She rose from her seat,
and stepped softly up to the door, which stood ajar, to observe what was
going on. The cat led the dog to the cupboard which contained the
partridge, pushed off the plate which covered it, and, taking out my
intended supper, laid it before her canine friend, who devoured it
greedily. Probably the cat, by her mewing, had given the dog to
understand what an excellent meal she had made, and how sorry she was
that he had not participated in it; but, at the same time, had explained
to him that something was left for him in the cupboard, and persuaded
him to follow her thither."
[Illustration: THE CAT.]
In Lawrence's History of the Horse occurs the following anecdote, in
which the cat is quite as much concerned as the horse: "A celebrated
Arabian horse and a black cat were for many years the warmest friends.
When the horse died in 1753, the cat sat upon his carcass until it was
buried; and then, creeping slowly and reluctantly away, was never seen
again, till her dead body was found in a hay-loft."
Henry Wriothsly, earl of Southampton, having been some time confined in
the tower of London, was one day surprised by a visit from his favorite
cat, who must have reached her master by descending from the chimney of
the edifice.
The following instance of a cat's courage and maternal affection is
recorded in the Naturalist's Cabinet: "A cat who had a family of
kittens, was playing with them one sunny day in spring, near the door of
a farm-house, when a hawk darted swiftly down and caught one of the
kittens. The assassin was endeavoring to rise with his prey, when the
mother, seeing the danger of the little one, flew at the common enemy,
who, to defend himself, let the kitten fall. The battle presently became
dreadful to both parties; for the hawk, by the power of his wings, the
sharpness of his talons, and the keenness of his beak, had for awhile
the advantage, cruelly lacerating the poor cat, and actually deprived
her of one eye in the conflict. But Puss, not at all daunted by this
accident, strove with all her cunning and strength to protect her little
ones, till she had broken a wing of her adversary. In this state she got
him more within the power of her claws, the hawk still defending
himself, however, according to the best of his ability. The fight
continued for a long time. But at last victory favored the mother; and
by a sudden movement, she laid the hawk motionless beneath her feet,
when, as if exulting in her victory, she tore off the head of her
vanquished enemy. Disregarding the loss of her eye, she immediately ran
to her bleeding kitten, licked the wounds inflicted by the talons of the
hawk, purring, while she caressed the little one, with the same
affection as if nothing had happened to her."
Here is an instance of the ingenuity of a cat. Tabby was in the habit of
visiting a closet, the door of which was fastened by a common iron
latch. A window was situated near the door. When the door was shut, the
cat, as soon as she was tired of her confinement, mounted on the sill of
the window, and with her paws dexterously lifted the latch, opened the
door, and came out of the room. This practice she continued for years.
A cat belonging to a monastery in France was still more ingenious. She
was accustomed to have her meals served to her at the same time that the
inmates of the monastery had theirs. These hours were announced by the
ringing of the bell. One day it so happened that Puss was shut up in a
room by herself, when the bell rang for dinner, so that she was not able
to avail herself of the invitation. Some hours afterward she was
released from her confinement, and instantly ran to the spot where
dinner was always left for her; but no dinner was to be found. In the
afternoon the bell was heard ringing at an unusual hour. When the
inmates of the cloister came to see what was the cause of it, they found
the hungry cat clinging to the bell-rope, and setting it in motion as
well as she was able, in order that she might have her dinner served up
for her. Was not this act of the cat the result of something very nearly
related to what we call reason, when exhibited in man?
A French naturalist gives us an amusing incident connected with a cat in
Prussia. This animal was quietly sleeping on the hearth, when one of the
children in the family where she lived set up a boisterous crying. Puss
left the place where she was lying, marched up to the child, and gave
her such a smart blow with her paw as to draw blood. Then she walked
back, with the greatest composure and gravity, as if satisfied with
having punished the child for crying, and with the hope of indulging in
a comfortable nap. No doubt she had often seen the child punished in
this manner for peevishness; and as there was no one near who seemed
disposed to administer correction in this instance, Puss determined to
take the law into her own hand.
This story brings to my mind one which I saw in a newspaper the other
day, about a cat who took it upon her to punish her children in a very
singular manner. The story runs thus: "One Sabbath, a motherly old cat,
belonging to one of our citizens, left her little family in quiet
repose, while she went forth in pursuit of something to eat. On
returning, she found them quarreling. She then very deliberately took
the one most eagerly engaged in the combat by the nape of the neck, and
not seeing any convenient place near by to administer what she
considered a salutary reproof, went to a tub of water, upon the edge of
which she raised her feet, and dropped the kitten into the water. She
resisted all attempts at escape, and after repeatedly sousing it in the
water till sufficiently punished, she took it again by the neck as
before, and carried it back again, doubtless a thorough repentant for
the wrong it had done. There has been no contention in the family
since."
It must be a very difficult thing for a cat, when a tame bird is within
her reach, to resist the temptation to make a dinner from it. But there
are not wanting instances in which this disposition has been entirely
overcome. More than this: a cat has been known to become the protector
of a bird, when it was in danger. A lady had a tame canary, which she
was in the habit of letting out of its cage every day. One morning, as
it was picking crumbs of bread off the carpet, her cat, who had always
before showed the bird the utmost kindness, seized it suddenly, and
jumped with it in her mouth upon a table. The lady was much alarmed for
the fate of her favorite; but on turning about, she instantly perceived
the cause. The door had been left open, and another cat, a stranger, had
just come into the room! After the lady turned out the neighbor, her own
cat came down from the table, and dropped the bird, without doing it the
smallest injury.
The following story was told me by my friend Dr. Alcott: A cat, in
Northborough, Mass., with three very young kittens, having been removed
to Shrewsbury, a distance of about four miles, continued to elude the
vigilance of her mistress, and, during the hours of sleep, to transport
these three kittens to their old mansion in Northborough.
Here is a story about a cat who was for some time supposed to be a
musical ghost: A family residing a few miles from Aberdeen, Scotland--so
says the Aberdeen Herald--and at the time consisting of females, were
recently thrown for one or two successive nights into no small
consternation, by the unaccountable circumstance of a piano being set a
strumming about midnight, after all the inmates of the house were in
bed. The first night the lady of the house rose when she heard the
unseasonable sounds, thinking some member of the family had set about
"practicing her music" over night. She went cautiously to the room door,
which she found shut; but although she heard the tones of the instrument
when her hand was upon the handle of the door, on entering she was
astonished to find no one in the room. The piano was indeed open, as it
was generally, for a young girl to practice when she had a mind. But
where was the midnight musician? The room was searched, but to no
purpose--there was no musician visible. Next night the same sounds were
heard, and a search was made, but with no better success. One or two
nights of quietude might intervene between those on which such sounds
were heard; but they still broke at intervals through the stillness of
midnight--at one time with note by note, slowly--at another, like the
quick, loud thundering of a battle-piece; till the horrible conviction
filled every mind, that the house was haunted. One morning, the piano
was heard sounding away much louder than usual; and the dawn having
begun to peep through the window-blinds, one or two of the family,
summoning up the courage that comes with the light of day, resolved
that, "ghost, if ghost it were," they should at all risks have a peep at
it, and cautiously descended to the door of the apartment, which was
slightly ajar. The musician was fingering the instrument with the
greatest industry and energy, and apparently at his own entire
satisfaction. Well, after much demurring, in they peeped; and most
assuredly, through the dim dusk of the morning, a gray figure was seen
exerting itself most strenuously. They looked closer, when, behold,
there was--what think you?--the cat, pawing away, first with her fore
feet, and then with her hind; now touching one note gently, and then
dancing with all fours across the keys. There was a solution of the
enigma--a bringing to light of the imagined ghost.