It was at the Crystal Palace, in Sydenham, England. I wish all the
readers of "The Nursery" could have seen it.
There were over three hundred cats in cages. Each one had a nice red
cushion in the front-part of the cage, and in the back part a dish of
water or milk. Each one had a ribbon around the neck, to which was
attached a medal with the number of the cage. The ribbons were of all
colors.
The cats that had taken the first prize were known by a little blue flag
suspended over the front of the cage, and were the largest cats. Very
many of them were lazily sleeping on their cushions, as happy as if they
were in their own homes. They took little notice of the people who were
looking at them; and, as a placard on each cage ordered spectators to
"move on," no one could spend much time in trying to attract their
attention.
I can hardly tell you about all the cats, there were so many,--some all
white, some all black, and some all yellow; black-and-yellow,
black-and-white, black-and-gray, gray-and-white, black-and-yellow-and-white;
cats with long hair, and cats with short; cats with tails, and cats without.
One large Russian cat, called the "Czar," was brown, with smooth, short,
shining fur, which looked like seal-skin.
Then there were kittens of all sizes and colors. In one cage was a black
mother-puss, with four perfectly white kittens, their eyes not yet open.
Another black mother had two kittens,--one black, and one gray. A
black-and-yellow puss had one black, and one yellow kitten.
In some of the cages were two or three large kittens having a good time
together. Some of them had balls to play with; some were climbing on the
sides of the cage or frolicking with one another; and others were
running around after their tails, in real kitten fashion.
Just before five o'clock, the baskets in which the cats were brought
were placed on the tops of the cages. Some of the cats reached up and
tried to get hold of them. They all seemed to know that the show was
over, and that they would soon be able to run and jump about, with
plenty of air and space.
I must not forget to tell you how quiet all these cats were. Not one
"Me-ow" was to be heard. When, out of sight of the cages, one would
never have known there was a cat in the building.