SOME FOREIGN CATS.
It is not intended in the following notes to enter into a description
of the various beautiful and interesting wild felines, for although
some of these—such as the Ocelot, the Geoffroy’s Cat, and the Wild
Cat—are not infrequently seen in the pens at our leading shows, such
matter really comes more within the province of a natural history than
of the present work.
Two varieties alone may justly claim some slight attention here, these
being the Egyptian cat (_Felis maniculata_) and the European wild cat
(_F. catus_). It might reasonably be imagined that our common cat was
derived from the last-named, considering that at one time it was a
common animal all over England, as well as on the Continent. The
untamable ferocity of this variety—which is probably the least
amenable of all living creatures—has doubtless prevented its ever
having been domesticated, and the high value which, as we learn from
old writings, was placed upon the domestic puss at a time when the
wild cat was a common animal in England, plainly show that _F. catus_
was not the ancestor of _F. domestica_, although the two will freely
interbreed. Many years ago, for instance, the old Spanish wild cat
which used to be kept at the Zoological Gardens in the so-called
aviaries, now occupied by the civets, mated with his cage mate—a
tortoiseshell-and-white queen—and of these cross-bred kittens both Sir
Claud Alexander and the writer of these lines possessed specimens.
It is usually assumed that the Egyptian or Caffre cat is the
progenitor of the majority of the domestic cats. This is the variety
which was domesticated, revered, and embalmed by the ancient
Egyptians. It is found over the whole of Africa, and it is quite easy
to understand how, with its eminently tamable disposition, it
gradually spread over Europe. Our so-called Abyssinian cats, to which
reference will be made later on, bear a very striking resemblance to
this handsome variety of cat.
The domestic cats of other parts of the world, however, are
undoubtedly derived from the smaller wild cats of the countries in
question. Thus it is probable that several varieties have a share in
the creation of the Indian domestic cats, of which Blyth distinguished
two varieties. The fulvous variety he considered to be derived from
the Indian jungle cat (_F. chaus_), a fulvous cat which in its high
legs, shorter tail, and slightly tufted ears—and it is worthy of note
that some of the best Abyssinians have large and slightly tufted
ears—marks the approach to the lyncine group. The spotted kinds he
traces to the leopard cat, the desert cat, and the rusty spotted cat.
A most extraordinary variety, of which next to nothing appears to be
known, is the hairless cat, and we cannot do better than quote in
extenso the description given by the owner of what, if his surmise
should unhappily prove to be correct, was the last pair of these
peculiar animals, a portrait of which we give.
_Albuquerque, New Mexico,
February 3rd, 1902._
MR. H. C. BROOKE.
Dear Sir,—Yours of January 20th is at hand. In answer I would say my
hairless cats are brother and sister. I got them from the Indians a
few miles from this place. The old Jesuit Fathers tell me they are
the last of the Aztec breed known only in New Mexico. I have found
them the most intelligent and affectionate family pets I have ever
met in the cat line; they are the quickest in action and smartest
cats I have ever seen. They are fond of a warm bath, and love to
sleep under the clothes at night with our little girl. They seem to
understand nearly everything that is said to them; but I have never
had time to train them. They are marked exactly alike—with
mouse-coloured backs; with neck, stomach, and legs a delicate flesh
tint. Their bodies are always warm and soft as a child’s. They love
to be fondled and caressed, and are very playful; will run up and
down your body and around your waist like a flash. “Nellie” weighs
about eight pounds, and “Dick” weighed ten pounds; but I am sorry to
say we have lost “Dick.” We have never allowed them to go out of the
house, as the dogs would be after them. They were very fond of our
water spaniel, and would sleep with her. “Dick” was a sly rascal,
and would steal out. One night last year he stole out, and the dogs
finished him. His loss was very great, as I may never replace him.
The Chicago Cat Club valued them at 1,000 dollars each. They were
very anxious for me to come on with them for their cat shows, but I
could not go. They were never on exhibition; as this is a small
city, I feared they would be stolen. I have made every endeavour to
get another mate for “Nellie,” but have not been successful. I never
allowed them to mate, as they were brother and sister, and I thought
it might alter “Nellie’s” beautiful form, which is round and
handsome, with body rather long. In winter they have a light fur on
back and ridge of tail, which falls off in warm weather. They stand
the cold weather same as other cats. They are not like the hairless
dogs, whose hide is solid and tough; they are soft and delicate,
with very loose skin. “Nellie” has a very small head, large amber
eyes, extra long moustache and eyebrows; her voice now is a good
baritone, when young it sounded exactly like a child’s. They have
great appetites, and are quite dainty eaters—fried chicken and good
steak is their choice. Have never been sick an hour. The enclosed
faded picture is the only one I have at present; it is very
lifelike, as it shows the wrinkles in its fine, soft skin. “Dick”
was a very powerful cat; could whip any dog alone; his courage, no
doubt, was the cause of his death. He always was the boss over our
dogs. I have priced “Nellie” at 300 dollars. She is too valuable a
pet for me to keep in a small town. Many wealthy ladies would value
her at her weight in gold if they knew what a very rare pet she is.
I think in your position she would be a very good investment to
exhibit at cat shows and other select events, as she doubtless is
the only hairless cat now known. I have written to Old Mexico and
all over this country without finding another. I would like to have
her in some large museum, where she would interest and be
appreciated by thousands of people.—Trusting this will reach you in
safety, I am, very truly yours,
F. J. SHINICK.
We can only add, whilst deeply regretting that Mr. Shinick did not
mate his cats, the earnest hope that we may hear that he has
discovered the existence of other specimens. Should it prove that a
parcel of street curs are responsible for this curious variety
becoming extinct, even such confirmed dog lovers as ourselves are
almost tempted to acquiesce in a universal and everlasting muzzling
order! It is to be regretted that no information is given as to
whether the dentition of these cats was abnormal and imperfect, as is
the case with the Mexican hairless dogs.
[Illustration:
MEXICAN HAIRLESS CATS.
]
Very curious and handsome is the Indian cat “Indischer Fürst,”
exhibited by Mrs. H. C. Brooke. His most striking peculiarities are
the length and slenderness of his limbs, the extreme shortness of his
coat, and his thin and tapering tail, which reminds the observer of
that of a pointer. His ears are small, but as a kitten they were of
enormous size, and with his long and pointed head gave him a most
weird appearance. The voice of this cat is very variable, and far more
resembles the raucous call of the Siamese than the voice of any
European cat.
This cat has had a very adventurous existence. He, with his litter
sister, was originally stolen from a hotel in Bombay by an English
sailor. On the way home he twice fell overboard, but, more fortunate
than his companion, was safely rescued. He also suffered shipwreck in
the Sobraon on Yung Yung Island. On arriving nearer home he
disappeared, and was only after several days’ absence discovered in
the bowels of the ship, as black as the coal amongst which he had been
sojourning. His last exploit was to fall in the docks, after which the
sailor handed him over to a shoemaker at Leytonstone, where he was
discovered by his present owner. After he had twice escaped from
bondage and astonished the natives of that place by perambulating the
housetops, lamenting in the tones of a lost soul, his owner arrived at
the conclusion that he had no convenience for restraining him, and at
last yielded to persuasion, and handed him over to his present
proprietors for consideration of sundry gold coins of the realm and a
kitten with seven toes on each foot.
[Illustration:
AFRICAN CAT.
(_Photo: E. Landor, Ealing._)
]
It is a very remarkable thing that the Asiatic cats are so subject to
abnormal formations of the tail. The Siamese cats, as is well known,
very frequently possess kinked tails. In Burma also cats are
found—some tailless, some with crooked or twisted stumps. These cats,
when spotted, are very striking; when of an ordinary colour they
simply recall an indifferent Manx.
Japan also possesses tailless cats; but those with ordinary caudal
appendages also occur, and are probably the most numerous. There is
said to be a variety of Chinese cat which is remarkable for its
pendent ears. We have never been able to ascertain anything definite
with regard to this variety. Some years back a class was provided for
them at a certain Continental cat show, and we went across in the hope
of seeing and, if possible, acquiring some specimens; but, alas, the
class was empty! We have seen a stuffed specimen in a Continental
museum, which was a half-long-haired cat, the ears being pendent down
the sides of the head instead of erect; but do not attach much value
to this.
We have seen specimens of a very tiny domestic cat, full-grown
individuals of which weigh only about three pounds. Those we saw came
from South America.
A cat called the Mombassa cat, from the East of Africa, is said to
have a short coat of a wiry texture. There are, of course, no cats
indigenous to Australia. An American writer gives it as his opinion
that a certain strain of Australian cats is derived from imported
Siamese cats. A specimen we possessed last year, which was born on a
ship during the passage from Australia, and which exactly resembled
its dam, certainly had every appearance of being of Eastern origin. It
had the marten-shaped head, and a triple kink in the tail; its voice
also resembled that of the Siamese. In colour it was grey, with darker
spots.
[Illustration:
ABYSSINIAN AND INDIAN CATS.
(_From a Painting by W. Luker, Jun._)
]
[Illustration:
MANX AND ABYSSINIAN (“SEDGEMERE PEATY” ON THE RIGHT).
(_Photo: A. R. Dresser._)
]
A very taking variety is the Abyssinian. A good specimen should very
strongly resemble what one might well expect the Egyptian cat to
become after generations of domestication. Since the death of
“Sedgemere Bottle” and “Sedgemere Peaty” there have been no cats
penned of such superlative merit as were these two specimens. The
photograph of “Sedgemere Peaty” which we give hardly does justice to
the cat. The colour of an Abyssinian should be a sort of reddish-fawn,
each individual hair being “ticked” like that of a wild rabbit—hence
the popular name of “bunny cat.” The great difficulty in breeding
these cats is their tendency to come too dark and too heavily striped
on the limbs; the face should be rather long, the tail short and
thick, and the ears large. These points are well shown by “Little
Bunny Teedle Tit,” first in the Abyssinian class at the 1902 Crystal
Palace cat show, though in colour she was not the best penned. The
Abyssinian should not be a large, coarse cat. A small cat of delicate
colouring and with the above-mentioned body properties is by far to be
preferred to the large, coarse, dark specimens one sees winning under
some all-round judges, merely because of their size.
More than any other varieties have the foreign cats suffered from the
negligence of show committees and the awful judging of all-round
judges, _plus_ the equally awful reports furnished by all-round
reporters! At the best, knowledge of the different varieties of
foreign cats is absolutely in its infancy. It should be the aim of
large shows to provide, whenever possible, judges for these
interesting strangers who do really take some interest in them. I am
bound to say that of late years the National Cat Club has done its
best to meet the wishes of owners in this respect, and with gratifying
results, as witness the good classes at the Crystal Palace show, where
there were no fewer than eleven Abyssinians penned—a record number!
The Cat Club, on the other hand, has persistently neglected them,
having on almost every occasion handed them over to some all-round
judge who knows little and cares less about them, with the natural
result that exhibitors are disgusted. Take, for instance, the last
show, when a very dark, almost sooty Abyssinian was placed above a
very fair specimen merely because the latter had about a dozen white
hairs on its throat! The value of the winner may be gauged from the
fact that its owner, a lady well known in the cat world, expressed her
intention of having him neutered and keeping him merely as a pet. The
same judge, in dividing the prizes amongst the Manx cats, appeared to
think the colour of the throat of far more importance than the shape
of the hind quarters in this section. Again, of what value does the
reporter flatter himself his writings can be when we read in a
so-called critique of a _spotted_ Geoffroy’s cat and of an ocelot that
they are “pretty _tiger-marked_ specimens”? We wonder if the gentleman
ever saw a tiger.
There is much that is fascinating—much, nay almost all—to learn, the
most beautiful colours and arrangements of markings to be studied, by
those who will devote their attention to foreign cats. To the search
for something new we owe the beautiful Siamese. Will no one pay some
attention to the other varieties of the feline tribe from distant
lands? They are well worth it, and the addition of more foreign cats
at our shows would be interesting and instructive.
H. C. BROOKE.
[Illustration:
GEOFFROY’S WILD CAT.
(_Photo: Cassell & Company, Limited._)
]
[Illustration:
“THE STORM KING.”
OWNED BY MISS C. WALLACE.
(_Photo: Lewis Studio, East Brady, Pa._)
]