the cat - World eBook Library

THE CAT:
that crossing the room? What is there good to
eat in box, or bundle, or basket? The ruling pas-
sion of a kitten is curiosity, and in this regard he
is uncommonly like a child. " When a cat enters
a room for the first time," says Rousseau in
" Emile," " he prowls into every corner, he cannot
rest until he has made himself familiar with his
surroundings. So does a young child behave when
he is beginning to walk and talk. So does he ques-
tion the unknown world he is entering."
There is no more intrepid explorer than a kitten.
He makes perilous voyages into cellar and attic,
he scales the roofs of neighbouring houses, he
thrusts his little inquiring nose into half-shut
doors, he lays up for future use a store of useful
observation, he gets himself into every kind of
trouble, and is always sorry when it is too late.
It is amazing to see a kitten climb a tree. Up he
goes from bough to bough, higher and higher, as
though bent on enjoying the view from the top.
He does not ask where this delightful adventure is
taking him. He pays no heed to the diminishing
size of the branches, and it is only when they sway
beneath his weight that he realizes the impossibility
of mounting any further. Then fear gripes his
heart, and he mews appealingly for help. Some-
body must hasten with a ladder to his rescue;
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