the cat - World eBook Library

THE CAT=
The Strength Which Lies in Delicacy
The cat's energy is subdued into an exquisite
moderation. Other animals roughly employ what
strength they happen to possess, without reference
to the smallness of the occasion; but the cat uses
only the necessary force. One day I watched a
kitten playing with a daffodil. She sat on her
hind legs, and patted the flower with her paws,
first with the right paw, then with the left, making
the light yellow bell sway from side to side, yet
not injuring a petal or a stamen. She took de-
light, evidently, in the very delicacy of the exer-
cise; whereas a dog or a horse has no enjoyment of
delicacy in its own movements, but acts strongly
when it is strong, without calculating whether the
energy used may not be in great part superfluous.
This proportioning of force to the need is an evi-
dence of refinement in manners and in art. If
animals could speak, the dog would be a blunt,
blundering, outspoken, honest fellow; but the cat
would have the rare grace of never saying a word
too much.
Philip Gilbert Hamerton.
M