UC-NRLF B 3 331 TSS II ^p C|)omafii ^ailep ^tlUricI) WORKS. Riverside Edition. 9 vols. I. II. POEMS III. MARJORIE DAW AND OTHER STORIES. IV. PRUDENCE PALFREY, AND A RIVERMOUTH RO- MANCE. V. THE QUEEN OF SHEBA, AND OTHER STORIES. VI THE STILLWATER TRAGEDY. VII THE STORY OF A BAD BOY, AND THE LITTLE VIOLINIST, WITH OTHER SKETCHES Vm. FROM PONKAPOG TO PESTH, AND AN OLD TOWN BY THE SEA. IX. PONKAPOG PAPERS, A SEA TURN AND OTHER MATTERS. POEMS. Riverside Edition. 2 vols. THE SAME. Household Editio}i. Illustrated. THE SAME. Popular Editto7i. Illustrated. THE SHADOWS OF THE FLOWERS. Illustrated. JUDITH AND HOLOFERNES. A Poem UNGUARDED GATES AND OTHER POEMS. WYNDHAM TOWERS. A Poem THE SISTERS' TRAGEDY, AND OTHER POEMS. MERCEDES, A Drama in Two Acts. LATER LYRICS. JUDITH OF BETHULIA. A Tragedy. A SEA TURN AND OTHER MATTERS. MARJORIE DAW. Holiday Edition. THE SAME. Cambridge Classics. THE STORY OF A BAD BOY. Illustrated. THE SAME. Holiday Edition Illustrated by A. B. Frost. THE SAME. Visitors' Edition. Illustrated TWO BITES AT A CHERRY AND OTHER TALES. AN OLD TOWN BY THE SEA. PRUDENCE PALFREY. With frontispiece. THE QUEEN OF SHE=iA THE STILLWATER TRAGEDY. PONKAPOG PAPERS FROM PONKAPOG TO PESTH. THE STORY OF A CAT Translated from the French of Emile de la Bedolli^re. Illustrated. HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY Boston and New York THE STORY OF A CAT TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH OF ^MILE DE LA BEBOLLIERE T. B. ALDRICH. WITH MANY DESIGNS LN SILHOUETTE BY HOPKINS. BOSTON AND NEW YORK HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGE How Mother Michel made the Acquaintance of her Cat ... 7 CHAPTER n. How the Cat was installed with Madame de la Grenouillere, and CONFIDED TO THE CaRE OF MOTHER MiCHEL 18 CHAPTER HI. In which are shown the Goodness of Mother Michel and the Wickedness of Father Llstucru 28 CHAPTER IV. In which the Cat displays Intelligence beyond his Station in Life AND behaves handsomely IN ADVERSITY 38 CHAPTER V. In WHICH THE Cat contends successfully against his Enemy . . 51 CHAPTER VI. How Father Lustucru confides his odious Plans to Nicholas Fari- bole 62 CHAPTER VII. In which Father Lustucru is on the Point of accomplishing his Purpose, and Mother Michel's Cat is in an unpleasant Predic- ament 74 ii CONTENTS. CHAPTER VIII. In which Mother Michel searches for her Cat .... 81 CHAPTER IX. Which is satisfactory to Everybody but the Guilty . . . .91 LIST OF SILHOUETTES. Page Initial Letter, Chap. 1 7 The Countess distributes Ahns 8 The Ape fatally exposes Himself 9 Her Friends propose Squirrels, Canaries, Mice, etc 9 The Boys after the Cat 10 The Luckless Creature bowed his Head 12 " Dear me, how Homely he is ! " 13 The Cat presented half dead to the Countess 14 Mother Michel is told to take the Cat 17 Mother Michel IS Father Lustucru 19 "Oh. the Beautiful Cat I " 20 The Cat is washed 21 The Old Scholar looks for a Name 22 The Cat grows Fat 22 He will take nothing from the Steward 22 He crouches in a Corner of the Hearth 23 " I depart To-morrow I " 24 "In her Youth she caressed a Kitten " 24 "Mother Michel, I contide my Cat to you " 25 The Post-chaise is ready . . . , 26 The Cat wishes to go with the Carriage 27 Monmouth Faints 27 "He shall Die!" 27 Initial Letter, Chap. HI 28 Father Lustucru's Stratagem 30 Tlie Porter 30 The Steward seizes Monmouth 31 The Cat is plunged into the Basket .{2 The Steward hurries away 32 He dances with Delight 32 The Cat is thrown into the River 33 Mother Michel looks for the Cat 34 iv LIST OF SILHOUETTES. She knocks at the Steward's Door 35 Every Nook and Corner is ransacked 36 The Shock is too much for Mother Michel 37 Initial Letter, Chap. IV 38 "Agreed !" said M. Guignolet 39 The Fishermen pursue the Cat 40 Monmouth grapples the Lines 41 The Imprudent Mouse 42 •♦Don't hurt Him! " said the Baker 42 Monmouth jumps out of the Window 43 All the Street Dogs pursue Moumouth 44 He meets a Bull-dog 45 He climbs a Wall 46 Mother Michel laments 46 Father Lustucru dreams 47 Mother Michel encounters nothing but Rats 48 She searches the Attic 49 "It is he! It is he !" cried Mother Michel 49 Initial Letter, Chap. V. . • 51 Lustucru meditates 52 The Green Package 53 " Come, let us go ! " 54 Moumouth Is pleased to see the Hash 55 He sniffs with Disgust 56 "Don't touch it, I beg of you" • 56 The Fatal Plate remains forgotten 57 Louis XIV 58 Downfall of Louis XIV 59 Lustucru appears 59 Moumouth comes forth 6») ^Mother Michel is revived 61 Initial Letter, Chap. VI 62 The Old Woman and the Bo\' 63 Lustucru is absorbed 64 The Boy on the Stone Post 64 The Steward engages Faribole 66 A little awkward at first 67 The Cat and the Boy become Friends 67 Lustucru and Faribole 69 Faribole's Old Clothes 70 Only one is kept; the rest are tossed into the River 71 "Get up! Depart!" 72 Initial Letter, Chap. VII 74 The Steward lifted his Cudgel 76 Making a Speaking-trumpet of hi^J Hand 77 The Countess embraces Mother Michel .78 LIST OF SILHOUETTES. V Faribole seated in the Garden 79 Initial Letter, Ciiap. VlII 81 Mother Michel pays Three Crowns 84 The Fortune-teller consults her Cards 8G Moumouth appears 87 "Do not ruin me, I conjure you ! " 88 Lustucru assisted at this touching Scene DO Initial Letter, Chap. IX 91 Faribole Explains ... 92 Faribole is treated Roughly on the Staircase 94 A celebrated Chemist analyzes the Hash 9.") The Fate of the Steward 96 Lustucru flies 97 IMother Michel's Cottage , . . 98 Moumouth and his Family . 99 THE STORY OF A CAT. CHAPTER I. HOW MOTHER MICHEL MADE THE ACQUAINTANCE OF HER CAT. HERE lived in Paris, under the reign of King Louis XY., a very ricii old countess named Yolande de la Grenouillere. She was a worthy and charitable lady, who distributed alms not only to the poor of her own parish, Saint- Germain-l'Auxerrois, but to the unfortunate of other quarters. Her husband, Roch-Eustache- Jeremie, Count of Grenouillere, liad fallen ulorior*t^ly at the battle of Fontenoy, on the 11th of May, 1745. The noble widow had long mourned for him, and even now at times wept over his death. Left without children, and almost en- tirely alone in the world, she gave herself up to a strange fancy, — a fancy, it is true, which in no 8/ ':tiif:/.^TQhv OF a cat. manner detracted from her real virtues and admi- rable qualities : she had a passion for animals. And an unhappy passion it was, since all those she had pos- sessed had died in her arms. The first, in date, in her affections had been a green parrot, which, having been so imprudent as to The Countess (distributes Alms eat some parsley, fell a victim to frightful colics. An indigestion, caused by sweet biscuits, had taken from Madame de la Grenouillere a pug-dog of the most brilliant promise. A third favorite, an ape of a very interesting species, having broken his chain one night, went clambering over the trees in the garden, where, during a shower, he caught a cold in the head, which conducted him to the tomb. THE STORY OF A CAT. 9 Following these, the Countess had birds of divers kinds; but some of them had flown away, and the others had died of the pip. Cast down by such contniuous dis- ^^^J"~^. asters, Madame de la Grenou ill tire shed many tears. Seeing her inconsolable, the friends of the Count- ess proposed success- ively squirrels, learned v canaries, w^hite mice, cockatoos ; but she would not listen to them ; she even re- fused a superb spaniel who played dominoes, danced to music, ate salad, and translated Greek. The Ape fatally exposes himself. " No, no," she said, " I do not want any more ani- mals ; the air of my house is death to them." THE STORY OF A CAT. 11 She had ended by believing in fatality. One day, as the Countess was leaving the church, she saw a crowd of boys hustling and elbowing each other, and giving vent to peals of joyous laughter. When, seated in her carriage, she was able to over- look the throng, she discovered that the cause of this tumult was a poor cat to whose tail the little wretches had tied a tin saucepan. The unfortunate cat had evidently been running a long^ time, for he seemed overcome with fatio;ne. Seeuig that he slackened his speed, his tormentors formed a circle around him, and began pelting him with stones. The luckless creature bowed his head, and, recognizing that he was surrounded by none but enemies, resigned himself to his hard fate with the heroism of a Roman senator. Several stones had al- ready reached him, when Madame de la Grenouillere, seized with deep compassion, descended from her car- riage, and, pushing the crowd aside, exclaimed: "I will give a louis to whoever will save that animal ! " These words produced a magical effect ; they trans- formed the persecutors into liberators ; the poor cat came near being suffocated by those who now dis- puted the honor of rescuing him safe and sound. Finally, a sort of young Hercules overthrew his rivals, brought off the cat, and presented it half dead to the Countess. " Very well," she said ; " here, my brave little man, is the reward I promised." She gave him a THE STORY OF A CAT. 13 bright golden louis just out of the mint, and then added, '• ReUeve this poor animal of his inconvenient burden." While the young Hercules obeyed, Madame de la Grenouillere regarded the creature she had rescued. It was a true type of the street-cat. His natural hideousness was increased by the accidents of a long Dear me, how honreiy he is ! " and irregular career ; his short hair was soiled with mud ; one could scarcely distinguish beneath the vari- ous splashes his gray fur robe striped with black. He was so thin as to be nearly transparent, so shrunken that one could count his ribs, and so dis- pirited that a mouse might have beaten him. There was only one thing in his flivor, and that was his physiognomy. THE STORY OF A CAT. 15 '^ Dear me, how homely he is ! " said Madame dc la Grenonillere, after finishing her examination. At the moment she stepped into the carriage, the cat fixed his great sea-green eyes npon her and gave her a look, strange, indefinable, fidl at the same time of gratitude and reproach, and so expressive that the good lady was instantly fiiscinated. She read in this glance a discourse of great eloquence. The look seemed to wish to say, — " You have obeyed a generous impulse ; you saw me feeble, suffering, oppressed, and you took pity on me. Now that your benevolence is satisfied, my de- formity inspires you with contempt. I thought you were good, but you are not good ; you have the in- stinct of kindness, but you are not kind. If you were really charitable you would continue to interest yourself in me for the very reason that I am homely ; you would reflect that my misfortunes are owing to my ugly appearance, and that the same cause, — should you leave me there in the street, at the mercy of the wicked boys, — the same cause, T say, would produce the same effects. Go! you needn't pride yourself on your half-way benevolence ! — you have not done me a service ; you have only prolonged my agony. I am an outcast, the whole world is against me, I am condemned to die ; let my destiny be ac- complished ! " Madame de la Grenouillbre was moved to tears. The cat seemed to her superhuman — no, it was a 16 THE STORY OF A CAT. cat ; it seemed to her superanimal ! She thought of the mysteries of transformation, and imagined that the cat, before assuming his present form, had been a great orator and a person of standing. She said to lier maid, Mother Michel, who was in the carriage, — " Take the cat and carry him." " What, you will bring him with you, madame ? " cried Mother Michel. " Certainly. As long as I live that animal shall have a place at my fireside and at my table. If you wish to please me, you will treat him with the same zeal and affection you show to myself" " Madame shall be obeyed." '' That is well, — and now for home ! " CHAPTER II. now THE CAT WAS INSTALLED WITH MADAME DE LA GRENOUILLERE, AND COXFIDED TO THE CARE OF MOTHER MICHEL. Madame de la Grenouillere inhabited a mag- nifice^xt mansion sitnated on the corner of the streets Saint- Thomas - du-Lonvre and Orties- Saint-Louis ; there she led a very re- tired hfe, on ahnost intimate terms with her two principal domestics, — Madame Michel, her maid and companion, and M. Lustucrn, the steward. These serv- ants being elderly persons, the Countess, who was possessed of a pleasant humor, had christened them Mother Michel and Father Lustucru. The features of Mother Michel bore the imprint of her amiable disposition ; she was as open and candid as Father Lustucru was slv and dissimulatino;. Mother Michel Tlic plausiblc air of the steward might deceive persons without much experience ; but close observers could easily discover the most perverse in- THE STORY OF A CAT. 19 clinations under his false mask of good nature. There was duplicity in his great blue eyes, anger concen- trated in his nostrils, something wily in the end of his tapering nose, and malice in the shape of his lips. However, this man had never, in appearance, at least, done anything to forfeit his honor ; he had been able to guard an outside air of honesty, hiding very carefully the blackness of his nature. His wickedness was like a mine to which one has not yet applied the match, — it waited only for an occasion to Hash out. Lustucru detested ani- mals, but, in order to flatter the taste of his mistress, he pretended to idolize them. On seeing Mother Michel bearino^ in her arms the res- cued cat, he said to himself: '^ What, another beast ! As if there were not enouo;h of US in the house I " ^^''''' Lustucru He could not help throwing a glance of antipathy at the new-comer ; then, curbing himself quickly, he cried, with an afiected admiration. — '^ Oh, the beautiful cat I the pretty cat ! that cat has n't his equal I " — and he caressed it in the most perfidious fashion. 20 THE STORY OF A CAT. " Truly ? " said Madame de la Grenouillere ; " you do not find him too homely ? " Oh, the Beautiful Cat " Too homely ! But, then, he has charming eyes. But, if he was frightful, your interesting yourself in him would change him." " He displeased me at first." " The beings who displease at first are those one loves the most after awhile," replied Father Lustucru, sententiously. THE STORY OF A CAT. 21 They proceeded at once to make the toilet of the cat, who, m spite of his instinctive horror of water, submitted with touching resignation to being washed ; he seemed to understand that it improved his per- sonal appearance. After giving him a dish of broken meat, which he ate with great relish, they arranged the hours for his meals, the employment of his days, and the place where he was to sleep. The Ca shed. They thought also to give him a name. Mother Michel and Father Lustucru proposed several that were quite happy, such as Mistigris, Tristepatte, etc. ; but the Countess rejected them all successively. She desired a name that would recall the circumstances in which the cat was found. An old scholar, whom she consulted the next day, suggested that of Monmouth, com|X)sed of two Hebrew words which signify sailed from saitcepans. 22 THE STORY OF A CAT. The Cat grows Fat. At the end of a few days, Moumouth was unrecog- nizable. His fur was polished with care ; nourishing food had filled out his form ; his mustaches stood up like those of a swordsman of the seventeenth century shone as emeralds. He was a liv- ing proof of the influence of good fare upon tlie race. He owed his excellent condition chiefly to Mother Michel, whoui he held in affectionate consideration; he showed, on the other hand, for Father Lustucru a very marked dislike. As if he had divined that here his eyes The Old Scholar looks for a Name. He will take Nothing from the Steward. he had to do with an enemy, he refused to accept anything presented by the steward. However, they THE STORY OF A (AT. 23 saw but little of each other. The days passed very happily with Monmouth, and everything promised a smiling future for him ; but, like the sword of Damo- cles, troubles are ever suspended above the heads of men and of cats. On the 24th of January, 1753, an unusual sadness was observed in Moumouth ; he scarcely responded to the caresses which Madame de la Grenouillere lavished upon him; he ate noth- ing, and spent the day crouched on a corner of the hearth, gazing mournfully into the fire. He had a He crouches ir, a Corner of the Hearth. presentiment of some misfortune, and the misfortune came. That night a messenger, sent fi'om the Chateau de la Gingeole in Normandy, brought a letter to the Countess from her younger sister, who, having broken a leg in getting out of her carriage, begged the Countess, her only relative, to come to her at once. Madame de la Grenouillere was too sympathetic and kind-hearted to hesitate an instant. '• I depart to-morrow," said she. 24 THE STORY OF A CAT. m^ " In her Youth she caressed a Kitten." " I depart To-morrow ! " mals of your species eroiis. What slander ! At these words, Moumouth, who follow^ed his bene- factress with his ej^es, gave a mel- ancholy miau. " Poor cat ! " resumed the lady, with emotion, "• it is necessary that we should be separated ! I cannot bring you with me, for my sister has the Aveakness to hate ani- she pretends they are treach- In her youth she caressed a kitten, who, too much excited by marks of affection, scratched her involuntarily. Was it from wicked- ness? No, it was from sensibility. However, since that day my sister has sworn an eternal hatred for cats." Moumouth regarded his mistress with an air which seemed to say, — '^ But you. at least, you do us justice, truly supe- rior woman ! " After a moment of silence and meditation, the Countess added, — " Mother Michel, I confide my cat to you." " We will take good care of him, madame," said Father Lustucru. " Don't you trouble yourself about him, I pray you," interrupted the Countess. " You know that THE STORY OF A CAT 25 he has taken a dislike to you ; your presence merely is sufficient to irritate him. Why, 1 don't know ; but you are insupportable to him." '^ That is true," said Father Lustucru, with contri- tion ; '' but the cat is unjust, for 1 love him and he does n't love me." Mother Michel, I confide my Cat to you.' " My sister is also unjust. Cats, perhaps, love her, and she does not love them. I respect her opinion. Respect that of Monmouth." Having pronounced these words in a firm tone, Madame de la Grenouillere addressed herself to Mother Michel. '' It is to you, Mother Michel, and to you alone, that I confide him. Return him to me safe and sound, and I will cover you with benefits. I am sixty-five years of age, you are ten years younger ; it is probable that you will live to close my eyes " — " Ah, madame ! why such sorrowful ideas ? " " Let me finish. To guard against mischance, I have already thought to provide for you comfortably ; but, if you keep Monmouth for me, I will give you a pension of fifteen hundred livres." 26 . THE STORY OF A CAT. " Ah, madame ! " said Mother Michel, in an impres- sive tone, " it is not necessary to hire my services ; I love the cat with all ni}' heart, and I will always be devoted to him." " I am sure of it, and I shall also know how to re- ward your zeal." During this conversation, Father Lustucru employed all his forces to conceal the ex- pression of his jealous3\ " Everything for her, and nothing for me ! " he said to himself " Fifteen hundred livres a year ! It is a fortune, and she will have it ! Oh, no ! she shall not have it." The next morning, at half-past seven, four lively The Post-chaise Is ready. horses were harnessed to the post-chaise which was to convey the excellent old lady to Normandy. She said a last adieu to her favorite, pressed him to her heart, and stepped into the carriage. Until then, Moumouth had felt only a vague un- easiness ; but at this moment he understood it all ! He saw his benefactress ready to depart ; and, trem- bling at the thought of losing her, he made one bound to her side. THE STORY OF A CAT. 27 " It is necessary for you to stay here," said Mad- ame de la Grenouillere. making an effort to restrain her tears. Will it be believed ? — the cat also wept ! To put an end to this painful scene, Mother Michel seized the cat by the shoulders and detached him from the carriage-cush- ion, to which he clung ; the door closed, the horses gave a vigorous null ind Stirted '^^^ ^^^ wishes to go with the Carriage. off at a speed of not less than three leagues an hour Monmouth rolled in a convul- sion, and then fainted. Madame de la Grenouillere, h e r head stretched out of the Moumouth faints. post-chaise, waved her handker- chief, crying : — " Mother Michel, 1 connnend my cat to you I " " Be tranquil, madame ; I swear you shall find him large and plump when you return." ^•And I," muttered Father Lustucru, in a deep voice, " I swear he shall die ! " He shall die ! v<,K>\ ^ii y*w CHAPTER TIL IN AVHICH ARE SHOWN THE GOODNESS OF MOTHER MICHEL AND THE WICKEDNESS OF FATHER LUSTUCRU. OTHER MICHEL, worthy of the confidence which had been re- posed in her, displayed for Mou- mouth a truly maternal tender- _ ness ; she tended him, coddled him, took such pains with him, in short, that he became one of the most beautiful cats in that quarter of the town where the cats are magnificent. She watched over him constantly, gave him the choicest bits to eat, and put him to bed at night on the soft- est of eider-down quilts. Fearing that he might fall ill some day, and wish- ing to inform herself concerning the maladies to which cats are liable, she procured various books on that important subject ; she even went so far in her devotion as to read the " History of Cats," by Fran- Qois-Auguste Paradis de Moncrif, a member of the French Academy. The conduct of Mother Michel had no low motive THE STORY OF A CAT. 29 of personal interest. She gave scarcely a thought to herself, the good old soul ! Content with little, she would always have enough to live on ; she required nothing but a small room, brown bread, a supply of wood in winter, and a spinning-wheel. But she had nephews and nieces, god-children, whom she hoped to be able to help ; it was to them that she destined in advance the gifts of Madame de la Grenouillere. The continually increasing prosperity of Monmouth exasperated Father Lustucru. He saw with a sort of dread the approach of the hour when the faithful guardian would be rewarded ; he dreamt day and night of the means to prevent it, — to carry off her four-footed pupil, and bring down on her the wrath of their mistress. By dint of indulging his hatred and envy in solitary reflections, he ceased at last to draw back at the prospect of committing a crime. " How," he said, " how rid the house of that mis- erable cat ? What arms shall I use against him ? Fire, poison, or w^ater ? I will try water ! " This resolution taken, he thought of nothing but to put it into execution. It was difficult to get pos- session of Monmouth, of whom Mother Michel rarely lost sight ; and Monmouth, too, not having the slight- est confidence in the steward, was always on the de- fensive. Lustucru watched during several days for a favorable occasion. One night, after making an excellent supper, Mou- 30 THE STORY OF A CAT. mouth curled himself up near the fire in the parlor, at the feet of Mother Michel, and slept the sleep of the just with good digestion. In the midst of this, Fatlier Lustucru came into the room. '' Good ! " he thought. " The cat sleeps. Let us get the guardian out of the Avay." "■ How auiiable of you to come and keep me com- pany ! " said Mother Michel, politely. " You are quite well this evening ? " '' Perfectly ; but every- body is not like me. Our porter, for ex- ample, is in a deplorable state ; he is suffering ex- ec hi: atage. lively from rh eu m a- i n d You 1 1 8 m , would be very happ}^ to see you a moment, have gentle words to console the afflicted, and excellent re- ceipts to cure them. Go, then, and pay a little visit to our friend Krautman ; I am per- suaded that your presence will help him." Mother Michel got up at once and descended to the apartment of the porter, who was, indeed, suffer- ing from a violent rheumatic pain. The Porte THE STORY OF A CAT. 31 '^ Now for us two I " cried Father Lustucru to him- self. He went stealthih' into an adjoining room, walking upon the tips of his toes, and took a covered basket which he had hidden in the bottom of a closet. Then he re- turned to Mon- mouth, whom he seized roughly by the neck. The u n f o 1' t u n a t e animal awoke with a start, and found him- self suspended in the air foce to face with Father Lustu- cru, his enemy. The Steward seizes Moumouth In that horrible situation he would have cried, and struggled, and called for assistance, but he had no time. The odious steward plunged the poor cat into the basket, quickly clapped down the solid cover, and ran rapidly to the staircase, his eyes haggard and his hair standing on end, like a man who commits a crime. It was a beautiful night in February, with a clear sky and a dry, cold atmosphere. The moon shone 32 THE STORY OF A CAT. with all her brightness ; but, at intervals, great clouds drifted over her face and rendered the ob- s c u r i t y com- plete. Father L u s t u c r u was obliged to cross the garden, in order to pass out The Cat is plunged into the Basket. j-jy c^ SUiall doOr of which he had taken the key. He glided from bush to bush, carefully avoiding the paths, except when the clouds veiled the moon. He had half-opened the door, when he heard a sound of footsteps and voices outside. He started back involuntarily, '^^^ ^^"^"^^ ^"^^'""^ "^"y- then stood still and listened. "'What foohshness ! " he said, after a moment of silent obser- vation. '" I had forgotten that it was carnival-time ; those are ^* masque raders passing." He dances with Delight It was, \\\ effect, a baud of masquerade rs from the Palais Royal. Lustucru waited until they were gone ; then he hurried out. When he reached the quay, in the joy of success, he THE STORY OF A CAT. 33 began to whistle a dancing- tune and cut capers ; his transports resembled those of a cannibal who dances around his victim. He went up the Seine as far as the bridge of Notre Dame, in the middle of which he halted, and holding the basket over the parapet, turned it suddenly upside down, and launched the luckless Moumouth into the icy waters of the river. The cat, in dropping through space, gave a cry that seemed to come from a human voice. The assassin shuddered, but his emotion did not last long. He thrust his hands into his pockets and said, in a tone of bitter mock- ery, — •• Pleasant voyage to you, dear Moumouth ; endeavor to arrive all right ! By the way," added he. '' I think cats know how to swim ; that brigand is capable of getting himself out of this business. Bah ! it is a long distance from the bridge of Notre Dame to Saint-Thomas-du- Louvre ! " Reassured by this reflection, Lustu- cru continued on his way home, re- Tne Cat is thrown into tr.e River 34 THE STORY OF A CAT. entered by the door of the garden, climbed cautiously up to his room, and held himself in readiness to en- joy the lamentations of Mother Michel. Mother Michel was detained some time by the porter ; finally, she left him, to give her cat the cup of milk and sugar with which she regaled him every niorht. She ascended to the parlor with measured steps, calmly, not anticipating any catastrophe. FaiHng to see Monmouth in the place he had occupied, she sim- ply believed that he had smuggled himself behind the cushions of the sofa. She looked there, and beneath the sofa, and searched under the other pieces of fur- niture. Then, running to the staircase, she called : " Monmouth ! Monmouth ! " " He does n't answer me," said she. '' But when I went down-stairs, Lustucru was here ; may be he can tell me Avhat has become of the cat." She knocked without delay at the door of the THE STORY OF A CAT. 35 steward, who pretended to rouse himself from a deep slumber, and, in a gruff voice, demanded what was wanted. " Is n't Moumouth with you ? " '• Does your cat ever come where I am ? You know very well that he can't bear me." ^* Alas I where is he ? I left him in the par- lor, near the fire, and 1 can- not find him." '^ Can he be lost ? " said She knocks at the Steward's Door. Father Lustucru, feigning the most lively anxiety. " Lost ! Oh, no, it is impossible I He is somewhere in the house." '' He ought to be found," said the villain, gravely. " He ought to be searched for this very instant. Moumouth is a' precious animal, Avhose merit makes it well worth while to wake up the servants." All the inmates of the house were soon on foot, each armed with a candle. They ransacked the nooks and corners, from the cellar to the garret, from the court to the o-arden. Lustucru directed the operations with apparent zeal. After ineffectual searches. Mother Michel, exhausted by emotion and fatigue, threw herself helplessly into an arm-chair. THE STORY OF A CAT. 017 o7 cried Motlier Michel, " Alas ! " said she, '^ I left him only an instant, and it was to do a good action." " I begin to believe that your cat is really lost," replied Liistucru, in a severe tone. " It is a great misfortune for you ! What will Madame de la Gre- nouillere say when she comes back ? She is capable of turning you out of doors ! ' '' Turn me out of doors ! " suddenly draw- ing herself up to her full height. Then she sunk down again, her face grew pallid, her eyes closed, and she fell back without c o n- sciousness. Father Lus- The Shock tucru regarded her with a dry eye, and without feel- ing the slightest remorse. man ! He laughed, the infamous CHAPTER IV. IN WHICH THE CAT DISPLAYS INTELLIGENCE BEYOND HIS STATION IN LIFE, AND BEHAVES HANDSOMELY IN ADVERSITY. E lost siglit of Monmouth at the moment when, precipitated from the parapet of the bridge of Notre Dame, he fomid himself struc>ro:Hnt^ in the water. Luckil}^ for him, the piles of the principal arch had a wide ledge, to which he was able to attach himself. From this place he cast a glance around him. The Seine appeared to him a boundless ocean, which it was beyond his strength to cross ; rather than attempt to reach the shores that seemed to recede before him, he prepared to stay where he was, at the risk of perishing with hunger or cold, or being swept away by a wave. He mewed at first in sio^n of distress, but verv soon, believing himself hopelessly lost, he judged it useless to tire his lungs, and awaited the end with a resigna- tion which formed the basis of his character. Toward five o'clock in the morning, two gentlemen THE STORY OF A CAT. 39 from the island of Saint-Louis, — two very skillful amateur fishermen, — came to throw their lines from the top of the bridge of Notre Dame. '' You are early, neighbor Guignolet," said the per- son wdio arrived last ; '^ it appears that we have both had the same idea." '' And we have done well, neighbor Groquemouche; there was a rise in the river last night, great numbers of fish have descended from the upper Seine, and one w^ill have to be dreadfully awkward not to take them." '' Will you enter into an agreement, neighbor Guignolet ? Let us fish in partnership, divide the catch, and dine together to-day." " Agreed I " said M. Guignolet, and as each held his line in his right hand, they clasped their left hands together in token of the treaty. On seeing the two cords de- scend Mon- mouth con- ceived some hope. As soon "Agreed!" said M. Guignolet. as they w^ere within his reach he grappled them, and the fishermen, feeling the imusual weight, cried out .^ ?. THE STORY OF A CAT. 41 carp," replied M. Gro- witli one voice, '' A bite ! a bite ! " and hastened to haul in their lines. " I bet I have caught a wattle," said M. Guignolet, regretting that he couldn't rub his hands together to testify his satisfaction. *^I must have an immense quemouche. He had scarce- ly finished the sentence when M o u m o u t h leaped over the parapet. '^ Treason ! " cried the two fishers, who started in pur- suit of the quadruped that had come so miraculously out of the water ; but Mon- mouth ran faster than they did and easily escaped them. When he was alone, he took breath, examined the houses, and, not finding one that resembled his, nat- urally concluded that it was not there. It was neces- sary, however, to find shelter ; shivering with cold and panting with his exertions, he could not remain a moment longer in the street without exposing him- self to an inflammation of the chest. Guided by a light, he made his way into the basement of a baker's shop, and, hiding himself behind a pile of bread- baskets, went quietly to sleep. Moumouth grapples the Lines. 42 THE STORY OF A CAT. He was awakened by hunger. Monmouth was born of poor parents who had abandoned him in his earhest infancy ; he had been brought up in the streets, obhged to procure his own living, and trained in the school of adversity. Thus he was very skillful in the art of catching rats and mice, — a useful art. too often neglected by cats belonging to the first families. He placed himself on the watch, and surprised a mouse that had stolen out of its hole to eat some flour. He dropped upon the imprudent mouse, in describing what is called in geometry a parabola, and seized it by the nose, to prevent it from crying out. This feat, although performed with address and in silence, attracted the attention of the baker's boy. ''Hi! a cat I " cried the ap- prentice, arming him- self with a scoop. The master-baker turned his eyes to- w a r d s Monmouth, saw him ~^^ The Imprudent Mouse. "Don't hurt hinn ! " said the Baker. the mouse, and said to the boy : — '' Don't hurt him ; he is doing us a service.' ''But where did he come from ? " devouring THE STORY OF A CAT. " What does that matter, provided he is useful here ? " answered the baker, who w^as a man of in- telHgence. '* Eat, eat, my friend," he continued, stooping down to gently caress Monmouth ; " eat as many mice as possible, there will always be enough left." Our cat profited by the permission accorded to him, and, having satisfied his hunger, had a desire to set out in search of the mansion of Madame de la Gre- nouillere ; but the baker barred the passage. " Wait a minute ! " he said. '' I wanted a oood o cat ; Heaven sent me one, and I shall not forgive myself if I let him escape. Hulloo I Jacques, shut up all the openings, and if this rogue makes a show of runnino; off, ofive him three or four smart blows with the broom." Thus tlie host of Moumouth became his tyrant ; so true is it that personal interest depraves the best natures. Our cat, as if comprehending what was passing, leaped without hesitation upon the shoulders of the baker's boy, and thence into the street. There a new danger awaited him. Surprised by this unex- pected apparition, an enormous bull-dog planted himself directly Moumouth jumps o. in front of Moumouth. Moumouth had a lively de •?^ THE STORY OF A CAT. 45 sire to avoid an unequal contest, but the dog kept an eye on him, and did not lose one of his move- ments, going to the right when Monmouth went to the left, and to the left wdien Moumouth moved to the right, and growled all the while in a ma- licious fashion. For an instant they stood motionless, observing each other, — the dog with paw^s extended, teeth displayed, and bodv drawn He meets a B dog. back, and the cat with open mouth, h i s back arched and his head thrust forward. Neither seemed disposed to begin hostilities. Finally the dog rushed upon his adversary, who avoided him adroith', passed underneath him. and tied in the direction of the quay, the bull-dog giving chase. Away they went, darting: among; the crowd of pedestrians and in and out between the carriages. In a natural spirit of imitation, the wandering dogs that encountered them running joined in the race, and at the end of a min- uie Moumouth had more than thirty-seven dogs in ])ursuit of him. '' I am lost," he says to himself, ^' but at least I shall sell my life dearly." He backs against a wall, and braces himself haugh- tily on his feet; his teeth gnashing, his hair bristling. 46 THE STORY OF A CAT. he faces his numerous enemies with so terrible an eye that they recoil like a single man. Profiting by their hesitation, he turns suddenly and scrambles to the top of the wall. He is soon beyond the reach of the dogs, but he is not yet in safety; if he makes a false step, if his strength gives out, if the plaster crumbles under his claws, twenty yawning uu)nths. hungry for slaughter, are there to tear him to pieces ! In the meanwhile, Mother Michel had passed the night in lamentation. She could not control her grief for the loss of Monmouth ; she called him continually in a plaintive voice, and — if we ma}^ credit the popular song — the neighbors heard her cry at the window : '' Who will bring him back to me ? " The next morning, at the rising of the smiling sun, Mother Michel laments. THE STORY OF A CAT. 47 the perfidious Lustiicru presented himself before Mother Michel in order to say to her : — '• Well, my dear companion, have you found him ? " '- Alas, no ! " she murmured. " Have you any news of him ? " '' Nothing positive," replied the steward, who wished to tor- ment the poor woman ; ''but I dreamed of - him all night long ; he ap- ^ peared to me in a dream, with his fllCe Father Lustucru dreams. pale and an exhausted air, like a cat who did not feel very w^ell." '' In what place was he ? " '' He seemed to be in a garden, at the foot of a lilac-bush." Mother Michel instantly ran to the garden, where, as you may imagine, she did not find Monmouth. During the whole day Lustucru amused himself by giving her false exultations, which were followed by increased despondency. "Mother Michel," said he, "just now, in passing the store-room, I thought I heard a kind of meyow- ing." Mother Michel hastened to visit the store-room. 48 THE STORY OF A CAT. Presently he came to her out of breath, and said : — " We have him at last I I am nearly certain that he is rummaging in the cellar." And Mother Michel ventured into the gloomy vaults of the cellar, where she encountered nothing but rats. ^iJBfxj^ It was near the close of the ~ ^ ~ day that Lustucru pronounced these words, which a popular song has happily preserved for us : — Mother Michel encounters noth ing but Rats. Oil, Mother Michel, Your cat is not lost ; He is up in the garret A-hunting the rats, With his little straw rruu And his sabre of wood I ' The words were full of a bitter raillery, which Father Lustucru w\as unable to disguise. To pretend that Monmouth was hunting rats with his little straw gun and his wooden sword was to suppose something quite unlikely, for nobody ever saw a cat make use of such arms. But the agonies of Mother Michel had so confused her mind, that she noticed only what could give her a gleam of hope. 'MIe is in the garret I " she cried, without paying attention to the rest of the verse. '• Let us hasten there, my dear sir ; let us search for him. Give me your arm, for I am so nervous, so troubled, so har- THE STORY OF A CAT. 49 assed by fatigue, that I have not the strength to get up alone." The two mounted to the garret, and Mother Michel, lantern in hand, searched in the attic and under the roof. Si- lence and solitude reigned everywhere. "You are again ^^ ^^^ mistaken," murmured ^^|^ ^ff^S^'/^ Mother Michel. .^^\ ,^^J^B^ ^•No, no," replied ^^1-^^!^^^/' i"^^^ the malicious man ; she searches the Attic " let us continue to hunt, we shall finish by finding. We haven't looked there — behind those fiijj-ots." The credulous Mother Michel advanced in the direction indicated, and — to the great stupefaction of Lustucru — the cat, which he believed drowned, appeared in full health and strength, and fixed its gaze upon him indignantly. ''It is he I it is he ! " cried Mother Michel, seizing M o u- m o u t h in he r \\ arms. '' Ah, my dear Lustucru ! my good and true friend, how I thank you for con- ductimi: me here ! " cried Mother Michel 50 THE STORY OF A CAT. The steward had scarcely any taste for compli- ments which he so little merited. Pale-faced and cold, he hang his head before his victim, whose pres- ervation he could not explain to himself It was, however, a very simple thing : Monmouth, pursued by the dogs, succeeded in leaping from the wall, and, passing from gutter to gutter, from garden to garden, from roof to roof, had reached his domicil ; but, dreading the resentment of his enemy, he had not dared to appear, and had hidden himself in the garret. "Am I the dupe of a nightmare?" said Father Lustucru to himself " Is it really that rascal of a Moumouth that I have there under my eyes, in flesh and bone ? Is n't it his ghost that has come back to torment me ? This cat, then, is the evil one in person ! " The cat was not the evil one — Providence had protected him. CHAPTER V. IX WPIICH THE CAT CONTENDS SUCCESSFULLY AGAIXST HIS EXEMY. ' .'HE events we have recorded indicate very clearly the position of our personages. Fearing to lose both the well-beloved cat and the advantages she was ambi- tious to obtain, Mother Michel redoubled her yiq-'i- lance and attention. Moumouth, knowing henceforth with whom he had to deal, promised himself to avoid the steward, or to fight him, if need be, with tooth and nail. As to Father Lustucru. it was enough that his proj- ects had been defeated, in order that he should per- sist in them with desperation. He now wished the destruction of the poor and innocent cat, not only on account of his jealousy of Mother Michel, but because he hated the cat itself 52 THE STORY OF A CAT. " Oh, what humihation ! " he said to himself, with bitterness. " I ought to hide myself, retire to a des- ert, and bury me in the bowels of the earth ! What ! I, Jerome Lustucru, a grown man, a man of knowl- edge and experience, a man — 1 dare say it — charming in society, I am vanquished, scoffed at, taken for a dupe, by a cat of the gutter ! . . . I leave him at the bottom of a river, and find him at the top of a house ! I wish to separate him from his guard- ian, and I am the means of bringing them together ! I lead Mother Michel to the garret to torture her, and there I witness her transports of joy ! The cat I believed dead reappears to defy me ! .... He shall not defy me long! " And Father Lustucru remained niL b 'f ii^t"^"T absorbed in deep meditation. Lustucru meditates. Moumoutli had uot yct dined that day, and he made it plain by expressive miau-ing that he would very willingly place something under his teeth. Presently, Mother Michel said to him — for she spoke to him as if he were an intelligent be- hig,— " Have patience, sir ; we are going to attend to you." She descended to the parlor, which she habitually occupied since the departure of Madame de la Gren- ouillere, and the cat, who accompanied Mother Michel, was clearly displeased at seeing her take the THE STORY OF A CAT. 53 road to the chamber of Lustucrii. Nevertheless, he went in with her, persuaded that in the presence of that faithful friend the steward would not dare to undertake anything against hiui. At the moment she knocked at the door. Father Lustucru was taking from the shelf a green package which bore this label : Death to Rats. '^ This is the ^ thing," he said to himself, thrusting the paper into his vest. " Death to Bats should also be Death to Cats. Our dear M o u m o u t h shall make the trial. .... What can one do to serve you, m y good Mother Michel?" " It is five o'clock, M. Lustucru, and you forget my cat." '* / forget him ! " cried the steward, clasping his hands as if very much hurt by the suspicion, " I was The Green Package. am gomg ust thinkhig of liim 1 to prepare for him such a delicious hash that he will never want another 54 THE STORY OF A CAT. " Thanks, Monsieur Lustucru ! I shall inform Madame, the Countess, of your care for her favorite. I have received a letter from her this very day ; she sends me word that she shall return shortly; that she hopes to find Monmouth in good condition, and that she has in reserve for me a very handsome reward. You comprehend my jo}^, Monsieur Lustucru ! My sister is left a widow with four children, to whom I hand over my little savings each year. Until now this assistance has not been much ; but, thanks to the gifts of Madame, the Countess, the poor children will be able to go to school and learn a trade." In pronouncing these words the eyes of Mother Michel were moist and brio-ht with the most sweet joy, — that which one experiences in performing or meditating good actions. The stew\ard, however, was not affected. He had so given himself up to his evil passions that they completely mastered him, and had by degrees stifled all generous sentiments in his soul, as the tares which one lets grow choke the ij^ood o-rain. One Avould have said that Monmouth miderstood this man. The cat approached Mother Mi- chel, who had seated herself to chat awhile, and looking at her Come, let us go' ' ^itli supplicatiug eycs, pulled at the skirt of her robe, as if to say to her : — '' Come, let us go ! " THE STORY OF A CAT. 55 "Take care!" said the good creature, "you will tear my dress." Moumouth beo-an a^ain. " What is it ? Do you want to get out of here ? " asked Mother Michel. Moumouth made several affirmative capers in the air. " Decidedly," she added, " this cat is not contented anywhere but in the parlor." She rose and w^ithdrew, preceded by Moumouth, who bounded with joy. A quarter of an hour afterward the steward had prepared a most appetizing hash composed of the breast of chicken, the best quality of bread, and other ingredients justly esteemed by dainty eaters. After adding a large dose of the hash down in an ad- joining room, and, opening the parlor door, cried : ''Monsieur is served ! ! " On beholding this delicate dish, Mou- mouth thrilled with pleasure, for, to tell the truth, he was rather greedy, nose over the plate, and then suddenly retreated, arching his back. A sickening and infectious odor Death to Rats," he set the m Moumouth is pleased to see the Hash. lie stretched his 56 THE STORY OF A CAT. lordinary," said p He sniffs with Disgust. had mounted to his nostrils. He made a tour round the plate, took another sniff, and again retreated. This animal, full of sagacity, had scented the poison. J ^' Well, that is very extraordinary," said ( Mother Michel ; and, having vainly offered the food to her cat, she went to find Lustucru, to inform him what had oc- curred. The traitor listened with inward rage. " What I " said he, •" he has refused to eat it ? It is probably because he is not hungry." " So I suppose. Mon- sieur Lustucru ; for your hash looks very nice. I should like it myself, and I 've half a mind to taste it, to set Mou- mouth an ex- ample." At tliis. Father Lustucru, in spite of his hardness, " Dont touch .t, I beg of yo^. COuM UOtllclp trembling. For a minute he was horrified at his crime, and cried hastily : — THE STORY OF A CAT. 57 " Don't touch it, I beg of you I " " Why not ? Is there anything wrong in the hash ? " " No, certainly not," stammered Father Lustucru ; "^ but what has been prepared for a cat should not serve for a Christian. It is necessary to guard pro- priety, and not trifle with the dignity of human na- ture." Mother Michel accepted this reasoning, and said, a little snappishly : — " Very well ; Moumouth may suit himself! I do not wish to yield to all his fancies, and I shall not give him anything else." The following day the hash was still uneaten. The steward had hoped that the cat, pressed by hunger, would have thrown himself upon the poisoned food ; but Moumouth knew how to suffer. He put up with abstinence, lived on scraps and crumbs of bread, and recoiled with terror every time that his guardian offered him the fatal plate, which finally remained forgotten in a corner of the closet in the antechamber. Father Lustucru, seeing that his plot had not succeeded, was more irritable than ever. The -r,, p,,,, p,,,, ,,^,,,3 ,,,. desire to rid himself of Mou- ^°'''" mouth became a fixed idea with him, a passion, a monomania ; he dreamed of it day and night. Each letter in which Madame de la Grenouillere demanded 68 THE STORY OF A CAT. news of- the cat and repeated her promise of recom- pense to Mother Michel, each sign of interest given by the Countess to her two favorites, increased the bhnd fury of their enemy. He thought of the most infernal plans to demolish Monmouth without risk to himself, but none of them seemed sufficiently safe and expeditious. Finally he decided on this one : — On a heavy pedestal, in the chamber of Mother Michel, was a marble bust of Louis XIV., represented with a Roman helmet and a /^V peruke interlaced with laurel- leaves. Behind this bust was a round window, which looked upon the staircase ; and just in front of the pedestal was the downy cushion that served as a bed for Monmouth, who would certainly have been crushed if the bust luul taken it into its head to topple over One night Lustucru stole noiselessly into the chand)er of Mother Michel, opened the which he was careful to leave ajar, and retired silently. At midnight, when everybody was asleep in the house, he took one of those long brooms, commonly called a wolf-head, placed himself on the staircase opposite the small window, rested his back firmly against the banister, and, with the aid Louis XIV. round window THE STORY OF A CAT. 59 of the wolf-head, pushed over the bust, which tum- bled with a loud crash on the cushion beneath. The wicked man had expected this result of his movement ; it was for him the signal of his triumph and the death of Mou- mouth. However, when he heard the bust roll heavily on the floor, he Avas seized by a panic, and, with trembling steps, reirainef his chamber. Mother Michel awoke with a start ; she was in complete darkness, and Downfall of louIs xiv. unable to procure a light, for German chemical matches were not yet invented. Surprise and fright had taken away her faculties for an instant, then she cried, " Stop thief! " with all the streng;th of her lung;s. Verv soon the whole house was roused, and all the servants came runninii; in to learn what was the matter. Lustucru appeared last, with a his head, and, for the rest, very Lustucru appears. cotton night-cap on simply clad. " What has happened ? " he dema nded. 60 THE STORY OF A CAT. ^' I see now," answered Mother Michel ; " it is the bust of Louis XIV. that has fallen down." " Bah ! " said Father Lustucru, playing astonish- ment. " But, in that case, your cat must have re- ceived it on his head." As he said these words, Moumouth came out ft^om under the bed and threw him- s e 1 f before Mother Michel, as if to implore her aid and pro- tection. Lustu- cru stood amazed. Everybody Moumouth comes forth kuOWS llOW liffllt is the slumber of cats. Moumouth. who had the habit of sleeping with only one eye, had risen quickly on hearing a rustling behind the round window. Like nearly all animals, he was curious, and sought to understand anything that astonished him ; so he camped himself in the middle of the chamber, the better to observe with what intention the wolf-head advanced at that unseasonable hour by so unusual a route. Startled by the fall of the bust, he had fled for refuge to the bottom of the alcove. They gave Mother Michel, to revive her, a glass of sugar and water, flavored with ornnge-flower ; they picked up the great king, who had smashed his nose THE STORY OF A CAT. 61 and chin, and lost half of his beautiful peruke ; then everybody went to bed once more. " Saved again ! " said Father Lustucru to himself " He always escapes me ! 1 shall not be able, then, to send him to his fathers before the return of the Countess ! Mother Michel will get her pension of fifteen hundred livres, and I shall remain a nobody, the same as before. That rascally cat distrusts me ; everything I undertake alone against him fails Decidedly, I must get somebody to help me ! " Mother Michel is revived. CHAPTER VI. HOW FATHER LUSTUCRU CONFIDES HIS ODIOUS PLANS TO NICHOLAS FARIBOLE. ATHER LUSTUCRU searched for an accomplice. He at first thought of finding one among the domestics of the household ; but he reflected that they all were devoted to Mother Michel, and were capable of betraying >';^^^-.^^t^ - him, and causing him* to be shamefully turned out of the mansion, in which he held so honorable and lucrative a post. However, he had great desire for an accomplice. In what class, of what age and sex, and on what terms should he select one ? Occupied with these thoughts, Lustucru went out one morning at about half-past six, to take a walk on the quay. As he crossed the threshold, he noticed on the other side of the street a large woman, dry and angular, clothed in cheap, flashy colors. This woman had sunken eyes, a copper-colored complex- ion, the nose of a bird of prey, and a face as wrinkled THE STORY OF A CAT. 63 as an old apple. She was talking with a boy of thir- teen or fourteen, covered with rags, but possessino- a sharp, intelligent countenance. Father Lustucru thought he recognized the old woman, but without recalling where he had seen her. If he had been less occupied he would have searched longer into his memory ; but the idea of making away with the cat ab- sorbed him entirely, and he continued his route with a thoughtful air, his head bent f r w a r d , his arms crossed upon his breast, and his eyes fixed upon the ground, as if "^J* the accomplice ""'^ °'' ''°"^" ^"' ^'^ '°^ he wanted might possibly spring up out of tlie earth. Thus he wandered for some time ; the breeze of the morning failed to cool his blood, heated with evil passions. Neither the spectacle of the pure skies, nor the songs of the birds, who enjoyed themselves 64 THE STORY OF A CAT. LusLiiC u is absorbed. on the border of the river, awoke in him those calm and sweet emotions with which they inspire honest people. At the moment when he re- turned, the old woman was no longer to be seen; but the boy remained in the same place, seated upon a stone post, with his nose in the air, regarding the mansion of Madame de la Gre- nouillere very attentively. Lus- tucru approached him and ad- dressed him in these terms : — '^Wliat are you doing there, youngster ? " '' I ? Nothino;. I am look- ing at that mansion." '^ I believe that without diffi- culty ; but why do you look at it?" " Because I find it handsome, and would like to live in it ; one ought to be happy there." '' Yes, indeed," answered the steward, with emphasis ; '' they pass the days there happily The Boy on the stone Post enough. Who is that woman with whom you were speaking a while since ? " " It was Madame Bradamor." THE SrORY OF A CAT. 65 '' Madame Bradamor, the fiimous fortune-teller, who lives below, at the other end of the street? " " The same." " You know her ? " '^ A little; I sometimes do errands for her." '' Ah, ah ! . . . . And what did the old wizard say to you ? " " She said that if I could enter that house as a domestic, 1 should have a very agreeable existence." '' Madame de la Grenouillere is absent, my little friend, and, besides, her house is full." " That is a pity," said the boy, drawing a deep sigh. Father Lustucru made several steps as if to re- enter, rested his hand upon the knocker of the door, then turned abruptly and walked up to the boy. " What is your name ? " '^ Nicholas Langlume, the same as my father's ; but I am more generally known under the nickname of Faribole." '' What do you do ? " '' Nothing ; my father works on the quay, and I, — I live from day to day, gaining my bread as I can. I run errands, I sell May-bugs and black-birds and sparrows, I pick up nails in the gutters and sell them, 1 open the doors of carriages, I fish for logs in the Seine, I sing verses in the streets, T light lamps, and sometimes I play in the pantomimes at the tlieatre of Nicolet. These trades, sir, are not worth much ; and 5 66 THE STORY OF A CAT. I have all I can do to get something to eat every day." " You interest me," replied Father Lustucru, " and I 've a wish to help you on in the world. Tell me, Faribole, have you a taste for cooking? " " Rather ! I love the tid-bits, but my means do not allow me " — '' I did not ask you if you were fond of eating, stupid ! 1 asked you if you had the taste, the incli- nation, to do cooking." " I don't know ; I never tried." " Well, then, Faribole, I will give you lessons. Come, follow me ; I will clothe you and take care of you at my own ex- pense, in awaiting the arrival of Mad- ame de hi Grenouil- lere. She is a good lady, and will doubt- less retain you ; but if she does not, your education will be The steward engages Faribole. COmmeUCed, aud you '11 be able to place yourself elsewhere." "You are, then, in the service of the Countess?" " I am her steward," said Father Lustucru, with dignity. The eyes of Faribole sparkled with pleasure ; he bowed respectfully before the ste\vard, and said with warmth : — THE STORY OF A CAT. G7 " Ah, ho\V much I owe to yow ! " Faribole was installed that same da}-, and cordiallv received by the other servants of the household. He was a o-ood-natured bov, ser- viceable and quick, and, al- though a little awkward in his new clothes and at his new duties, he showed plent\- of willingness. " Faribole," said the stew- ^ ard to his protege, several % days afterward, " It is well to let vou know the wavs of the house. There is an individual here, all-powerful, wdio reigns as sovereign master, whose will is obeyed, whose whims are anticipated, — and that individual is a cat. If you wish to make your way in the world, it is necessary to seek to please Moumouth ; if the cat Moumouth accords you his affections, you will also have that of Madame de la Grenouillere and her companion. Mother Michel." ''The cat shall be my friend. and I will be the friend of the cat," responded the young fellow. confidently. The Cat an^ the T^y become lu cffcCt, llC sllOWCrcd OU MOU- mouth so many kindnesses and caresses and attentions, that the cat, although natu- rally suspicious, conceived a livel\' attachment for 68 THE STORY OF A CAT, Faribole, followed him with pleasure, teas6d him, and invited him to frolics. Mother Michel was nearly jealous of the small boy ; Father Lustucru, who had ideas of his own, laughed in his sleeve, and rubbed his hands together. The steward, one evening, ordered Faribole to come to his chamber, and after closing the door care- fully and assuring himself that no one was listening, he said : — '' Monmouth is your friend ; you have followed my recommendations exactly." " I shall remain in the house — is it not so ? " "Probably. You find yourself very well here ?" "Without doubt I I, who lived on black bread, I make four good meals a day. I had a wretched blouse, full of holes, and patched trousers, and now I am dressed like a prince. 1 suffer no more from cold, and, instead of lying out under the stars, I go to sleep every night in ji coiufortable bed, where I dream of gingerbread and fimit-(^ake." Father Lustucru rested his chin ou the palm of his right hand, and fixing his piercing eyes upon Faribole, said to him: — " Suppose you were obliged to take up again with the vagabond life from which I lifted yoii ? " '• 1 believe I should die with shame !" " Then you would do anything to preserve your present position ? " " I would do anything." THE STORY OF A CAT 69 "Anything?" " Anything, absolutely." " Very well. Now, this is what I demand of you i m p e ratively : Mo u mouth fol- lows you will- ingly ; to-mor- row, just at night-fall, you will lead him into the gar- den ; you will put him into a Lustucru and Faribole. sack which I have made expressly, and tiuhtlv draw the cords of the sack " — -'' And then ? " said Faribole, who opened his eyes w^ide. " We Avill each arm us with a stick, and we will beat upon the sack until he is dead." " Never I never I " cried the poor boy, whose hair stood up with fright. " Then pack your bundle quickly, and be oft'; I turn you away I " " You turn me away ! " repeated young Faribole, lifting up his hands to the sky. " I do not give you five minutes to be gone ; you depend upon me here, solely on me." The unhappy Faribole began to weep, and the steward added, in a savage voice, — THE STORY OF A CAT. " Come, now ! no faces ! Take off your clothes, and put on your rags, and disappear ! " Having pronounced these words, Lustucru took from a closet the miserable vestments which Faribole had worn the day of his installation. The steward seized them disdainfully between his thumb and fore- finger, and threw them upon the floor. The boy looked with an air of de- spair at the habits he had on, compared t hem wit h those which lie was obliged to resume, and the compari- son was so little to the advantage of the latter, that he broke into loud sobs. However, he was decided not to purchase hand- some clothes at the price of a perfidy and a horrible murder. He resolutelv threw off his vest, then his neckerchief; but at the idea of giving up his new shoes, of walking barefoot, as formerly, over roads paved with gravel and broken glass, the luckless Faribole had a moment of hesitation. Father Lustucru, who observed him closely, profited by this circumstance with consummate cunning. Fariboie's Old Clothes. THE STORY OF A CAT. 71 '^ Foolish fellow I " said he ; '^ you refuse happiness when it would be so easy for you to retain it. If I proposed to you the death of a man, 1 could under- stand, I could even approve of your scruples ; but 1 propose that of a cat — a simple cat ! What do you find in that so terrible ? What is a cat ? Nothino; — less than nothing ; one does n't attach the least value to the lives of cats. Inn-keepers give them to tlieir customers to eat ; the most celebrated surgeons uuis- sacre them in making certain experiments. Cats are thought so little of, that when a litter of six or seven are born, only one is kept ; the rest are tossed into the river." ^' But Moumouth is large, Moumouth is fully grown," said Faribole in a plaintive tone ; •• and then, you do not know, I love him." '^ You love him ! vou dare to "Only one is k^pt ; the rest are love him I " cried the steward tossed mto the River ■■ with inexpressible rage. '^ Very well ! I — I detest him, and I wish his death ! " '' But what has he done to you, then ? " '• What business is that to you ? I desire his death, and that 's enough." '' Mercy for him ! " cried Faribole. throwing him- self at the feet of hard-hearted Lustucru. 72 THE STORY OF A CAT. " No mercy ! " replied Lustiicru, hissing the words through his clenched teeth. '* No mercy, neither for him nor lor you. Get up, de- part, be oft' this very instant ! It rains in torrents ; you will be drenched, you will die of cold this night, — so much the better ! " A beating rain, mixed with hailstones, pattered against the window-panes, and the wind swept with a mournful sound Get up! Depart!" tlirouu^h tlic halls of tlic housc. Then poor Faribole thought of the cold that would seize him, of the privations which awaited him, of his few resources, of his immense appetite, and liow dis- agreeable it was to sleep on the damp earth. His evil genius took possession of him. and whispered into his ear these Avords of Father Lustucru : '' What is a cat ? " " Monsieur Lustucru." said he, weeping, '' do not send me away, I will do all that you wish." " To-morrow, at night- fall, you will lead Moumouth into the garden ? " " Yes, Monsieur Lustucru." " You will put him into this sack ? " " Yes, Monsieur Lustucru." " And you will beat it with me ? " THE STORY OF A CAT. 73 The response to this question was long coming ; Faribole turned pale, his legs bent under him ; finally he bowed his head, letting his arms droop at his sides, as if he had sunk under the weight of his destiny, and murmured, in a stifled voice : — '' Yes, Monsieur Lustucru." CHAPTER VII. IN WHICH FATHER LUSTUCRU IS OX THE POINT OF ACCOMPLISHING HIS PURPOSE, AND MOTHER MICHEL's CAT IS IN AN UNPLEASANT PREDICAMENT. USTUCRU had fixed the following day for the cruel execution of Mouniouth, for he knew that Mother Michel on that day was to carry to the express office a package destined for her sis- ter. All the forenoon and after- noon Faribole was plunged in the darkest despond- ency, and when the fatal hour sounded, he was as- sailed by the irresolutions of the previous day. When Mother Michel, before going out, said to him, '' I leave Monmouth in your charge ; you must take care of him, and make him play, so that he will not fret too much during my absence," the poor lad felt his heart fail, and his natural loyalty revolted. " Come, w^e have not a minute to lose," said Father Lustucru to Faribole ; '' here is the sack ; go look for the beast ! " THE STORY OF A CAT. 75 Faribole once more appealed to the pity of the steward ; he was eloquent, he had tears in his voice, he pronounced a most touching plea, but without be- ing able to gain his cause. The executioner was im- movable ; he insisted on the death of the cat ; and the boy, overpoAvered by this evil spirit, saw himself forced to obey. Moumouth allowed himself to be enticed into the garden ; lie followed his treacherous friend with the confidence of the lamb following the butcher, and, at the very moment when he least thought of it, he found himself fastened in the sack that was to be his tomb. Lustucru, who was hiding, appeared suddenly, bearing; two enormous cudii^els ; he handed one to his accomplice, and taking hold of the sack, cried • — '• Now I — to work, and no quarter I " Faribole heard him not ; the boy was struck with stupor — his eyes rolled wdldly in their sockets, his face was livid, his mouth open, his arms without strength. Father Lustucru, animated by the nearness of his vengeance, did not remark what passed in the mind of his companion. Having thrown the sack rudely on the ground, the stew^ard lifted his cudgel, and was about to strike when the small door of the garden opened. ^'How unfortunate!" he muttered; "Faribole, hide yourself in the hedge ; 1 will come back here presently." ^ VT THE STORY OF A CAT. 77 He approached the person who had entered, and halted, petrified with amazement, on beholding Mother Michel. He imagined at first that she had been brought back by some vague suspicion, by some presentiment ; but he recovered himself, hearing her say : — " I am obliged to postpone my walk, for I have seen Madame de la Grenouillere's carri it turned out of its way on account of the repairs being made in the street. By reentering through the garden I was able to tret here in advance. Come, Mon- sieur Lustucru, let us hasten to receive our good mistress." " I am with you, madame," said the stew- ard ; then, mak- ing a speaking-trumpet of his hand, he cried to Faribole : — " Strike all alone ! strike until the cat has ceased to move ! " and he rejoined Mother Michel in the court, where the domestics were drawn up in a hue like a well-drilled battalion. On stepping from the carriage Madame de la Gre- Making a Speaking-trumpet of his Hand. 78 THE STORY OF A CAT. nouillere honored her servitors with a benevolent glance, embraced Mother Michel with touching famil- iarity, and de- manded news of Monmouth. " Your pro- tege is wonder- fully well," said Mother Michel, "he grows fat- and hand- ter somer under our very eyes ; but it may be said, without injury to the truth, that his moral qualities are even beyond his physical charms." -' Poor friend, if he does not love me he will be a monster of ingratitude, for since our separation I have thought of him constantly ; Heaven has taken away many beings that were dear to me, but Mon- mouth will be the consolation of my old age ! " As soon as the Countess had given the orders which her arrival made necessary, she prayed Mother Michel to fetch Monmouth. '' He will be charmed to see you again, madame," Mother Michel answered ; '"he is in the garden in the care of Faribole, a little young man whom your The Countess embraces Mother Miche THE STORY OF A CAT. 79 Faribole seated in the Garden. steward judged proper to admit to the house ; the young rogue and the cat have become a pair of inti- mate friends." Mother Michel went down to the garden and there found Faribole alone, seated upon a bench, and with a pre- occupied air stripping the leaves from a branch of box- wood which he held in his hand. '' My friend," said the good woman, " Madame, the Count- ess, desires you to bring Monmouth to her." ^' Mou-mouth ! " stammered Faribole, starting at the name as if he had been stung by a wasp. " Yes, Monmouth ; T thought he w^as with you." '* He just quitted me ; some persons passing in the street made a noise that frightened him. and he leaped into the hedge." Mother Michel, after having spent more than half an hour in scouring the garden, returned to Madame de la Grenouillere and said : '' Monmouth is absent, madame ; but do not be anxious ; he disappeared once before, and we found him in the garret." '' Let him be searched for! I do not wish to wait. I desire to see him this instant ! " Alas ! this desire was not likely to be gratified, if any reliance could be placed upon the words ex- changed in the dark between Lustucru and his ac- complice. 80 THE STORY OF A CAT. ^' Well, did you do it?" " Yes, Monsieur Lustucru, I pounded until the cat ceased to move." " What have you done with the body ? " " I have thrown it into the Seine." " Was he quite dead ? " "He didn't stir." " Anyway, the sack was securely fastened. Justice is done ! " CHAPTER VIII. IN WHICH MOTHER MICHEL SEARCHES FOR HER CAT. EVERAL days passed in painful expectation ; but the cat, like General Marlborough, did not come back. The despair of Madame de la Grenouillere was sincere, profound, and silent, — all the more intense because it was suppressed. She continu- all}' pictured to herself the charming ways of Monmouth, his natural goodness, his superior intelligence. No animal had ever dis- played to her so many brilliant qualities ; not one of her previous favorites had ever caused her such bitter regrets. Generous in her misfortune, she did not reproacli Mother Michel ; on the contrary, the Countess sought to comfort that poor woman, who had given herself up wholly to grief. The Countess said to her one night : — ^* What can you do against an irresistible calamity ? The wisdom of man consists not in struggling with 82 THE STORY OF A CAT. imhappiness, but in submitting himself to the will of Heaven." " I am of your opinion," replied Mother Michel. " If I believed, like you, in the death of Moumouth, I would resign myself without a murmur. But I have the idea that he still lives ; I picture him run- ning through the streets, the victim of ill treatment, with saucepans, may be " — " Go to. Mother Michel, you deceive yourself; Moumouth is dead, otherwise he would have come back to us." " Something tells me that he is still in this world, and if Madame the Countess wishes to have tidino-s of him, she has only to address herself" — " To whom ? " " To our neighbor, Madame Bradamor, that cele- brated fortune-teller, who predicts the future, removes freckles, reads in the Book of Destinies, and charms away the toothache." " Fie, Mother Michel ! how can you, a sensible woman, have any confidence in the juggling of an adventuress ? " " But, madame, I am not alone ; the most distin- guished people go to Madame Bradamor ; she is more learned and less dear than her rivals, and asks only ten crowns to make you behold the devil Astaroth." " Enough, for pity's sake ! " responded the Count- ess, dryly. Mother Michel remained silent ; but she had made THE STORY OF A CAT 83 up her mind, and, the first time she had a moment of Hberty, she ran to the house of the necromancer. The fortune-teller occupied a spacious apartment richly furnished, for she gained a great deal of money by cheating the public. Her consultation-room was draped with hangings of black velvet sprinkled with gilt stars ; upon a square table, in the centre of the chamber, stood painted tin oljelisks, jars of electricity, retorts, and divers mathematical instruments, of whose uses the pretended sorceress was quite igno- rant, but which she had placed there in order to impose on the weak-minded persons who came to consult her. She at first showed some embarrassment on be- holding Mother Michel ; however, after having closed a glass door which communicated with the other apartments, she returned to salute her new client, and said in a solemn tone : — '^ What is your desire ? " " To question the present, the past, and the future." '•I am the very one to satisfy you," replied Madame Bradamor ; ^^ but what you demand is very difficult, and will cost you three crowns." '- There they are ; I give them to you with all my heart." Madame Bradamor, full of regret that she had not insisted on having more, pocketed the money, and began in these terms : — 84 THE STORY OF A CAT. " What is the date of your birth ? " '' The 24th of May, 1698." '' What are the initials of your name and the first letter of the place in which you were born ? " Mother Michel pays Three Crowns. ^' A, R, M, N, L, S." Madame Michel was named Anastasie Ravegot ; the widow, since twelve years, of Francois Michel, in life inspector of butter in the Paris markets ; she was born in Noisy-le-Sec. THE STORY OF A CAT. 85 " What is your favorite flower ? " " The Jerusalem artichoke." After these customary questions, the fortune-teller examined some coffee-grounds poured into a saucer, and said : — '^ Phaldarus, the genie of things unknown, informs me that you are in search of a being very dear to you. Mother Michel bounded in her chair with surprise. Madame Bradamor continued : '^ This being is not a man ; it is a quadruped — either a dog or a cat. Ariel, spirit celestial, reveals to me that it is a cat." Mother Michel was more and more impressed ; without giving her time to recover herself, the for- tune-teller took a pack of cards, shuffled them, cut them three times, then disposed them in a systematic order on the table, and said gravely : — '- Your cat is the knave of clubs ; let us see what happens to him. One, two, three, four ; ten of spades ! He is a wanderer, he has a passion for travel, he sets out at night to see the curiosities of Paris. One, two, three, four ; the queen of spades I It is a woman who manufactures ermine -fur out of cat-skin. One, two, three, four ; the knave of spades I It is a rag-picker. One, two, three, four ; the king of spades ! It is a restaurant-keeper. The falling together of these three persons alarms me. One, two, three, four, — clubs I One, two, three, four, — clubs again! One, two, three, four, — always chibs. S6 THE STORY OF A CAT. Your cat would bring money to these three persons : the rag-picker wishes to kill him in order to sell the skin to the furrier, and the body to the restaurant- keeper, who will serve it up to his customers as stewed rabbit. Will the cat be able to resist his The Fortune-teller consults her Cards. persecutors. One, two, three, four; seven of spades! It is all over, madame; your cat no longer exists! " '' They have eaten him. the cannibals ! " cried Mother Michel, sinking back, and she fancied she heard a plaintive mlau, the last agonized cry of Mou- mouth. But it was not an illusion ; a cat had miaued, and was still miauing in the next chamber. THE STORY OF A CAT. 8' Suddenly a pane of glass in the door described was shivered to atoms, and Monmouth in person tumbled at the feet of Mother Micliel. From the top of a wardrobe he had perceived his affectionate guardian ; he had called to her several times, and as she did not an- swer him, he h a d thro w n himself, in his desperation, against the glass door, tlj rough which he had broken a passage. " My cat was w ith you Moumouth appears. said Mother Michel ; " you have stolen him ! My mistress is powerful ; my mistress is the Countess Yolande de la Grenouillere; she will have you chas- tised as you deserve to be!" While making these threats Mother Michel placed Moumouth under her arm, and prepared to depart. Madame Bradamor stopped her, saying : — ''Do not ruin me, I conjure you! I have not stolen your cat ! " " How is it in your house, then ? " " I have it from a little boy named Faribole ; he 88 THE STORY OF A CAT. got this cat for me, which I have long desired to have, on account of his supernatural shape and ap- pearance, to figure in my cabalistic conjurations. This is the truth, the whole truth. I beg of you that your mistress will not disturb me." " Madame the Countess will act as she thinks Do not ruin me, I conjure you proper," responded Mother Michel, haughtily ; and she vanished with her cat. She made but one step from the house of Madame Bradamor to that of Madame de la Grenouillere ; one would have said that Mother Michel had on the seven-league boots of little Tom Thumb. She did not linger in the parlor, when she arrived out of THE STORY OF A CAT. 89 breath and unable to speak a word, but carried Mon- mouth straight to the Countess. On recognizing the animal, the Countess gave so loud a cry of joy that it was heard as far as the Place de la Carrousel. Lustucru assisted at this touching scene. At the sight of the cat he was so dumbfounded that his reason wavered for a moment. He imagined that the cat, so many times saved, was a fantastic being, capable of speaking, like the beasts in the fairy-tales, and he said to himself with a shiver : " I am lost ! Mourn outh is going to denounce me ! " CHAPTER IX. WHICH IS SATISFACTORY TO EVERYBODY BUT THE GUILTY. S soon as Madame de la Grenouillere learned how Moumouth had been recovered, she ordered young Fari- bole to be brought before her. " I '11 go and look him np," said Father Lnstncrn, with alacrity. He was very anxious to warn his accomplice, and sought an excuse to steal off. " No, remain ! You have admitted him to the mansion, you shall see him turned away, and will learn to bestow your confidence more wiselv in future." Lustucru remained, and, recovering from his first stupor, resolved to boldly deny everything, if Fari- bole should dare to accuse him. Introduced into the parlor, Faribole did not wait to be interrogated. " Madame the Countess," said he, " the presence of your cat tells me why you have called me ; but THE STORY OF A CAT. 93 I am less guilty than I appear ; permit me to ex- plain." " It is useless," replied Madame de la Grenouill^re ; ^' your justification is impossible." '- The steward, believing it best to play a bold game, said with irony : — *• I am curious to know what unlikely story this rogue has to tell," and in accenting these words slowly he gave Faribole a glance which signified : " If you accuse me, woe to you ! ' " Without allowing himself to be confused, Faribole commenced in these terms : — '^ It is necessary to avow it, madame ; I entered into your service with the intention of stealing your cat ; the fortune-teller wished to have him, to make him play the part of the devil Astaroth ; and she had seduced me by the promise of a crown of six livres and a pair of shoes. They treated me so well, and Monmouth appeared to me so charming, that I re- nounced my wicked plans ; I never, no, never would have put them into execution, if I had not found it was necessary to get Monmouth out of the way in order to rescue him from the attacks of an enemy all the more terrible because he was hidden." " Of whom does he wish to speak ? " demanded Lustucru. " Of you! of you who have said to me, ' Kill Moa- mouth, or I chase you from the house ! ' " ^' I, I have said that ! what an impudent falsehood 1 94 THE STORY OF A CAT. Ah, Madame the Countess, you know me well enough not to hesitate between the declarations of this fellow and my flat denial." '^ Faribole," said the Countess severely, " your charge is grave ; can you brhig any proof to support it?" *•' Proof, alas ! no, madame ; but I am ready to swear to you " — ^' Enough," interrupted the Countess ; " do not add calumny to the theft of the cat, but deliver me of your presence." The miserable Faribole wished to protest, but at a sisn from Madame de la Grenouillere, Lustucru seized him by the arm. led hhn through the door without further cere- and treated hiui in so I manner on the stair- case as to quite relieve him of any idea of asking for his per- sonal effects. However, the' iniquities of the ste^v^rd were not to remain long unpunished; that same day. Mother Michel, in arrang- ing the closet in the antechamber, was very much astonished at finding the bodies of several dead rats and mice ; she was wondering what had caused their death, when she recognized the famous hash that the cat had refused to eat, and which had been left there mony. rough Faribole is treated Roughly on the Staircase. THE STORY OF A CAT. 95 by mistake. Two mice were dead in the plate itself, so powerful and subtile was the poison ! This discovery tore away the veil which covered the past of Lustucru. Mother Michel, divininf^ that the charges of Faribole were well founded, hastened to inform Madame de la Grenouillere, who recom- mended her to keep silent, and sent for the steward. " Have you still the ' Death to Rats ?' " she asked him. '' Yes, madame, I think I have a little left." " Some should be placed in the antechamber; you have not thought of that before ? " " Never, madame ; I did not know there were rats in that part of the house." "^ Very well ; you can retire." Madame de la Grenouillere wrote to a celebrated chemist, who, after having ana- lyzed the hash, declared that it contained a prodigious quantity of poison. The crime of Lustucru was then evident ; but other proofs were not long in rising against ^ celebrated Cher^lst analyzes him. The adventure of Croque- ^"^^ ^''^ mouche and Guignolet was talked about among the boatmen ; Faribole heard the story from one of them, and discovered a person who had seen Lustucru throw Monmouth from the bridge of Notre Dame. The steward, confounded, did not wait to be dis- r \ ( r THE STORY OF A CAT. 97 charged ; he fled, and, to escape the vengeance of Madame de la Grenouillere, embarked as cook on board of a merchant vessel bound for Oceanica. It was afterward learned that this ship had been wrecked upon the Sandwich Islands, and that the savages had eaten Lustucru. History records that at the moment of expiring he pro- nounced but a single w^ord, the name of Moumouth ! What was it that brought this name to the lips of the guilty man ? Was it remorse ? or w^as it the last ex- plosion of an unforgiving hatred ? This is what his- tory has neglected to inform us. The health of Madame de la Grenouillere had been altered by the heavy shocks she had experienced in losing her favorite animals. The tenderness and graces of Moumouth would perhaps have been suffi- cient to attach her to life ; but the respectable lady had reached an age when sorrows press very heavily. Mother Michel had the grief, one morning, to find the Countess dead in her bed ; her face was so calm and bore so plainly the impress of all her lovable qualities, that one would have believed she slept. She was nearly in her seventy-ninth year. By her will, which she had deposited with her lawyer, she had left to Moumouth and Mother Michel 98 THE STORY OF A CAT. an income of two thousand livres, to revert, in case of the death of either, to the survivor. Mother Michel took up her residence near her sister, provided handsomely for all the children, and selected for her own retreat a pretty cottage situated in Low-Breton upon the banks of the river among the green trees. Faribole, received again into the service of Madame de la Grenouillere, con- ducted hhnself so well that his tran- sient error was for- Mother Michels Cottage CTOtteU. Hc WOUld o have been able to distinguish himself in the kitchen, but he preferred to serve the State, and enlisted at the age of sixteen in an infantry regiment. He took part in the expedition against Majorca under the command of Marshal Richelieu, and was named cor- poral after the capture of Port-Mahon, June the 29th, 1756. When he obtained his discharge, he returned to live near Mother Michel, for wdiom he had an affection truly filial. To the agitations of their exist- ence succeeded calm and happy days, embellished by the constantly increasing graces of Moumouth. Our cat henceforth w^as without an enemy ; he won, on the contrary, the esteem and affection of all who knew him. His adventures had made him quite TOO THE STORY OF A CAT. famous. Besides the ballad, — of which, unfor- tunately, only two couplets have been preserved, — the poets of the period wrote in his honor a large number of verses that have not come down to us. He received visits from the most distinguished men of the time, even from the King himself, who once, on his way to the Chateau of Bellevue, dropped in for a moment on Moumouth. A grand lady of the court condescended to choose for Moumoutb a very gentle and very pretty com- panion, whom he accepted with gratitude. In see- ing himself a father Monmouth's happiness was at its highest, as was also that of Mother Michel, who felt that she lived again in the posterity of her cat. You wish to know what finally became of Mou- mouth ? He died, — but it was not until after a long and joyous career. His eyes, in closing, looked with sweet satisfaction upon groups of weeping children and grandchildren. His mortal remains were not treated like those of ordinary cats. Mother Michel had built for him a magnificent mausoleum of white marble. Following a cnstom then adopted at the burial of all illustrious personages, they engraved upon the tomb of Moumouth an epitaph in Latin, composed by a learned professor of the University of Paris. THIS BOOK IS DUE ON THE LAST DATE STAMPED BELOW AN INITIAL FINE OF 25 CENTS WILL BE ASSESSED FOR FAILURE TO RETURN THIS BOOK ON THE DATE DUE. THE PENALTY WILL INCREASE TO 50 CENTS ON THE FOURTH DAY AND TO $1.00 ON THE SEVENTH DAY OVERDUE. ■^M^W^-.■\^ M ■' ' •:t.. ' LD 21-100m-12, '43 (8796s) H i O H- '1 i ^5U THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY