(The. Cat, p. 4), great value was set upon the Cat, and in certain European countries a heavy fine was imposed upon
any one who killed this animal, the compensation being as much wheat as would form a pile sufficient to cover the
animal to the tip of its tail when held vertically with its muzzle resting on the ground. The Domestic Cat crosses
readily with any or all of the wild species with which it may come into contact; and the hybrids thus produced
are fertile. Such crosses are always to be met with in countries where wild and domestic Cats are found; and
they have at times been the cause of no little difficulty to naturalists, and of much confusion in determining
species and in the synonymy. Generally, however, they carry in their appearance the evidence of their impure
descent, and can be detected by any one who has studied these animals carefully. The different hybrids usually
seen are those produced by the Domestic Cat breeding with F. cat us in Europe, F. chaus and F. caff'a in Africa,
and F. ornata, F. chaus, and F. rubiginosa in India. The Domestic Cat also probably interbreeds with F. manul in
Asia. In Ceylon the late Mr. Blyth (Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London, 1863, p. 184) was assured
by Dr. Kelaart that he had seen a hybrid between the Domestic Cat and F. viverrina. In Paraguay, Azara states
(Natural History of the Quadrupeds of the Paraguay and the River La Plata, translated by W. P. Hunter, p. 173),
though not on his own authority, that the Cat has crossed with two of the native wild species, viz. F. jaguarondi
and F. eyra. Pennant (History of Quadrupeds, vol. i. p. 293) also states that the specimen described by him as
having “ swam on Board a ship at anchor off the coast of Bengal,” and which is supposed to have been F. viverrina,
bred with the female cats, which twice produced young. “ I saw,” he says, “ one of the offspring, which was marked
in the same manner as the male parent, but the ground-colour was cinereous.” E. L. Layard (Catalogue of the
South-African Museum, 1862) also remarks that “ F. caffira intermingles freely with the domestic race which' has
been imported by the European settlers, and the mixed progeny possesses all the ferocity and blood-thirstiness of
the wild parent. There are many races of the Domestic Cat, some of which are distinguished by peculiarities that
are apparently restricted to certain countries only. Some of them a re :—the tailless cats with lengthened hind legs
of the Isle of M an; those with truncated tails, as mentioned by Darwin (Animals and Plants under Domestication, vol. i.
p. 47), inhabiting the Malayan archipelago, Siam, Pegu, and Burma; cats with drooping ears from China. Some
races also are noted for lengthened fur, like the Angora or Persian breed, supposed by some to be derived from
F. manul.
Captain Owen (Narrative of Voyages, vol. ii. p. 180) states that at Mombas, on the east coast of Africa, all the cats
are covered with short stiff hair instead of fur. The Domestic Cat differs from some of the wild species in the first
inferior milk-molar, as mentioned by De Blainville (Ost6ographie, Felis, p. 6 5 ); and I have seen a race of this animal
without any teeth at all, which fact did not seem to render these cats incapable of masticating their food without
difficulty. Rengger (Saugethiere von Paraguay, 1830, p. 212) says that the domestic cat which has bred for 300
years in Paraguay is one fourth smaller than the European cat, has a more lanky body, and short, shiny, scanty hair that
lies dose, especially on the tail. In another part of South America, according to Roulin (Comptes Rendus de lAcad6mie
Royale des Sciences, tome vi. p. 346) the introduced’cat utters no longer its rest-destroying nocturnal howl. I t is a pity
that this race cannot exterminate and supplant all others of the domestic breed. Near Maldonado in La Plata, Darwin
(Zoology of the Voyage of the ‘ Beagle,’ Mammalia, p. 20) shot a Domestic Cat which seemed perfectly wild; and this
specimen was carefully examined by Mr. Waterhouse, who only found it remarkable for its great size. The colours
of the Domestic Cat are numerous, consisting of black, white, striped black on a grey ground, tortoise-shell, grey,
mouse-colour, sandy, and brown. Black Cats generally have yellow eyes ; white ones have sometimes blue eyes, and are
then usually deaf; sometimes their eyes are different in colour—one blue, the other yellow tinged with green. Tortoiseshell
cats are mostly females, a male of this colour being a great rarity. Cats from Siam are of a fawn- or mouse-
colour. The Angora cat is noted for its great size and its long soft fur. This race presents various colours in
individuals, such as white, greyish, a mixture of these two; and I have seen a remarkably fine male of a uniform
mouse-colour. I t seems that this race is not characterized by any particular hue for the fur. The tails of Domestic Cats
vary greatly in length; and some have a lengthened tuft of hair on the tip of their ears; this; however, is
denved from their ancestor, such as F. chaus, and distinguishes those in India, although sometimes this peculiarity
is exhibited by individuals in other countries. Occasionally the points by which a race is known are derived
from an accident^ which has happened to. a parent; and Mivart (The Cat, p. 7) records an instance of a female
cat having her tail so much injured by a cart-wheel passing over it, that it was deemed best to cut it off
near the root. Afterwards she had two litters; and in each, one or more of the kittens had merely stumps of
tails, the others having tails of the usual length.
The Domestic Cat begins to breed when about a year old, and has from five to eight young at a time. The
period of gestation is fifty-five days. Birds and small quadrupeds constitute the usual prey; but the Cat is also
extremely fond of cow’s milk and fish, winch must be considered an acquired taste; for the first of these could
not be obtained by the wild ancestor, and the second could but rarely be procured, although one species of so-called
fishing-cat exists at the present day, whose diet does mainly consist of fish. The sense of smell in the Cat is not
well developed; and its chief reliance in catching prey is quick sight, astonishing rapidity of movement, together with
sharp claws and teeth.
The actions of the Domestic Cat in approaching, springing upon, and seizing a mouse, exactly portray, on a greatly
reduced scale, those of its large relative the Tiger when attacking its prey in the jungle. The same graceful motions
of the lithe body are seen in both creatures; and the stroke from the armed paw is delivered by both animals alike.
Heat is much enjoyed by the c a t; and the fire-side in winter, and the sunny side of buildings are its coveted resorts.
Water, as a rule, is avoided; and it is only with the greatest reluctance that the cat permits any portion of its body
to become wet. The Domestic Cat is subject to the attacks of various parasites, which exist in the stomach or its
lining membrane, and also in the liver and lungs. These parasites are the causes of different forms of sickness, such
as colic, diarrhoea, inflammation of certain organs, convulsions, and general wasting away. Dr. Cobbold, in his work
on the Internal Parasites of our Domesticated Animals, gives a long list of the worms inhabiting the Cat’s body,
and their effect upon its health and manner of death. Tapeworms of various species, procured by the cat from
the livers of mice, which contain the larvae of the parasite, are very frequently present in the animal’s stomach
and cause its death. Cats are also subject to mange, consumption, and other disorders, and are often infested
with fleas similar to those found upon the dog, but smaller.
As a rule, the Domestic Cat is more attached to buildings or certain localities than to persons; but it is frequently
possessed of an affectionate disposition, and quickly recognizes any one from whom it has received kindness, evincing
its pleasure by loud purring, and with elevated tail endeavouring to rub itself against the individual whose attention
it solicits. In its habits the cat is cleanly, and passes much time in licking and smoothing its fur with its tongue.
This member is rough, caused by numerous conical papillae whose points are set backwards and make the tongue feel
something like a rasp when drawn across the finger.
The utility of the cat to man is exemplified in many ways, but in none more curious and striking than the
fact that if there were no cats there would be no clover. At first sight there would .seem to be no relationship
whatever between these widely divergent forms; for the quadruped does not care for clover, and this grass would
not appear, to a casual observer, to be in any way dependent upon the cat. But Darwin explains it in this
way (‘Origin of Species,’ 6th ed. p. 57):—Clover, in England, is fertilized by humble-bees. Field-mice are very fond
of the nests and combs of these insects, and destroy many of them. Cats in their turn prey upon field-mice and
keep them from undue increase; so that if there were no cats, field-mice would multiply so greatly that they
would destroy all the humble-bees, and consequently clover (from want of fertilization) would become extinct.
The animal described by Muller (I. c.) as Felis megalotis is undoubtedly a hybrid, probably between F. chaus
and a Domestic Cat. The habitat, Timor, may be questioned, as no Wild Cats are known to inhabit that island.
The following description I took from the type in the Leyden Museum:—Colour light buff with greyish spots,
most numerous on the back and hind quarters. Legs barred with blackish brown. Top of head blackish brown,
with a yellowish streak in the centre. Two reddish stripes on cheek, and two reddish bands across the breast
blackish in the centre, the upper hand very indistinct. Around the body are irregular indistinct bars of reddisli
buff, darkest on the back, where they are broken into spots. Tail nearly as long as the body, dark grey, rufous
on top, with two or three dark brown bands near the tip, this last being also dark brown. Underparts buff. Ears
not alike: left one black, with a band of rufous in centre; right one nearly all rufous mottled with black.
There is a specimen of a Cat in the Paris Museum to which Prof. A. Milne-Edwards has given the MS. name of
Felis bouvieri. It was said to have come from the Island of Cap Vert, near Senegal. J believe it to be merely a
Domestic Cat run wild, and have therefore placed this MS. name among the synonyms of the Domestic Cat.