How the Cat Falls.

Manawatu Herald, 19 February 1898, Page 4

How the Cat Falls.

A soleofc company of tho savants of Paris has been endeavoring to detonnine why it i 3 that when a cat has to exeouto a fall it invariably falls upon its foot. To this end the society has subjected n subject to a series of falls from a height of some eight aud forty inches. The drops have been made as awkward for the animal as scienco knew how, but the result has always been tho same. In tho course of its brief descent Grimalkin has always contrived o means to land neatly on all fours, with its tail at right angle. How does it do it? Tho cat's determination to keep its secret has bafflod the closest inquiry. No less than CO instantaneous photographs have been taken of as many phases of the chute. At a convenient distanca from the finish tho cat is seen revolv">*Bg in itself, without any visible assisting force, and stopping in Its revolution when it has got right side uppermost, and all that Parisiun scienco can do is to abuse tho cat fo* violating tho laws of nature. The editor of Tho Engineer, New York, having read nbout these researches resolved to make some original investigations on the same subject, but ho did not meet with complete success. Ho is credited with saying at tho closo of his experience, "Some cata that we experimented with, being I doubtless of weak minds, came down on j their backs with resounding thumps."