THE CHINESE CAT

Sun (Auckland), Volume I, Issue 200, 12 November 1927, Page 27 (Supplement)

THE CHINESE CAT

Sing was u white pussy with soft fur and blue eyes, and because she belonged to the little girl of a rich man sho had a collar and chain of gold. In China cats wear collars and chains, and the dogs do not. Sing used to sit in a sweet garden, and over the garden was a net. high up, so that she could not get out of the garden at all. In the garden were lovely birds that never flew away because they knew that Sing was chained up. Now Sing made up her mind to run away if she could. So she told th»* Chow Chow dog that he could have all her fish and cream for a week if he would bit a hole in the netting and let her get out. So Hung, the Chow Chow dog, bit a hole in the netting, and Sing got out and ran away. For a whole day she enjoyed herself; then she found that there were no mice in that part of the country, and the birds were too quick for her to catch, and there was no cream; and she was so hungry! When she told Hung, the Chow Chow dog, he growled, and said she had promised him all her fish and cream for a week, and he was going to have them. She must be hungry for a week and then lie would see what he could do. “But I expect little Golden Lily will have got another nicer pussy by then,” said the unkind Chow Chow dog. So for a whole week poor Sing had to try and live upon water, and beetle®, and crumbs. Beetles taste simply horrible after fish and cream; and crumbs are not much if you are hungry. At the end of a week Sing could hardly crawl: she had not enjoyed her holiday one bit, and when Hung cam** to see her she said he could have all her cream for two weeks, but not her fish. “I must eat something. Hung.' she said. And Hung said that would do. So one night he took Sing in his big mouth and jumped up on to th* top of the wall with her. He bit another hole in the netting; the old I one had been mended, and then he j took Sing down to the garden and left ; her by the lily pond. They had put out her plate of food ; every day in case she came back. | And so poor, thin, dirty little Sing ■ came home. i Nobody said very much about her I going away: and. of course, they were | very pleased to have her back again. but Sing couldn't help feeling rather i in disgrace. i Sing's mistress put the gold collar ! and chain on her pussy again and I gave her the usual fish and little bowl jof cream. Goodness me! how Ring en- | joyed them after not having had anvj thing to eat for such a long time, j Then she licked, and licked, and i licked herself till she was just like ball of lovely soft snow—just like she used to be before she went away. In time her little mistress quite forgave her lovely pet for leaving her; ir. fact she quite forgot all about it I Sing will never want to run away again.