Daisy: the autobiography of a catSwan, Miranda Eliot
General
Daisy: the autobiography of a cat
Swan, Miranda Eliot
Cats -- Fiction
One day they saw her lying down on some shining object. They found it
was an old collar belonging to Watch that she had found in the attic.
She fought when they took it away from her; and when they returned it,
she carried it out to the barn and put it in the corner where Watch used
to lie.
There were warm sunny places he had selected to rest himself in when he
grew tired and sick, and Chloe went to every one of his old haunts and
made her bed. She attached herself to the master just as Watch had done,
and seemed overjoyed if he noticed her. Very soon the sympathy between
them in their mutual loss made them real friends. He would talk to her
about Watch, and she seemed to understand all he said. It was a real
comfort to him.
It is often said that a dog is more companionable than a cat, and has
higher intelligence. That is not true. Cats fully understand everything
that a dog does; but a dog is trained, and no one but a real cat lover
would ever think of training a cat.
Chloe never regained her bright spirits after the death of Watch. She
did not wander off into the woods so often, attaching herself more to
the children and her home. She followed the children like a shadow. She
could play hide-and-seek in and out the pine trees, jumping out on them
in real earnest, and was always the first one to find the hiding place.
On the place was a real old-fashioned well. Chloe was very fond of that
well, and the bucket was a real friend. Warm days she would lap the
drops of water from its sides, for it was like ice water.
One day a kitten belonging to a neighbor mounted on the side of the well
and looked down with wonder into the boundless depth. It was a perilous
seat. Chloe, not pleased at the kitten's rashness, ran around the well
and in every way tried to call her down from her perch; but she was an
obstinate little creature and took no notice of Chloe's evident
distress. Finding moral suasion of no avail, quick as a flash she flew
up, and, taking her by the nape of the neck, deposited her in safety on
the grass, where they had a good romp together; and she never allowed
that kitten to go near the well again without her company.
The master would say, "We need not fear for the children; Chloe will
never let them approach the well without her company."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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