OUR FAITHFUL FRIENDS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 20028, 18 August 1928, Page 4 (Supplement)

OUR FAITHFUL FRIENDS.

Dogs are the most faithful of creatures. A man may ill-treat and starve his dog, but it will, as a usual thing, remain ifaithful to him in his time of need. Cats, on tho other hand, are not so faithful. A dog can livo, and enjoy life, without admiration, but a cat cannot. A cat, when it lies down, likes a human being to lean against; failing this, it usually tries to find a place that a human has lately vacated. In regard to rabbits; beautiful, furry little creatures. A short time ago an amusing little story was published in the New Zealand Herald, which clearly shows tho bunnies' cunningness. The incident occurred during tho very wet weather; a sheepfarmer, whose flock wa3 herded in a low-lying field, shifted them to a more elevated position, away from the fast accumulating water. When the rain ceased, and he went to see his flock, each of which had a lamb, he found they had strayed back to their former paddock, and were standing in several feet of water. The lambs were all drowned, but on the back of each sheep were one or two rabbits perched there to escape the flood water. We owe a duty to the animals—that of love and friendship. Besides bestowing kindness and' thoughtfulness on our domestic animals and personal pets, we can, to a great extent, help the whole animal kingdom by refusing to use such things as furs, feathers, and meat foods, all of which necessitate the killing of animals. —Jessie Woodward, Edmonton Road, Henderson, (aged 14 years). A WISE CAT. Horses and dogs, as everyone knows, are wonderfully intelligent, and here is a little story which proves that cats can be, too. A cat made a safe hiding-place for her kittens behind syringa bushes at the bottom of a garden. When the owners of the garden discovered the place they poured some milk into a white saucer and placed it near the bushes. The mother cat seemed very grateful for the milk, which she quickly drank. Then the saucer was ro-filled and left nearby. When next morning more milk was brought the empty saucer was found covered with leaves. The leaves were brushed away and the saucer was refilled. The next time it was found covered with leaves again. This shows

that the wiso little mother-cat thought that the white saucer looked too conspicuous, so she made it dark so that it should not bo easily distinguished from the dark soil behind it. In this way she kept her kittens safe and their nursery a secret to passers-by.