White Cat (The). A certain queen, desirous of obtaining some fairy fruit, was told she might gather as much as she would if she would give to them the child about to be born. The queen agreed, and the new-born child was carried to the fairies. When of marriageable age, the fairies wanted her to marry Migonnet, a fairy-dwarf, and, as she refused to do so, changed her into a white cat. Now comes the second part. An old king had three sons, and promised to resign the kingdom to that son who brought him the smallest dog. The youngest son wandered to a palace, where he saw a white cat endowed with human speech, who gave him a dog so tiny that the prince carried it in an acorn shell. The father then said he would resign his crown to that son who brought him home a web, 400 yards long, which would pass through the eye of a needle. The White Cat gave the prince a web 400 yards long packed in the shale of a millet grain. The king then told his sons he would resign his throne to that son who brought home the handsomest bride. The White Cat told the prince to cut off its head and tail. On doing so, the creature resumed her human form, and was acknowledged to be the most beautiful woman on earth.
Her eyes committed theft upon all hearts, and her sweetness kept them captive. Her shape was majestic, her air noble and modest, her wit flowing, her manners engaging. In a word, she was beyond everything that was lovely.--Comtesse D’Aunoy, Fairy Tales (“The White Cat,” 1682).
White Clergy (The), the parish priests, in contradistinction to The Black Clergy or monks, in Russia.
White Cross Knights, the Knights Hospitallers. The Knights Templar wore a red cross.
The White Cross Knights of the adjacent isle.
Robert Browning, The Return of the Druses, i.
White Devil of Wallachia. George Castriota, known as “Scanderbeg,” was called by the Turks “The White Devil of Wallachia” (1404-1467).
White Elephant (King of the) a title of the kings of Ava and Siam.
White Friars (The), the Carmelites, who dress in white.
⁂ There is a novel by Miss Robinson called White Friars.