Most Cats are good mousers, and some bring everything they kill to their master or mistress, displaying their mice and rats with as much pride as a sportsman would his game. They are very fond of catmint and valerian, rolling themselves in a kind of ecstacy when they smell the latter plant. They are very cleanly, often sitting stroking their faces with their paws, as if washing themselves.
In the eye of the Cat, the pupil is perpendicularly oval, extending from above downwards, and when contracted appears like a straight line. This conformation is suited to the habits of these animals, for they are not content with prowling along the ground, but occasionally spring to great heights, their heads being directed upwards, and their eyes placed in front and more nearly parallel. This structure of the eyes occurs in all the Cat tribe.
THE WILD CAT. (Felis Catus.)
The Wild Cat is a native of the forests of Europe, and was formerly abundant in Britain, but is now confined to some of the wilder parts of this country. It is a stouter and more powerful animal than the domestic Cat, and is of a greyish colour with black stripes, something like an ordinary tabby. It is a fierce creature, and is very destructive to birds and small quadrupeds.