"'It is.'
"'Then,' said I, firmly, 'I am going to chloroform the cat.'
"'Harold!' she cried, in terror, 'that cat is your great-aunt!'
"I don't know to this day how I stood the shock of that announcement, or how I managed to listen while Wilhelmina tried to explain the transmigration theory, but it was all Chinese to me. I only knew that I was a blood relation of a cat, and the thought nearly drove me mad.
"'Try, my darling, try to love her,' whispered Wilhelmina; 'she must be very precious to you—'
"'Yes, with my diamond inside her,' I replied, faintly.
"'You must not neglect her,' said Wilhelmina.
"'Oh no, I'll always have my eye on her—I mean I will surround her with luxury—er, milk and bones and catnip and books—er—does she read?'
"'Not the books that human beings read. Now, go and speak to your aunt, Harold.'
"'Eh! How the deuce—'