the estate she was brought from, I was quite amazed to
learn that the cat had come back again. Did she swim over the rivers at
the fords where the horse came through with her, or did she ascend the
banks for a considerable distance, in search of a more shallow place,
and where the stream was less powerful? At all events she must have
crossed the rivers, in opposition to her natural habits."

A singular malformation in the cat has been perpetuated, till a race of
tailless cats is now in existence, and which is certainly no improvement
on the original stock; for nothing can be more graceful than the
attitudes of the cat's tail, or more expressive of its feelings of joy
or anger.

SQUIRRELS.

A peculiar formation of the incisors, or front teeth, groups a number
of smaller animals together under the name of Rodentia, from the Latin
word _rodens_, which signifies gnawing. These teeth act as files, so
that the food on which their owners principally live is reduced by
friction to a state which fits it for digestion. As the edges of these
teeth become worn by constant use, they incessantly grow from the root.
If one be broken, that opposite to it, in the other jaw, being deprived
of its habitual wear and tear, grows so fast that it not only annoys its
owner, but has caused his destruction by effectually closing the mouth.
Their lower jaws can only move backwards and forwards; some exclusively
eat vegetables, others eat all things, and others again prefer flesh.
Some carry their food to their mouths with their paws, and climb trees;
and, in many, the hinder limbs are so much longer than those in front,
that they leap instead of walk. They are widely and numerously spread on
the surface of the earth, and therefore bear strongly on its history;
but it is not among them that we find the high intellectual development
with which many other animals are gifted.

Squirrels are some of the most beautiful of the Rodentia, and chiefly
live in trees. The fur of some of the species is extremely beautiful and
valuable; they are very active, elegant little creatures, and easily
tamed, when they become very playful and affectionate. A friend of mine
was deprived of her only daughter, and the lost one's pet squirrel was
of course cherished and loved; the little creature used to run up the
lady's arm, and seat itself on her shoulder, caress her with its head,
nestle itself into her neck, and drink her tears. As long as it lived,
it wa