e cats' breakfast was nearly over. In fact, they had had their usual
allowance before Rea came down; but Ah Foo had gone on throwing out meat
for Rea to see the scrambling. Presently he threw the last piece, and
set the empty plate up on a shelf by the kitchen door. The cats knew
very well by this sign that breakfast was over; after the plate was set
on that shelf, they never had a mouthful more of meat; and it was droll
to see the change that came over all of them as soon as they saw this
done. In less than a second, they changed from fierce, fighting,
clawing, scratching, snatching, miaowing, spitting, growling cats, into
quiet, peaceful cats, some sitting down licking their paws, or washing
their faces, and some lying out full-length on the ground and rolling;
some walking off in a leisurely and dignified manner, as if they had had
all they wanted, and wouldn't thank anybody for another bit of meat, if
they could have it as well as not. This was almost as funny as the first
part of it.

After Ah Foo had set the plate in its place on the shelf, he turned to
go into the kitchen to help about the breakfast; but just as he had put
his hand on the door-handle, there came a terrible shriek from Rea, a
fierce sputter from one of the cats, and a faint bark of a dog, all at
once; and Ah Foo, looking around, sprang just in time to rescue Fairy
from the jaws of Skipper, one of the biggest and fiercest of the cats.

Poor little Fairy, missing her mistress, had trotted downstairs; and
smelling on the floor wherever Rea had set her feet, had followed her
tracks, and had reached the veranda just in time to be spied by Skipper,
who arched his back, set his tail up straight and stiff as a poker, and,
making one bound from the ground to the middle of the veranda floor,
clutched Fairy with teeth and claws, and would have made an end of her
in less than one minute if Ah Foo had not been there. But Ah Foo could
move almost as quickly as a cat; and it was not a quarter of a second
after Fairy gave her piteous cry, when she was safe and sound in her
mistress's arms, and Ah Foo had Skipper by the scruff of his neck, and
was holding him high up, boxing his ears, right and left, with blows so
hard they rang.

"Cat heap wicked," he said. "You killee missy's dog, I killee you!" and
he flung Skipper with all his might and main through the air.

Rea screamed, "Oh, don't!" She did not want to see the cat killed, even
if he had flown at Fairy. "