Possibilities in Native American Species. — Of the cats indigenous to the American con tinent, which might be suitable for domestica tion, few have been tried in a domestic way, and the species that inhabit this country are not many. I have seen the wildcat or gray lynx, at shows, behaving in the most exemplary manner. Having been brought up from infancy by children, and perfectly tame, it was more at ease in a large show-room, and not nearly as nervous as the ordinary feline. So that if it were not for the size of the creature, its pos sibilities as a domestic animal would be good; but unfortunately our time does not seem to be destined to take in hand or give us any fresh species of domesticated animals; what we have are handed down through the ages. In this particular we are not original, for we destroy more often than we create, and we seem to have no time for trying to subdue or lead into bondage any new varieties of mam mals. The puma, cougar or mountain lion ranges over the whole of North and South America, but is too large for domestic pur poses; yet it has never been, aggressive against man, and, if history is to be thoroughly credited, was quite the reverse with early set tlers till driven to exile and filled with fear by man himself. The ocelot is one of our most beautiful varieties, and varies somewhat in color, with sometimes a gray body-color, but more often yellow. It is clearly marked with dark color in spots, bars and splotches, and is very handsome, but larger and more powerful than the domestic cat. These cats have been taken when young and reared; and although comparatively tame and sociable till about a year old, they then become savage and impos sible and have to be caged or killed.
A very pretty cat that has been exhibited in America is the margay from Central and South America, where it inhabits the woods. This cat has been handled at an exhibition and found tame and with a passion for being caressed. The margay is light red or orange, beautifully and regularly spotted with small black spots, the ears small, round and pointing forward, whitish-gray at the backs, edged with black. It is a small cat, very handsome and refined, and if the effort could be made to obtain some more of the species these cats would be a very valuable addition to our varieties and to our home circles. Geoffroy's cat is another small spotted cat, of which a few have been intro duced into England, but it is too early to state what the future increase may be. The pampas cat is another feline not amenable to domestic life.
Asiatic As a rule our best white cats with blue eyes come from India and some of the best are brought from Tibet. In cross ing the Himalaya Mountains with these cats carriers slit their noses to enable them to breathe with greater ease the rarified atmos phere of the high altitudes. Cats with slit noses are much valued. As to cats coming from this place or that, such as Persia, Angora, etc., a good deal of proof is required before any particular claim can be accepted. The writer has failed to find any long-haired cats at Teheran, and Angora, as has been said, is but a small place. We probably obtained many
of our long-haired cats from around the Persian Gulf, and more from India, many of which come down from the interior of Asia with the Arab horse-traders. Cats vary in their adaptability to changes of climate, and no doubt to this factor we owe what we have and what breeds we can retain and perpetuate. The Siamese soon succumbs to dampness, but the long-haired cats, in some cases, took to the climate of Maine early in the century, when brought from the East. They bred extensively, and increased and became an article of com merce to the large cities, long before these cities held shows. These cats went by the name of Angoras, and in fact the ordinary nomenclature of the country defines all long haired cats as Angoras. The Maine cats were often carelessly bred, and when shows com menced and competition came they had to give way to the more finely bred English cats, but in other cases they held their own and the blood has been perpetuated. The Maine cats are found in all colors, and some are very big and strong, but these have been probably crossed with short-haired cats, and a great deal of hybridizing has been done even in England. There is a Russian long-haired cat, but it has not gained much favor, being solitary in its habits, unsociable in character, coarse in body and fur and dingy in color. A few have been brought from Persia, but they had the faculty of attaching themselves more to other cats than to their owners. They are originally the same cat as the Asiatic,— that is, the Persian or Angora; and the first long-haired cats must have been brought over by sailors and travelers from the East. All long-haired cats seem to have a common origin in Pallas' cat (Fells mama).
Another cat that has created a great deal of interest is the Maltese. This cat is hard to account for, but should be blue or slate in color and greatly resembles what in Great Britain is called the Russian or Archangel cat, specimens of which have often been brought from Russia; but lately quite an influx of blue cats has come from Iceland. Whether cold winters are cal culated to develop blue cats I do not know, but it is sufficiently evident that northern climates have produced most cats of that color. Blue cats are not numerous in Great Britain, although they are becoming more so by introduction. Here in America we have plenty scattered all over the United States, but how they gained their name of Maltese the writer has been unable to discover, for there is no blue cat indigenous to the island of Malta. Probably the cats were brought there in early times from the same source whence the English now obtain theirs, and, the color being peculiar, these cats were selected or by superior hardiness they may have selected themselves. However many people who are not cat exhibitors or who do not know much about cats scientifically keep their short haired blue °Maltese) and are proud of them. The Chartreuse monks had blue long-haired cats many years ago.