Cat Proverbs
A BLATE cat makes a proud mouse (Scotch). An idle, or stupid, or timid
foe is never feared.
A cat has nine lives, a woman has nine lives. In Middleton's Blurt
Master Constable, 1602, we have: "They have nine lives apiece, like a
woman."
A cat may look at a king. In Cornwall they say a cat may look at a
king if he carries his eyes about him.
"A Cat may Look at a Kin
in the early part of the last century. On the frontispiece is the
picture of a cat, over it the inscription, "A cat may look at a king,"
and a king's head and shoulders on the title-page, with the same
inscription above.
A cat's walk, a little way and back (Cornwall). No place like home.
Idling about.
A dead cat feels no cold. No life, no pain, nor reproach.
A dog hath a day.--HEYWOOD. In Essex folks add: And a cat has two
Sundays. Why?
The shape of a good greyhound:
A head like a snake, a neck like a drake, A back like a beam,
sided like a bream, A foot like a cat, a tail like a rat.
Ale that would make a cat talk. Strong enough to make even the dumb
speak.
"A spicy pot,
Then do's us reason,
Would make a cat
To talk high treason."--D'URFEY.
A half-penny cat may look at a king (Scotch). A jeering saying of
offence--"One is as good as another," and as a Scotchman once said, "and
better."
A muffled cat is no good mouser.--CLARKE, 1639. No good workman wears
gloves. By some is said "muzzled."
A piece of a kid is worth two of a cat. A little of good is better
than much that is bad.
A scalded cat fears cold water. Once bit always shy. What was may be
again.
As cat or cap case.
"Bouser I am not, but mild sober Tuesday,
As catte in cap case, if I like not St. Hewsday."
The Christmas Prince, 1607.
As gray as Grannum's cat.--HAZLITT. So old as to be likely to be
doubly gray.
As melancholy as a cat.--WALKER. The voice of the cat is melancholy.
As melancholy as a gib-cat (Scotch). As an old, worn-out
cat.--JOHNSTON.
"I am as melancholy as a gib-cat or a lugged bear."[B]
SHAKESPEARE.
[B] A lugged bear is a bear with its ears cut off, so that when used for
baiting there is less hold for the dogs.
Gib-cat; an old, lonely, melancholy cat.
Before the cat can lick her ear. "Nay, you were not quite out of
hearing ere the cat could lick her ear."--Oviddius Exultans, 1673, p.
50. That is never.
Dun, besides being the name of one who arrested for debt in Henry VII.'s
time, was also the name of the hangman before "Jack Ketch."--GROSE.
"And presently a halter got,
Made of the best strong teer,
And ere a cat could lick her ear,
Had tied it up with so much art."
1664, COTTON'S Virgile, Book 4.
By biting and scratching dogs and cats come together.--HEYWOOD.
Quarrelling oft makes friends.
Care clammed a cat.--SIR G. C. LEWIS'S "Herefordshire Glossary."
Clammed means starvation; that is, care killed the cat; for want of food
the entrails get "clammed."
Care killed the cat, but ye canna live without it. To all some
trouble, though not all take heed. None know another's burden.
Care will kill a cat.
"Then hang care and sorrow,
'Tis able to kill a cat."--D'URFEY.
Alluding to its tenacity of life and the carking wear of care.
Cats after kind good mouse hunt.--HEYWOOD. Letter by F. A. touching
the quarrel between Arthur Hall and Melch Mallorie, in 1575-6, repr. of
ed. 1580, in "Misc^{y}. Antiq. Anglic." 1816, p. 93. "For never yet was
good cat out of kinde."--English Proverbs, HAZLITT.
Cats and Carlins sit in the sun. When work is done then warmth and
rest.
Cats eat what hussies spare. Nothing is lost. Also refers to giving
away, and saying "the cat took it."
Cats hide their claws. All is not fair that seems so. Trust not to
appearances.
Cry you mercy, killed my cat.--CLARKE, 1639. Better away, than stay
and ask pardon.
Every day's no yule; cast the cat a castock. The stump of a cabbage,
and the proverb means much the same thing as "Spare no expense, bring
another bottle of small beer."--DENHAM'S Popular Sayings, 1846.
OF FALSE PERSONS.
He bydes as fast as a cat bound with a sacer. He does as he likes;
nothing holds him.
OF WITTIE PERSONS.
He can hold the cat to the sun. Bold and foolish enough for anything.
INCONSTANT PERSONS.
He is like a dog or a cat. Not reliable.
He looks like a wild cat out of a bush. Fiercely afraid.
He's like a cat; fling him which way you will, he'll not hurt. Some
are always superior to misfortune, or fortune favours many.
He's like a singed cat, better than he's likely. He's better than he
looks or seems.
He stands in great need that borrows the cat's dish.--CLARKE, 1639.
The starving are not particular. The hungry cannot choose.
He lives at the sign of the cat's foot. He is hen-pecked, his wife
scratches him.--RAY.
He wald gar a man trow that the moon is made of green cheis, or the cat
took the heron. Never believe all that is laid to another.
Honest as the cat when the meat is out of reach. Some are honest, but
others not by choice.
How can the cat help it when the maid is a fool? Often things lost,
given, or stolen, are laid to the cat.
If thou 'scap'st, thou hast cat's luck, in Fletcher's Knight of
Malta, alluding to the activity and caution of the cat, which generally
stands it in good stead.
I'll not buy a cat in a poke. F., Chat en Poche. See what you buy;
bargain not on another's word.
Just as quick as a cat up a walnut-tree.--D'URFEY. To climb well and
easily. To be alert and sudden.
Let the cat wink, and let the mouse run. For want of watching and care
much is lost.--HAZLITT'S "Dodsley," i. 265. The first portion is in the
interlude of "The World and the Child," 1522.
Like a cat he'll fall on his legs. To succeed, never to fail, always
right.
Like a cat round hot milk. Wait and have; all things come to those who
wait.
Little and little the cat eateth the stickle.--HEYWOOD. Constant
dropping weareth a stone.
Long and slender like a cat's elbow.--HAZLITT. A sneer at the
ill-favoured.
Love me, love my cat.--This refers to one marrying; in taking a wife
he must take her belongings. Or, where you like, you must avoid
contention.
Never was cat or dog drowned that could see the shore. To know the way
often brings a right ending.
None but cats and dogs are allowed to quarrel here. All else agree.
No playing with a straw before an old cat.--HEYWOOD, 1562. Every
trifling toy age cannot laugh at.--"Youth and Folly, Age and Wisdom."
Rats walk at their ease if cats do not them meese.--WODROEPHE, 1623.
Rogues abound where laws are weak.
Send not a cat for lard.--GEORGE HERBERT. Put not any to temptation.
So as cat is after kind. Near friends are dearest. Birds of a feather
flock together.
Take the chestnuts out of the fire with the cat's paw. Making use of
others to save oneself.
That comes of a cat will catch mice. What is bred in the bone comes
out in the flesh. Like father, like son.
The cat and dog may kiss, but are none the better friends. Policy is
one thing, friendship another.
The cat invites the mouse to her feast. It is difficult for the weak
to refuse the strong.
The cat is in the cream-pot. Any one's fault but hers. A row in the
house (Northern).
The cat is hungry when a crust contents her. Hunger is a good sauce.
The cat is out of kind that sweet milk will not lap. One is wrong who
forsakes custom.--"History of Jacob and Esau," 1568.
The cat, the rat, and Lovel the dog, rule England under one hog.--"A
Myrrour for Magistrates," edition 1563, fol. 143. This couplet is a
satire on Richard III. (who carried a boar on his escutcheon) and his
myrmidons, Catesby, Ratcliffe, and Lovell.
The cat would eat fish, and would not wet her feet.--HEYWOOD, 1562.
"Fain would the cat fish eat,
But she is loth to wet her feet."
"What cat's averse to fish?"--GRAY.
Dr. Trench has pointed out the allusion to this saying in Macbeth,
when Lady Macbeth speaks of her husband as a man,
"Letting I dare not, wait upon I would,
Like the poor cat i' the adage."
The cat sees not the mouse ever.--HEYWOOD. Those that should hide, see
more than they who seek. The fearful eye sees far.
The liquorish cat gets many a rap. The wrong-doer escapes not.
The more you rub a cat on the back, the higher she sets her tail.
Praise the vain and they are more than pleased. Flattery and vanity are
near akin.
The mouse lords it where the cat is not.--MS., 15th century. The
little rule, where there are no great.
The old cat laps as much as the young.--CLARKE. One evil is much like
another.
They agree like two cats in gutter.--HEYWOOD. To be less than friends.
They argue like cats and dogs. That is to quarrel.
Thou'lt strip it, as Stack stripped the cat when he pulled her out of
the churn. To take away everything.
Though the cat winks awhile, yet sure he is not blind. To know all and
pretend ignorance.
To grin like a Cheshire cat. Said to be like a cheese cat, often made
in Cheshire; but this is not very clear, and the meaning doubtful.
To go like a cat on a hot bake-stone. To lose no time. To be swift and
stay not.
To keep a cat from the tongs. To stop at home in idleness. It is said
of a youth who stays at home with his family, when others go to the wars
abroad, in "A Health to the Gentlemanly Profession of Serving Men,"
1598.
Too late repents the rat when caught by the cat. Shun danger, nor dare
too long.
To love it as a cat loves mustard. Not at all. To abhor.
Two cats and a mouse, two wives in one house, two dogs and one bone,
never agree. No peace when all want to be masters, or to possess one
object.
Well might the cat wink when both her eyes were out.
"Sumwhat it was sayeth the proverbe old,
That the cat winked when here iye was out."
Jack Juggler, edit. 1848, p. 46.
Those bribed are worse than blind.
"Well wots the cat whose beard she licketh."--SKELTON'S Garlande of
Laurel, 1523.
"Wel wot nure cat whas berd he lickat."--WRIGHT'S Essays, vol. i. p.
149.
"The cat knoweth whose lips she licketh."--HEYWOOD, 1562.
The first appears the most correct.
What the good wife spares the cat eats. Favourites are well cared for.
When candles are out all cats are gray. In the dark all are alike.
This is said of beauty in general.
When the cat is away the mice will play.--"The Bachelor's Banquet,"
1603. Heywood's "Woman Killed with Kindness," 1607. When danger is past,
it is time to rejoice.
When the weasel and the cat make a marriage, it is very ill presage.
When enemies counsel together, take heed; when rogues agree, let the
honest folk beware.
When the maid leaves the door open, the cat's in fault. It is always
well to have another to bear the blame. The way to do ill deeds oft
makes ill deeds done.
Who shall hang the bell about the cat's neck?--HEYWOOD, 1562.
"Who shall ty the bell about the cat's necke low?
Not I (quoth the mouse), for a thing that I know."
The mice at a consultation held how to secure themselves from the cat,
resolved upon hanging a bell about her neck, to give warning when she
was near; but when this was resolved, they were as far to seek; for who
would do it?--R. Who will court danger to benefit others?
A Douglas in the olden time, at a meeting of conspirators, said he would
"bell the cat." Afterwards the enemy was taken by him, he retaining the
cognomen of "Archibald Bell-the-cat."
You can have no more of a cat than its skin. You can have no more of a
man but what he can do or what he has, or no more from a jug than what
it contains.
More
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A Cat-clock
The following curious incident is to be found in Huc's "Chinese Empire": "One day, when we went to pay a visit to some families of Chinese Christian peasants, we met, near a farm, a young lad, who was taking a buffalo to graze alo... Abyssinian
To breed these true, it is well to procure imported or pedigree stock, for many cats are bred in England from ordinary tabbies, that so nearly resemble Abyssinian in colour as scarcely to be distinguished from the much-prized foreigners. The males a... Abyssinian
POINTS HEAD 10 Small, broad across the eyes, rather long than short, nose medium length, all well-formed. E... Abyssinian Crosses
Curiously coloured as the Abyssinian cat is, and being a true breed, no doubt of long far back ancestry, it is most useful in crossing with other varieties, even with the Persian, Russian, Angora, or the Archangel, the ticking hues being easy of tra... Aperient
Get a chemist to rub down a medium-size croton bean with about 40 grains of sugar of milk, and divide into four powders. One of these powders given in milk usually suffices. Large cats often require two powders. The dose might be repeated if necessa... Black
The best black, undoubtedly, are those bred from tortoiseshell mothers or females. The black is generally more dense, and less liable to show any signs of spots, bands, or bars, when the animal is in the sun or a bright light; when this is so, it is... Black And White
A deep brown, dense black ground, with a blaze up the face, white nose and lips, should be chosen--white chest and white feet. Get a female as nearly as possible so marked, and being a dense blue-black, both with orange eyes, when satisfactorily mar... Black Blue Gray Red Or Any Self Colour Long-haired Cats
POINTS HEAD 10 Round, and broad across and between the eyes, of medium size; nose rather short and dark at tip... Blue Silver Light Gray And White Tabby Striped Short-hair
POINTS HEAD 10 Small, broad across and between the eyes, rounded above, below tapering towards the lips; nos... Blue Tabby
A slate colour, or a blue male cat, mated with a strongly black-marked, though narrow-banded blue or gray tabby, is the best for dark blue tabbies, or a light-gray, evenly-marked female may be used. What a lovely thing a white cat, marked with black... Blues
Blue in cats is one of the most extraordinary colours of any, for the reason that it is the mixture of black which is no colour, and white which is no colour, and this is the more curious because black mated with white generally produces either one ... Brown And Ordinary Tabby Striped Short-hair
POINTS HEAD 10 Small, broad across and between the eyes, rounded above, below tapering towards the lips, nose ... Brown Blue Silver Light Gray And White Tabby Long-haired Cats
POINTS HEAD 10 Round and broad across and between the eyes, of medium size; nose rather short; ears ordinary s... Brown Tabby
For the purpose of breeding rich brown black-striped tabbies, a male of a rich dark rufous or red tabby should be selected, the bands being regular and not too broad, the lighter or ground colour showing well between the lines; if the black lines ar... Canker Of Ear
When internal, drop into the affected ear, night and morning, 3 or 5 drops of the following mixture: Tincture of Hydrastis Canadensis 2 drachms. Carbolic Acid (pure) 1/2 " Glycerine, to make up to 2 oz.... Cat And Kittens
Care and attention is necessary when the cat is likely to become a mother. A basket or box, half filled with sweet hay, or clean oat straw, with some flannel in the winter, is absolutely requisite, and a quiet nook or corner selected away from lig... Cat And Mouse
This is a French sport. The toys with which it is played consist of two flat bits of hard wood, the edges of one of which are notched. The game is played by two only; they are both blindfolded and tied to the ends of a long string, which is fastened... Cat And Mouse-hunting
The game of "Hunt the Slipper" used frequently to be called "Cat and Mouse-hunting." It is generally played with a slipper, shoe, or even a piece of wood, which was called the mouse, the centre player being the cat, and trying to catch or find the m... Cat I' The Hole[m]
[M] Jamieson's "Scottish Dictionary." The name of a game well known in Fife, and perhaps in other counties. If seven boys are to play, six holes are made at certain distances. Each of the six stands at a hole, with a short stick in his hand; the s... Cat Images
Those with long memories will not have forgotten the Italian with a board on his head, on which were tied a number of plaster casts, and possibly still seem to hear, in the far away time, the unforgotten cry of "Yah im-a-gees." Notably, among thes... Cat Proverbs
A BLATE cat makes a proud mouse (Scotch). An idle, or stupid, or timid foe is never feared. A cat has nine lives, a woman has nine lives. In Middleton's Blurt Master Constable, 1602, we have: "They have nine lives apiece, like a woman." A ca... Cat-racing In Belgium
"On festival days, parties of young men assemble in various places to shoot with cross-bows and muskets, and prizes of considerable value are often distributed to the winners. Then there are pigeon-clubs and canary-clubs, for granting rewards to t... Cat-trap Bat And Ball[l]
With the form of the trap our readers are, doubtless, acquainted; it will only be necessary for us to give the laws of the game. Two boundaries are equally placed at some distance from the trap, between which it is necessary for the ball to pass whe... Cat's Cradle Or Catch Cradle
Dr. Brewer, in his "Dictionary of Phrase and Fable," thinks this "the corrupt for cratch cradle or manger cradle, in which the infant Saviour was laid. Cratch is the French creche (a rack or manger), and to the present hour the racks which stand in ... Catarrh
Cold in the eyes and sneezing may be relieved by sweet spirits of nitre, 1 drachm; minocrerus spirit, 3 drachms; antimony wine, 1 drachm; water to 1-1/2 oz. Mix. Give 1 teaspoonful every two or three hours. ... Catarrhal Fevers
"Cats are, like some other of the domesticated animals, liable to be attacked by two kinds of Catarrhal Fever, one of which is undoubtedly very infectious--like distemper in dogs--and the other may be looked upon as the result of a simple cold, and ... Cats And Horses
From time immemorial cats have been kept in stables, and when this is the case there is generally a friendly feeling between one or other of the horses and the cat or cats. Such I have known with the heavy, ponderous cart-horse and his feline comp... Chocolate Chestnut Red Or Yellow Tabby Striped Short-hair
POINTS HEAD 10 Small, broad across and between the eyes, rounded above, below tapering towards the lips, nose ... Colds
The symptoms are twofold, usually there is constant sneezing and discharge from the nose. Aconite, 1^{x} tincture, 1 drop given every 3 hours in alternation with arsenicum, 3^{x} trituration, will speedily remove the disease. Should there be stuffin... Concerning Cats
CAT.--Irish, Cat; French, Chat; Dutch, Kat; Danish, Kat; Swedish, Katt; German, Katti or Katze; Latin, Catus; Italian, Gatto; Portuguese and Spanish, Gato; Polish, Kot; Russian, Kots; Turkish, Keti; Welsh, Cath; Cornish, Kath; Basque, Catua; Arme... Coughs
The short, hard, dry cough will always give way to treatment with belladonna, 3^{x} trituration, 3 grains every 3 or 4 hours. For the difficult breathing, with rattling in the chest and bronchial tubes, with distressing cough, antimonium tartaric.... Dead Cats
Lifeless cats have been from time immemorial suggestive of foolish hoaxing, a parcel being made up, or a basket with the legs of a hare projecting, directed to some one at a distance, and on which the charge for carriage comes to a considerable su... Diseases Of Cats
Cats, like many other animals, both wild and domestic, are subject to diseases, several being fatal, others yielding to known curatives; many are of a very exhaustive character, some are epidemic, others are undoubtedly contagious--the two worst o... Distemper
Early symptoms should be noted and receive prompt attention; this will often cut short the duration of the malady. The first indications usually are a disinclination to rest in the usual place, seeking a dark corner beneath a sofa, etc. The eyes flo... Distemper
Take yellow basilicon, 1 oz.; flowers of sulphur, 1/2 oz.; oil of juniper, 3 drachms. Mix for ointment. Then give sulphide of mercury, 3 grains, two or three times on alternate nights. ... Eye Ointment
Red oxide of mercury, 12 grains; spermaceti ointment, 1 oz. Mix. The above prescription was given to me many years ago by the late Dr. Walsh (Stonehenge), and I have found it of great service, both for my own eyes, also those of animals and birds.... Fancy Colours
By other odd and fanciful combinations, many beautiful mottles and stripes may be secured, and strange, quaint, harmonious arrangements of lines and spots produced according to "fancy's dictates;" but the foregoing are the chief colours in request f... Fishing Cats
Having just come across a communication made to The Kelso Mail, in 1880, by a correspondent giving the signature of "March Brown," bearing on the subject to which I have already alluded ("Fishing Cats"), I deem it worthy of notice, corroborating, ... Fleas And Irritation Of Skin
Two drachms pure carbolic acid to 6 oz. of water well mixed for a lotion, and apply night and morning. ... For Mange
In the early stages of mange, flowers of sulphur mixed in vaseline, and rubbed in the coat of the cat, is efficacious, giving sulphur in the milk, the water, and on the food of the patient; also give vegetable diet. Another remedy: give a teaspoo... General Management Feeding
Adult cats require less food in proportion than kittens, for two reasons. One is this: a kitten is growing, and therefore extra bone, flesh, skin, hair, and all else has to be provided for; while in the adults, these are more or less acquired, and... Grammer's Cat And Ours
BY JOHN TABOIS TREGELLAS. John Tabois Tregellas (1792-1865), born at St. Agnes. The greatest master of the niceties of the Cornish dialect, in which he wrote largely, both in prose and verse. The piece quoted from is included in a volume of mis... Habits
Before attempting to describe the different varieties, I should like to make a few remarks as to the habits and ways of "the domestic cat." When judging, I have frequently found some of the exhibits of anything but a mild and placid disposition.... Heraldry Etc
A cat (hieroglyphically) represents false friendship, or a deceitful, flattering friend. The cat (in heraldry) is an emblem of liberty, because it naturally dislikes to be shut up, and therefore the Burgundians, etc., bore a cat on their banner... Introductory
After a Cat Show at the Crystal Palace, I usually receive a number of letters requesting information. One asks: "What is a true tortoiseshell like?" Another: "What is a tabby?" and yet another: "What is a blue tabby?" One writes of the "splendid d... Kittens
Kittenhood, the baby time especially of country cats, is with most the brightest, sprightliest, and prettiest period of their existence, and perhaps the most happy. True, when first born and in the earliest era of their lives, they are blind, help... Long-haired Cats
These are very diversified, both in form, colour, and the quality of the hair, which in some is more woolly than in others; and they vary also in the shape and length of the tail, the ears, and size of eyes. There are several varieties--the Russia... Lost
How beautiful she was in her superb calmness, so graceful, so mild, and yet so majestic! Ah! I was a younger man then, of course, than I am now, and possibly more impressionable; but I thought her then the most perfect creature I had ever beheld. ... Lovers Of Cats
"The Turks greatly admire Cats; to them, their alluring Figure appears preferable to the Docility, Instinct, and Fidelity of the Dog. Mahomet was very partial to Cats. It is related, that being called up on some urgent Business, he preferred cutti... Management Of Kittens And Cats
These require quiet and kindly treatment. Do nothing quickly or suddenly, so as in any way to scare or frighten, but when speaking to them, let the voice be moderated, gentle, and soft in tone. Cats are not slow to understand kind treatment, and may... Manx Or Short-tailed Cat
POINTS HEAD 10 Small, round, but tapering towards the lips, rather broad across the eyes, nose medium length, ... Mating
Yet nature is made better by no mean, But nature makes that mean: so, o'er that art, Which, you say, adds to nature, is an art That nature makes. Coriolanus, Act II. Scene I. This requires mu... Nursery Rhymes And Stories
These are as plentiful as blackberries, and are far too numerous to be treated of here. Some are very old, such as "Puss in Boots," "Whittington and his Cat," "Hey, diddle, diddle!" etc. Some have a political meaning, others satirical, others amus... Of Kittens In General
Kittens usually shed their first teeth from five to seven months old, and seldom possess even part of a set of the small, sharp dentition after that time. When shown as kittens under six months old, and they have changed the whole of their kittenh... Performing Cats
Cats, unlike dogs, are not amused by, nor do they in any way take an interest in what are termed "tricks." Performing dogs will sit about their master watching anxiously for their turn, and they have been known on more than one occasion to slip be... Poison
It is not generally known that the much-admired laburnum contains a strong poison, and is therefore an exceedingly dangerous plant. All its parts--blossoms, leaves, seeds, even the bark and the roots--are charged with a poison named cytisin, which w...