The Project Gutenberg EBook of The White Cat, by W.W. Jacobs

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Title: The White Cat
Captains All, Book 10.

Author: W.W. Jacobs

Release Date: February 20, 2004 [EBook #11190]

Language: English

Character set encoding: US-ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE WHITE CAT ***

Produced by David Widger

CAPTAINS ALL

By W.W. Jacobs

THE WHITE CAT

[Illustration: "The White Cat."]

The traveller stood looking from the tap-room window of the _Cauliflower_
at the falling rain. The village street below was empty, and everything
was quiet with the exception of the garrulous old man smoking with much
enjoyment on the settle behind him.

"It'll do a power o' good," said the ancient, craning his neck round the
edge of the settle and turning a bleared eye on the window. "I ain't
like some folk; I never did mind a drop o' rain."

The traveller grunted and, returning to the settle opposite the old man,
fell to lazily stroking a cat which had strolled in attracted by the
warmth of the small fire which smouldered in the grate.

"He's a good mouser," said the old man, "but I expect that Smith the
landlord would sell 'im to anybody for arf a crown; but we 'ad a cat in
Claybury once that you couldn't ha' bought for a hundred golden
sovereigns."

The traveller continued to caress the cat.

"A white cat, with one yaller eye and one blue one," continued the old
man. "It sounds queer, but it's as true as I sit 'ere wishing that I 'ad
another mug o' ale as good as the last you gave me."

The traveller, with a start that upset the cat's nerves, finished his own
mug, and then ordered both to be refilled. He stirred the fire into a
blaze, and, lighting his pipe and putting one foot on to the hob,
prepared to listen.

It used to belong to old man Clark, young Joe Clark's uncle, said the
ancient, smacking his lips delicately over the ale and extending a
tremulous claw to the tobacco-pouch pushed towards him; and he was never
tired of showing it off to people. He used to call it 'is blue-eyed
darling, and the fuss 'e made o' that cat was sinful.

Young Joe Clark couldn't bear it, but being down in 'is uncle's will for
five cottages