LEGEND
of the
TABBY
CAT
CATS' PROTECTION
LEAGUE
VICTORIA, B. C.
When the animals came to rer.der their homage to
the Christ Child lying in the manger, there came
with them, also, a little striped cat who sat shyly in
a dusty corner of the stable.
The Christ Child smiled on all the animals, but
they interested Him so much that when His sweet
Mother told Him He must sleep, He could not com-
pose Himself. The Mother called on the kind placid
ox, the gentle donkey, and the faithful shepherd dog
to help her put her Child to sleep, but He remained
wakeful. Then the little tiger cat, dirty and dusty,
crept from her corner. First, she washed herself from
the black tip of her tail to the pink top of her nose.
When she was clean she jumped lightly into the
manger, and curling up bes de the Babe, she purred
softly the lullaby that every cat-mother purrs to
lull her kittens to sleep.
Soon the Christ Child slept, and ever since, all
tiger cats have carried the grateful mark of the
Madonna - an M in the middle of their foreheads.
