The Owl, the Pussycat… Fabulous Felines in History #2

The Owl, the Pussycat and the feline behind the scenes…

Oh yes, there was also the fabulous man who wrote of my adventures. His name was Edward Lear. He was devoted to me and to other felines who came to know him. In addition to my long luxurious fur, I am world class at the art of cuddling and along with the other felines entrusted to his care, we are equally devoted to him.

THE OWL AND THE PUSSYCAT

– Edward Lear 1871

“The Owl and the Pussy-cat went to sea

In a beautiful pea-green boat:

They took some honey,

And plenty of money

Wrapped up in a five-pound note

The Owl looked up to the stars above,

And sang to a small guitar,

“O lovely Pussy, O Pussy, my love,

What a beautiful Pussy you are,

You are,

What a beautiful Pussy you are!

Pussy said to Owl, “You elegant fowl,

How charmingly sweet you sing!

Oh! let us be married;

too long we have tarried:

But what shall we do for a ring?”

They sailed away, for a year and a day,

To the land where the bong-tree grows;

And there in a wood a Piggy-wig stood,

With a ring at the end of his nose,

His nose,

His nose,

With a ring at the end if his nose.

Dear Pig, are you willing

to sell for one shilling

Your ring? Said the Piggy, “I will.”

So they took it away, and were married the next day

By the Turkey who lives on the hill.

They dined on mince and slices of quince,

Which they ate with a runcible spoon;

And hand in hand on the edge of the sand

They danced by the light of the moon,

The moon,

The moon,

They danced by the light of the moon.

–

As anyone can tell, this intelligent and gifted artist was besotted by cats, birds and other living creatures. I, Puss, was the inspiration behind one of the most famous of all nursery rhymes. You may have noticed that for poetic reasons, Mr. Lear added a Y to the end of my name. However, as he was such a dear man and generous to a fault, we shall overlook that minor indiscretion.  As humans go, I would say that for myself and the other felines in the house were most fortunate. We were adored and pampered. Likewise, we were exceptionally fond of Edward and continued to inspire him throughout his life. If you take the time to examine more of his work, you will see our paws in it. Despite his fragile health, he continued to provide sanctuary and love to many generations of felines and other creatures. More than that, he celebrated our uniqueness.

Our thanks to Rasma Raister:  spidrella@gmail.com for sharing the beautiful photos of “Puss”. It is our hope that as photos can be matched with stories that are worthy, we can bring you more Fabulous Felines in History.

We hope that you will enjoy our little posts and perhaps visit us on our own blog? Colette, Simone and our human at: http://lesdeuxdivasmavieenrose.wordpress.com

Disclaimer: All errors are human in origin and shall be dealt with.