Left, Silver Rene, best cat at Pittsburg Show in January - Above, Champion Buzzing Silver, short haired silver tabby - Right, Earlesfleld Black Prince, winner of medal offered by National Cat Club of England.

Commodore Benedict’s Daughter is Meeting With Success In Her Scheme To Raise Kittens Of Rare Breed And A Feline Paradise Has Grown Out Of Her Business Venture.

Champion Lady Sonia and Champion Petie K. are ready to move from their present residence into new and beautiful apartments which have been erected especially for them and twenty-six of their neighbors. The new apartments were designed by a leading New York architect and while they are only one story high in some parts and two stories high elsewhere, they have every modern convenience. Beyond convenience, however, the plans do not go. Anything tending toward luxury has been severely discarded. A healthy life, with regular meals of plain food carefully measured, hygienic surroundings, sufficient recreation, plenty of opportunity for exercise - that is what Lady Sonia and Petie K. and their neighbors may look forward to during the rest of their feline existence.

Lady Sonia, be it known, is a Siamese cat, with short silky coat, quite unlike the fur of ordinary American cats, and a pair of eyes most beautifully and completely crossed. If Lady Sonia's eyes were not crossed, by the way. she would not be nearly so valuable an animal as she is under present conditions. That is one of the many points of excellence in a Siamese of high station and lineage that goes back nobody knows how many generations.

Petie K., too, is a cat, and so are the twenty-six neighbors of various kinds, colors, ages and social station which will soon be Installed In their new residence on the estate of Commodore E. C. Benedict at Greenwich, Conn. The Commodore himself, hale and hearty - he will be 80 next January - does not take much personal interest in the cats, for his time is pretty well occupied In attending to business matters, and he still has the habit of taking a few friends aboard his yacht and sailing a thousand miles up the Amazon, or a corresponding distance In some other direction, to discover new specimens of animal and plant life; to study unfamiliar tribes of the human race; to chart unknown areas of land and water, and to bring back to civilisation records that may mean much to future generations. He acquired this habit long, long ago - years before he became the trusted companion, intimate friend and consultant of Grover Cleveland. it is probable that if he could spare the time from other matters Commodore Benedict might become actively interested in the famous cats of the Greenwich kennels; but, as it is, they are one of the many interests over which his daughter, Mrs. Clifford B. Harmon, watches.

Mrs. Harmon has long been a breeder of fine dogs, and about five years ago her attention was called to the possibilities of encouraging the development of rare and beautiful cats. She started with a very few cats, studied them, cared for them herself, made inquiry in England, where cat culture has been carried on for decades, and satisfied herself that a small but thriving industry could be established at Greenwich. Then she heard of a woman who had been in the cat business for years, Mrs. F. Y. Mathis, who knew about all there was to be known regarding the care and breeding and sale of fine cats, and formed a partnership with her. Mrs. Mathis moved to Greenwich and took charge of the enterprise.

During the first years of business experiment the cats were housed in a small portable garage no longer needed for its original use and exercise runs were improvised by means of a few strips of wood and a few rolls of chicken wire. These modest quarters sufficed for the four years of experiment from a business standpoint. Several months ago, however, Mrs. Harmon decided that as the experiment was self-supporting and a little more, she would enlarge the scheme. She railed in for consultation a well-known architect of New York, explained what was wanted, and he began to study model “catteries.” Tentative plans were drawn, modified to meet the wishes of Mrs. Harmon and Mrs. Mathis, and early in June ground was broken for the new establishment. No secret was made of the fact that building contracts called for an expenditure of $15,000, Mrs. Harmon regarding this investment as she would an investment in a poultry plant or any other commercial enterprise. But news of it was sent out over the wires by alert newspaper correspondents, who “played up” for all it was worth the fact that Commodore Benedict’s daughter was building a $15,000 home for a lot of pet cats.

The yellow journals In a dozen cities printed the story on their front pages. A few hours later the “sobsisters” got to work. Each of them grabbed a ream of paper and a dozen pencils and leaped to the fray. “A Fifteen Thousand Dollar Home for a Lot of Pet Cats, While Thousands of Frail Old Men, Suffering Women and Helpless Little Children Are Starving In the Streets of New York, Only Fifty Miles Away!” That was the burden of their plaint. They told about the sun parlors, the hospital quarters, the reception room, the nursery for little kittens, the verandas and the French chef, who was to prepare the cats' food at a salary of thousands of dollars. Mrs. Harmon and her business partner were astounded at these effusions. The reference to a French chef made Mrs. Mathis indignant. The assertion that she would permit a French chef to feed the cats was more than could be borne by any reasonable cat expert. French chefs may be competent to prepare more or less elaborate meals for human beings, but as for special diets demanded by cats of various ages, conditions, nationalities and temperaments, that was another matter.

The sensational newspaper despatches did contain some truth about the new cat establishment. Its cost will be about $15,000. A large part of this sum is being invested in a residence for Mrs. Mathis. A covered passageway with cement floor leads from the cottage to another building one story and a half high, of frame construction. This is the main entrance to the cattery. A hallway runs from front to back. On the right, as one enters, is a large square room fitted up as an office where persons who come to inspect the stock of the Greenwich Kennels to purchase kittens, to sell some of their own or to arrange for boarding cats will be received. In this office will he kept the pedigrees and other records pertaining to the cats. it will have a library of books and magazines devoted to cats - there are three monthly magazines in this country wholly concerned with the feline race and several in England. In the office, also, will be kept the medals, badges, ribbons and cups won by Mrs. Harmon's prize cats, which at present load down tables, mantels and odd corners all over the cottage.

To the left of the hall, directly opposite the office, is another large, square room called the workroom, which Includes the kitchen. For this important room, which, like the office, is about twenty feet square, every modern appliance has been installed to facilitate the care of cats without undue expense. The cooking will be done by electricity, with such dishes and other appliances of special nature as best combine efficiency with economy of operation. Near by a special bathing arrangement is being installed, for cats of high degree must have baths, as well as regular combing and brushing. Cleanliness, light, ventilation and sufficient warmth at various seasons have all been planned with care. Above the ground floor, covering office, hallway and workroom, is a large space to be used as a hospital and as quarantine quarters in case of need. it may happen at any time that a cat becomes infected with some disease which may prove contagious and in such event the patient would be removed Instantly from its permanent home to the quarantine or to the hospital. Mrs. Mathis is not a veterinarian but she has had such wide experience with cats of all kinds that she is competent to deal with any but really serious and puzzling cases of illness. In the hospital her charges can have complete rest and medical attention.

Directly in the rear of this structure are eight kitten runs. They resemble the usual runs on chicken farms, being enclosed with poultry wire and having at one end a kitten shelter instead of a hen house. The shelter is built of wood, covered with shingles and is weather proof. The floor is raised a couple of feet from the ground, and in each room of the long series of shelters is a sleeping box for the kittens or the family kept in that particular run. The problems of sunshine, heat and ventilation have been solved. Pipes lead from the steam plant In Mrs. Mathis's cottage under the cement passage to the office and workroom and thence to the various shelters. The hospital and quarantine also are heated by steam and lighted by electricity. In warm and pleasant weather the kittens can play in the grass of their runs. For days of rain and cold weather a wooden platform with piazza-like effect raised about two feet from the ground has been built where the kittens can play and keep dry and warm, no matter how stormy the weather is In the open part of the run.

Still farther away from office and room and at the rear of the kitten and family quarters are runs and shelters for adult cats just as carefully planned and constructed but without the storm-proof piazza. Still further at one side kennels are to be built for Mrs. Harmon's dogs, West Highland white terriers, which are well known to dog fanciers.

An astonishing amount of cat lore may be obtained by one who has the privilege of visiting the Greenwich Kennels and meeting Mrs. Mathis.
“When Mrs. Harmon and I started In business together," she said, “we began with eight thoroughly good cats and have since made a specialty of silvers, blacks and creams. Here, for example," she continued, pausing before an aristocratic-looking cat which regarded the stranger with a bored air, “is Champion Petie K., without exception the finest cream in this country. I bred him; he is now 8 years old and has defeated everything in his class in this country. He has been shown In New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, Washington. Minneapolis and Pittsburg and is the winner of eight challenge cups."

"What is he worth - in money?" asked the visitor.

"He hasn't any money value," replied Mrs. Mathis promptly, “I wouldn't sell him."

A slight scratching was heard at the screen door of Mrs. Mathis's cottage. A fawn-colored cat with short hair and blue eyes stood there expectantly, gazing at her mistress with one eye and at the landscape with the other. Mrs. Mathis glanced disapprovingly at the screen door and shook her head.

“No, Sonia,” she remarked in even tones. “It isn't time for dinner yet, so you can Just go back into the house and look out for that kitten of yours."

The fawn-colored cat walked away from the door and Mrs. Mathis continued: “That is Champion Lady Sonia. We imported her from England In 1910. She was the best Siamese at the Crystal Palace show that year. You noticed her blue eyes and her fawn-colored coat with chocolate markings of course. Sonia is 4 years old and shows that she comes of good stock, but it is very difficult to get extended pedigrees of Siamese cats for the reason that the people of Siam do not understand the importance of keeping accurate records. Most of these fine Siamese cats are bred at the temple, and I am told that kings of Slam have been breeding them for a thousand years. Once In seven generations a pure black specimen comes instead of a fawn and is taken to the palace. it is very difficult to breed Siamese cats in this country, owing largely to climatic conditions, I suppose. A few have been raised successfully in southern California, but I do not think there are more than twelve or fourteen real specimens In the United States. Lady Sonia is valued at $500, which may give you some idea of the scarcity of Siamese In America.

"Contrary to the general belief I find full bred Siamese much more intelligent than ordinary cats and quite playful when they are kittens. They are usually fed on a diet of raw beef exclusively, carefully prepared, weighed and given at stated hours."

Replying to a question regarding the highest price paid for a cat, Mrs. Mathis said: “The highest price I know of was paid for a Sliver Persian purchased in England by a Chicago woman, who wanted that particular cat and didn't care what the expense was. She paid $550, I am told. You know that England is the great cat market of the world and for a long time has been the home of the Persian cat, because the finest specimens are sent there and are bred there. There are other wealthy women In the United States who pay sums far beyond the market rate for cats. I have recently heard of a woman in New England who has actually started out to corner the market on a certain line of fine tabbies. She is known as a keen business woman as well as a discriminating fancier of cats. She knows that those particular tabbies are getting to be the fashion among fanciers - the ‘leading line In cats’ if one may so express It.”

"Is the interest in cats general in this country?”

"Yes, and it is growing constantly. Almost every large city of the United States has a cat club. The Connecticut Cat Club alone has sixty-five or seventy members, while the Atlantic Cat Club of New York probably has 200 or 800 members, and the Boston Club has a large membership.”

The greatest cat club of the world, the National Cat Club of England, has only one American in its membership - Mrs. Clinton Locke of Chicago - who introduced the cat fancy to women of the United States about twenty years ago and is affectionately known by them as “The Mother of the Cat Fancy.” Because of her membership and interest in all that pertains to fine cats the National Club of England has twice offered a medal to be competed for In the United States. On one of these occasions the medal was captured by Mrs. Harmon's Earlesfield Black Prince.

At Pittsburg last year fourteen medals were offered for various types of cat. Mrs. Mathis went out there with specimens from the Greenwich Kennels and brought back nine out of the fourteen medals. Last year she and Mrs. Harmon had thirty-seven kittens to dispose of. They sold thirty-six; the thirty-seventh they wouldn't sell. The highest price brought was $175.

Mrs. Mathis says that despite the lack of the exercise usually taken by house cats which climb trees, flee with outstretched tails from pursuing dogs and dodge small boys, the rare cats kept in comparatively small runs are heathy. Intelligent and long lived.

“There it Champion Petie K. as an illustration.” she said. “He has never been at liberty to go here and there at will. Once in a while I let him out of his run to see what he will do, or to inspect him in the open; and even then, with no restraint whatever, he walks sedately across the grass, never attempting to run or leap. it is a fact that Petie K. does not know what it is to run. He has never learned to run. He has never had to escape pursuers, and I doubt very much if the thought of running would ever occur to him in case he should be pursued.”

Mrs. Harmon is still receiving letters about her “Fifteen Thousand Dollar Palace for Pet Cats.” Most of them come from women who are highly Indignant at her for investing her money thus instead of spending it for other things. One irate correspondent said that if she wanted to spend money she would better take the $15,000 to pay for educating half a dozen poor children in her own home. A few communications came from men. One wrote that he needed money to buy a house; another wanted Mrs. Harmon to Invest in a store for him to manage.