WHIT-
TINGTON
AND HIS
CAT

The captain now called the cat to him and showed
her to the king, who at first was afraid to touch
her, but after a while, to show his manliness and
his royal fearlessness, put out a finger and touched
the cat, who at once began to purr. The king had
never heard this sound before, and it frightened
him, and he went under the table. But presently
he put out his head from under the table-cloth
to ask if all was safe. When he was assured that
the cat would do him no harm, then like a man
and a hero he came back to his place, and be-
coming bolder, with impunity patted the cat. After
a while even the queen summoned courage to
caress the cat, and say: ‘Puss! Puss!’ whereupon
the cat stepped into her lap, coiled herself up, and
went to sleep. The king was now quite deter-
mined to have the cat. He bargained with the
captain to buy all the rest of the ship’s cargo, but
in payment for the cat he gave ten bags all full of
the finest gold dust.
The captain then took leave of the king, and
having a fair wind set sail for England, and after
a prosperous voyage arrived safely in London
port. This was the news that: reached Dick
Whittington that morning of All Saints’ Day
when he returned to his master’s house, and now
as he heard it he no longer thought that the Bow
bells told what was impossible, as he was master
of ten great sacks of gold dust.
Now the cook was jealous and went to Mr. Fitz-
warren and told him that all the treasure was too
much for a poor scullion. But the master was a
good man, and he said: ‘God forbid that I should
rob the boy of a single penny; he shall have all the
gold dust to the last pinch.’
Then he sent for Dick, but the boy said: ‘I have
only hobnailed boots and cannot go into the
parlour.’ However, Mr. Fitzwarren insisted, and
he came in very modestly, and his master told him
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