The strange tale of the bronze cat
One day, an Englishman walked into an antiques shop in London. Looking
around he notices a life-sized bronze sculpture of a cat. The sculpture
is so intriguing, he decides he must buy it and asks the shopkeeper the
price.
"Twelve pounds for the cat, sir," the shopkeeper tells him, "and 100
pounds for the story that goes with it."
"I'll take the cat," says the man, "but you can keep your story." The
transaction completed, the Englishman leaves the store with the bronze
cat in his arms.
As he crosses the street in front of the store, two live cats emerge
from an alley and fall into step behind him. Nervously looking over his
shoulder he begins to walk faster, but every time he passes another
alley, more cats come out and follow him. By the time he’s walked two
blocks, at least a hundred cats are at his heels, and people begin to
point and shout. He walks even faster and soon breaks out into a trot
as multitudes of cats swarm from alleys, basements, vacant lots and
abandoned cars.
Thousands of cats are now at his heels, and he sees the waterfront at
the bottom of the hill, he panics and starts to run full tilt. No
matter how fast he runs, the cats keep up hissing insanely, now not
just thousands but millions, so that by the time he comes rushing up to
the waters edge a trail of cats several blocks long is behind him.
Making a mighty leap, he jumps onto a light post, grasping it with one
arm while he hurls the bronze cat into the river Thames. Clinging to
the light post, he watches in amazement as the seething tide of cats
surges over the banks of the river, where they all drown.
Amazed and almost dumbstruck, he makes his way back to the antiques
shop. "Ah, so you’ve come back for the story," says the shopkeeper.
"No." says the Englishman, "I was wondering if you have a bronze asylum
seeker."
One day, an Englishman walked into an antiques shop in London. Looking
around he notices a life-sized bronze sculpture of a cat. The sculpture
is so intriguing, he decides he must buy it and asks the shopkeeper the
price.
"Twelve pounds for the cat, sir," the shopkeeper tells him, "and 100
pounds for the story that goes with it."
"I'll take the cat," says the man, "but you can keep your story." The
transaction completed, the Englishman leaves the store with the bronze
cat in his arms.
As he crosses the street in front of the store, two live cats emerge
from an alley and fall into step behind him. Nervously looking over his
shoulder he begins to walk faster, but every time he passes another
alley, more cats come out and follow him. By the time he’s walked two
blocks, at least a hundred cats are at his heels, and people begin to
point and shout. He walks even faster and soon breaks out into a trot
as multitudes of cats swarm from alleys, basements, vacant lots and
abandoned cars.
Thousands of cats are now at his heels, and he sees the waterfront at
the bottom of the hill, he panics and starts to run full tilt. No
matter how fast he runs, the cats keep up hissing insanely, now not
just thousands but millions, so that by the time he comes rushing up to
the waters edge a trail of cats several blocks long is behind him.
Making a mighty leap, he jumps onto a light post, grasping it with one
arm while he hurls the bronze cat into the river Thames. Clinging to
the light post, he watches in amazement as the seething tide of cats
surges over the banks of the river, where they all drown.
Amazed and almost dumbstruck, he makes his way back to the antiques
shop. "Ah, so you’ve come back for the story," says the shopkeeper.
"No." says the Englishman, "I was wondering if you have a bronze asylum
seeker."
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