Winged Cat - The Independent Press,
3rd August 1894
(Reach, Cambridgeshire, England)
A live cat with winges resembling those of a ducking is now being exhibited in the neighbourhood by Mr David Badcock of the
Ship Inn, Reach. The cat which is a year old did not until recently expose such a remarkable freak of nature, but being
somewhat roughly handled spread out its wings. The owner charges the sum of 2d for callers in the daytime to see such a
strange being and has commenced taking it round the neighbouring villages in the evenings to exhibit.
The winged Cat - The Cambridge Weekly News,
10th August 1894
A similar account to the one above was attributed to a Peterborough correspondent by the Cambridgeshire Weekly. A
sceptical correspondent (says the daily chronicle) asked for further particulars of the winged cat which flies about in the village
of Reach, near Peterborough. He suggests that there must be some reason why a cat kept its wings to itself for 12 months and
only unfolded them as the big gooseberries were ripening! Our correspondant might not have heard that there was a winged
man in kent who kept his wings to himself just as the cat of Reach did till the psychlogical moment for using them arrived. Then
he started to fly and credible witnesses declare that nothing would have prevented him shooting over St. Pauls and setting off
round and round the world like a satellite, but that his flying machine, after mounting 4 feet in the air came down again. We
should advise our correspondent not to make light of cats. Creatures that are as much at home on the roof as in the cellar, that
are never reached by stones, bullets, bootjacks or water thrown out of the window, are quite likely to be the cat of reach in
disguise.
"Remarkable Cat" Stolen - The Independent Press,
10th August 1894
The "Remarkable cat" reported in our last issue has been stolen. It is hoped however the thief or thieves will soon be run down,
as the animal, our correspondant understands, has been traced to Liverpool.