After reading Robert Darnton's book of essays, "The Great Cat Massacre," I understood that swinging a cat is one of the less nasty things Europeans have seen fit to do with cats over the centuries.... actually the essay which gives Darnton's book about French cultural history its name can be read in its entirety on the web at the following location: www.geocities.com/pashathecat/History/Cat_Massacre.html

It's fascinating reading. Margaret