Steven DiGiuseppe, age 10, of Philadelphia, Pa., for his question:

Why do they say that a cat has nine lives?

The old story that a cat has nine lives is absolutely untrue and we should do our best to stop it from spreading. The furry little person has only one life and when she dies, she stays dead forever. People who think that she has another chance can be very, very cruel because they don't care when she is hurt or killed. And this, we agree, is just not fair.

Nobody knows who invented the false story that cats have nine lives. But perhaps it was because they are such clever and mysterious animals. A frisky cat can run, jump and climb to escape her enemies and when she falls she twists around to land on her feet. What's more, she likes to roam. After a few days we may feel certain that she has had an accident and lost her life. When she comes back home, all safe and sound, she seems to be returning from the dead. But no sensible person really be¬lieves that she can die and come back to life.