Throughout humankind's history, the need to let others know of one's standing and importance has always existed. A common indicator of societal stature was one's physical appearance since, naturally, our body is our most immediate possession. Ancient cultures such as the Mayans and Egyptians went as far as pressing the malleable heads of their young children to various shapes to denote their places in society. European women wore tight-laced corsets to accent their diminutive waistlines. Small girls in China had their feet bound. Of course, there were other bases for societal status such as wealth and prestige. Back when the press was not yet invented, owning a large library of books symbolized one's cultural and scholarly importance. Today's status symbols are readily evident in materialistic possessions such as fancy cars, exclusive association memberships, and luxurious houses.<br/><br/>However, a more fascinating basis for determining one's village ranking involved animals in some form. The Indian headdresses was a great example, each feather representing an act of valour or virtue. The most prized feather belonged to the Golden Eagle, since the American Indians saw the eagle as a divine messenger. Even today, people resort to animals to boast their status: owning a million-dollar purebred Tibetan mastiff in China, and having as pets lions, cheetahs, and other large cats in the Persian Gulf area.<br/><br/>And Cat Hat Village was no different. Whoever had the most elegant Cat Hat was Village Chief, no questions asked. No one knew for certain how the tradition came about. For many, many years, whoever had a Cat Hat with the most beautiful patterns or combination of colours or was the most exotic breed was crowned Chief overnight. Of course, this led to disputes, since the criteria of what was pretty was quite subjective. It was causing a lot of division and grief in the Village, especially recently, and that was when a certain young villager suddenly came up with an idea. A more objective measuring standard. A Cat Hat that would top all Cat Hats of before.<br/><br/>A Cat Hat that was stacked. One cat on top of another.<br/><br/>"Oh boy oh boy oh boy!" Fuhr d'Lux giddily exclaimed to himself, hoping no one heard his thoughts...