Carroll free press. [volume] (Carrollton [Ohio]) 1834-1861, 1853-01-21
Texas Reptiles.


country. Every field sands lu1unanI, crowd.
ed. 30 thsI il can scarce wave under the breeze.
with corn or sugar, or wheat or conon. Every
cabin is full Snd ovtrnosing. through all iIs
doors aad windows, with whiIe.h children.
Every prairie abounds 10 deer, prairie.Lens sod
caule. Every river and creek is alive with
fish. The whole land is electric wilh lizards,
perpeiuslly dauiog among the grass like fishes
OF green lightning. Wehave TOO much prairie
aod 100 iulle forest for great variety Of bros.
But in horned frogs, scorpions, Iaranlulss. and
centipedes, we beat the universe. Everybody
has seen horned frogs. You see them 10 jars
in the windows Of spoihecsries. You are en.
treated TO purchase them by loa6ng boys on the
levee. al New Orleans. They have been neat
ly solderrd up 10 soda.b boxes, and mailed by
Young gentlemen in Texas TO fair ones in old
States. The fair ones receive the neat pack.
age from the post Office, are delighted at the
prospect Of q dsgOeueoiype- perhaps jewelry |
open the package eagerly. and faint as the
frog within hops out in excellent health. upon
them. A horned frog iS, simply, very harm.
less frog, with very porienIous horns because
everything 10 its Tgion-Uees, shrubs. grnss
eyen-has horns, and nature makes u in keep |
ing with all around it. A menagere Of them
would not be expensive. They are content to
+ live upon air-and can, il desired live ! am
told. for several months, without even that.
/ The scorpions are precisely like those Of Ara /
bia-in the shape Of the lobster exactly, only
not more Than some three inches long. You
are very apt to put one on your face 10 the
towel which you apply thereto alter washing.
If YOU do, YOU will fad The sting about equal TO
that Of wasp-nolhing worse. They are Tar
less poisonous than the scorpion of the Eis'-
in fact, none except newcomers dread them al
all
Blu, the ,arnntula You remember the as.
,onishSg elasticity with which you sPrang 10
the air that time you we're just on the point oil
putting your raised foot down upon a snake coil
in your path. You were lrlghIened-'hrough
every fibre Of your body. Very probably the
snake was as harmless as il was beanliluI.-
Spring as high, be as utterly frightened as pos.
sibe, when YOU just avoid stepping on a Iaran.
lula. However filthy, loalhsome, abomnable
and posonous--crush il to atoms before you
leave i'll If you have never seer iI-know
hencelmlh that il is an enormous spider, con.
centraiing in itself all the venom and spite and
ugliness OF all other spiders living. lis body IS
some Two inches long, black and bloa,ed. li
cnlpys the possession OF eight lopg strong legs
a red mouth and an abundance Of sItf brown
hair all over itself WheG standing, il covers
an area Of Il saucer. Auack II with suck,
and il rrars on It's hind legs. guashes al The s'ick.
aud fights like f-od. l.eV jumps forward
foo, or two 10 i,s rage, and if II biIe into II
vein. the bite is dealh have been Iold OF a
bat,e fought by one on board u sIeawboa1.-
n r tho slf 4
came hopping up the saloon, driving The whole
BODY Of passengers before II. aud almost drove
: the whole company, crew aud all, overheard.
The first | saw was al the house Of friend,
spled il crawling slowly over tho wall, medl'
lating murder upon the children playing III the
room. Excessively prudent IN regard to my
fingers, at last. however. had II safely 4mPrIS.
oued in glass iir, unhurt. There was a flaw
! in the glass as we'll as hole through the cork.
bv which il could breathe, but IN ten u Inu'es il
i was dead from rage Soon alter killed three
: upon nv place. crawling abou. ground Wodden
every day by the bare feet of my lne boy
+ month alter; killed Il whole nest of Them.
$ Thev had formed their family circle unter a
doorstep, upon which the aforesaid ule fellow
q played daily. Had he seen one of Them, he
: would, Of course, have picked II up as re-
murkably promising toy; and ! would have
% been chlldlless.
o was sitting oLe day upon log in the woods
when saw one slowly crawl out TO ENJOY the
Is evening air and the sunset scenery. He was
e the largest mos, bIualed one ! ever saw. As
was about TO kill him, was struck With the con
II due, of a chance wasp. Ii. too, lad seen The
8 taran,ula, and was flying slowly around it,
The taranlua recognized ii as Ioe; Ond throw
d inc itself upon It's hind legs. brealhed defiance
q For some lime The wasp flew around II, and
then. like FASH flew right against ii. and s1ung
IS il under It's 5loaied belly. The iaranuag gnash'
q ed ns red and venomous jaws. and threw II'
D. Iong. hairy legs about in impoIenI rage. while
. the wasp flew round aud round it, wa'cflng io'
anolhe, opportunity. Again and ngaH did II
% dash It's sling into The reptile, and escape. Al
ter the sixth stab. the IaranIuIa actually lei
Y over on It's back dead +; and The wasp. after ma
re king itself sure Of The lacI,and inh"Ilng las
E. s,np 10 make matters sure, flew off. happy IL
having done duty assigned il in creation. Ia
oi an hour mure q colony of auIs had carried !
le down piecemeaI, and deposited it in their GAIA
- combs.
But deadliest and most abhorraDt of all ouI
10 reptiles 10 Texas. is the cenIPede. This Is !
10 kind of worm, from three 10 six inches long, ex
y ac,ly like an enormous caterpillar. It's green
or brown, or yellowstone being found OF eact
D. of the colors. As its name denotes, It ha'
% along each side row of ieet-horny claws
'e rather. Imagine that you walk some nigh
or across your chamber floor with naked leet yoI
put your feet down upon soft something, an'
. instantly il coils around your foot in ring
y sticking every claw up to the body n your foot
10 The poison flows through each claw. aud in Iw'
- minutes you will have tainted with agony; in
OF few more. and you will be dead. The deadI,
= thing cauno. be torn away. Ihns to be cut of
u. aud claw by CLAW pIucked out. Even It
e' crawls over The naked body of sleeping per
., ., son, without sticking in its claws, the place wi
10 pain the person for years afIer--a' least so
20 have heen told.