Bradford reporter. [volume] (Towanda, Pa.) 1844-1884, 1857-06-18

SNAKEs-Snakes are much abused animals
AS supposed types of the first deceiver, u sort
of religious dread has ever been attached to
them, among Christian people and few of
the species being really yenomous, and others
possessing imaginary attributes, far transcend
Ing the actual powers of any of the class, it
is not very wonderful that all the sons and
daughters of Eve should inherit hearty ha.
tired of snakes
FirSt-What are the venomouS snakes In
the United States we have the Rattlesnakes,
Copperheads, and Moccasins. No others
and in fact, there are no other poisonous rep
tiles in our country.
The Moccasin is a southern species and
SO is the great Diamond Rattesnake-the
worst of the species. The Copperhead is a
very bad snake fortunately quite rare now.
Robert Kennicott, who is collecting specimens
in the region of Jonesboro and Cairo, writes
that he has just secured genuine Copperhead
in Illinois. The Banded Rattlesnake is also
found in that region, and he is not to be des-
pissed as his bite is truly dangerous, though
rarely fatal to man.
But the snake, about cures for whose bite
so much has been said in this paper, is quite
different customer-not very agreeable in-
mate of ones house, Though we have killed
two found in ours, and quite sufficiently ven-
omous for the snakes own purpose. Still,
that our prairie Rattlesnake has ever caused
the death of single human being-whether
doctored or not--we have yet to learn.
And this brings US to the second question.
Is there any specific antidote for snake poi
sou /? Possibly. But who knows it Not
we and we studied medicine, practised medi-
cine and believed in medicine for nearly thir-
ty years
Our first experience with snake bites was in
the state of Mississippi, where children, and
especially careless negroes, were occasionally
bitten by the ground rattlesuake "a small
species of CrotOtoph0rHs, much like ours of the
western prairies. We do not remembers case
of bite from any other species /; nor did we
know of death from snake-bite there, or in
the state of Louisiana, where we tarried seye-
raj years.
Since then, residence of over twenty-one
years in Illinois-with as extensive country
practice as any other physician-and in re-
gion and during time where and when rat
tlcSnakes abounded, no death from their bite
has ever come to our knowledge. That Is, no
death of man, woman, or child-a few small
animals, usually bitten in the nose, have died !;
and deaths among large animals have been re-
ported to us, but we never saw q case. Or
human subjects, we have treated many cases,
and known many that had no treatment at all,
or were treated in all ways /; and the result
was always the Same-all recovered though
some suffered horribly for little while.
We have but word to add to this hasty
dissertation on snakes Let every Farmer
bear in mind that the whole tribe of scrpentS
are insect eaters, and the benefactors of their
human prosecutors. Rip up the stomach OF
one, aud you will find it stuffed with insects,
or enlarged by the bodies of the meadow mice.
Except in killing an occasional bird or frog,
nearly all of our snakes are as useful to vegc-
tation as they ore harmless to mankind and
it is not only an act of wicked barbarity, but
species of suidicia folly to destroy them
Far better aid in doterminingthe species and
their dissemination, as urgen in the circular is
sued by Robert Kennicott, and show that you
are above the vulgar prejudice against those
prosecuted creations of the Great Author OF
Of all animal life, who made nothing without
an object and made these for our good
| I Prairie Iarmer, Nay II.