Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1878-05-11
SERPENT CHARM.
Can Snakes BeWitch Their Victims?


Can Snakes BeWitch Their Victims?
From the Cincinnati Enquirer
In the long-stretched suburb which unites
our city with the mountain gardens of North
Clifton there stands a little drug store, whose
proprietor, surgeon and practical physician,
has achieved popularity without any spiritual
i,tic alta chmentS to his soda water fountain.
He does not even keep cigars and dice for
medicinal purposes: but he has private Zoo
double glass box OF stately dimensions,
whose upper story is occupied by more or
less happy family of snakes and lizards, while
the bas.men is filled with water and fish.
The doctors latest acquisitions were a pair
Of yellow rattlesnakeS which had been uted
from their den by the early spring of this ex-
eeptiOnal year. and which are DOW serving a
life term In the reptile, department of his
glass prison. Cold FLOODED animals, he says,
are generally inexpensive bOarderS; his two
lizards content themselves with daily fly
apiece, and one old gray toad has pursued the
road If total abstinence to length were even
DiO l.. wis would hesitate TO follow; but some
snakes make an exception: the COluber palus-
iris, or water black snake, is almost insl-
tiab.e, and the common black snake insists on
his three daily mails with tirmneSs that
would disgust a Columbus penitentiary war
den. The rattlesnakes, too, began to crawl
about and ply their tongues in way that
suggested a growing interest in the table
dhOte arrangements of their new hotel, and
east furtiye chances at a little mouse which
had been introduced In anticipation OF their
wishes.
But either through faStidiOusness or from a
mistaken notion of duty toward their fellow
dodgers, they tarried so long before they broke
their fast that their host apprehended a diet
cite Misunderstanding, and treated them to
nest with i've young SparrOwS the next day.
Three of these died before their snakeshipS
cOndeScended to partake; old SparrOwS, frogs
and cOckrOacheS We're tried with no better
success. The yellOwSpeckled OphidianS still
seemed to eat under protest, yielding, but
not cOnSentlng. 10 i'll jus ice" as Governor
Chamberlain said.
But though the doctors experiments failed
to elucidate the mystery of raltiesnake food,
he believes that they solved a more interesting
problem the question in regard To the mOduS
operandi of snakes in the capture II tn .ir
Pty.
trymen still believe III what they call snake
charming, lie, the ability of SerpentS to para
j re smaller animals by the magic power of
their eyes. belief whose tenacity and extreme
absurdiIy nearly juslifieS DiderOt's remark
that in regard to all occult phenomena the
most preternatural theory is sure to become
the popular one. BlackSnakeS Overtake their
game by superior swiftRess and strange them
by superior strength, but the fact that such
sluggish creatures as mOccaSinS and yellow
FattIesnakes are able to capture birds and rats
seemed TO demand an abnormal explanation {;
and the demand, as usual, was equalled by the
supply. Truth-lOving and otherwise intelli-
gent persons listen gravely to stories about
Rnnets who hoped from branch to branch to-
ward the center of leafy bush, or swallows
who paused in their headlOng flight, lowered
with quiyering wings for minute or two, and
8hen descended In tremulOuS f1utter toward
q ditch OF a hedge where the enemy lay con-
cealed, a cOied snake with pair of glittering
optics, that twinkled and cleaned like de-
mons eyes, while the doomed bird came near
er and nearer, and finally saved the serpent
the trouble OF swallowing il by hopping down
its throat.
ascribe the same faculty to lizards and tOadS :;
and the darkies of the Georgia river-planta-
tiOnS, II asked to account for the frequent dis
appearance OF sucking pigs, used to explain
m NV oil
tors, who, without leaving their native ele-
nent, were able TO draw pig clear across
liar way. But the arch-cOnjurer of our CONT
nent is still the sneaking rattlesnake whose
power for mischief is thought to be hardly
limited by the capacity of its stomach. Ora
tutOuS maleyOlence, according to current
stories, has often induced this symbol OF the
tempter 10 bewitch dogs and cattle, merely for
the sake of testing the efficacy of It's magic
eyes first, and its viruent poison afterward
nay, cOlOred deacon of NewSberry s. c.,
affirms that he himself was once thus charmed
by fiat bellied rattlesnake," and obliged the
local papers with clrcumStantial account of
his adventure, year ago.
On his way home from meeting he took a
shortcut across field, "a sweet potato field,
his neighbOrs have reason TO belieye,) and was
just in the act of climbing fence, when his
eye was caught by piercing glitter i'm the
weeds. sudden fash like CLEAN that went
through him like an electric shock, and made
him grab the top rail with a cOnvulsive grip.
He tried to jump down, but could not his legs
were paralyZed, and a feeling of numbneSs
heart, white his eyes became so rigid that he
could not even wink. He found that he could
howl which he did with all his might but
ta and come little nearer Re gave Ell
mp for lost, when he suddenly thought of big
prayer book in his pocket. and in the moment
he hurled al its head copy Of Baxters Saint $
Rest, (tract society edition, Syo..) which
either by its weight or by its orthodox vigor.
staggered the fend for second or two, during
WILL, the deacon effected his escape.
Thousands Of similar stories have not only
been told, but have found believers, such Is
the power, not Oh mysterious snake eyes, but
men. The witchcraft delusion had long been
exposed in all its preposterous absurdity when
people still believed In witches, and alter
ninety eight mediums" have been caught in
da9rantf, the ninety ninth can collect room
full OF grOwn-up persons who are kind enOur Oh
70 think it possible that disembodied souls can
handle a slate pencil or that certain metallic
sounds emanate from spirit-harp. SO much
Tor fancy; now for facts
During q Q irst Wee of their confinement
the doctors rattleSnakeS diSdained to chase
their game, and the stupidity of the frogs and
young birds made it easy enough to coll II
them whenever they were wanted, but few
days ago the boys OF The neignborhood caught
an old biackEird and sold Il to the geologic ii
druggist for two pieces of stickcandy The
Dlacksnakes were covered up with an old
apron. to prevent their int :rierence, and
the rattle tails, who hal tasted for tweDty-four
hours rather than eat cockroaches, got one
wore chance at square meal. After fiutter
ing around in an excited way for a WHILE the
bird settled down III a corner, and the two
snakes prepared for action. They lowered
their heads, and without moving the tailend OF
their bodies approached the bird by gradual
extension OF their coils; but he was all sus-
Plelon and recOmmeD eel his fiuttering before
tnelr eatlike advance had brought them with.
,a rIahge The snakes separated then, the fe-
caHe ,o,ed herself up in the center of the
SiTS, while her mate took post in the black
Ss;et corner, but after read iusting their coils.
lime ouaged an inch; they bided their