The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1880-05-21
THE sOcIABLE SCORPION.
From "Desert Llfe," by r.. sOlyoms.

FROM desert LlIes' by X. SOlyO
AS during three or four months they
always haunted our tents, SO they did
our thoughts. The bodies we've as broad
and almost as full as finger; their
fangs as broad and plump as those of
small crawfishes. With those in the
square position of weeyil's feelers,
they usually measured, with their snake
of tail, from three to five inches. One
brought home was pronounced to be
equal to the largest ever preserved in
museums or perpetuated on geological
plates. They found out almost every
camp, and we found them usually when
starting in the morning, under the pack
ages, saddles, and tent carpets. One was
detected by d colleague i'll pocket. An
other stung the same man before lunch
in his tent. 1t is curious that this should
have been the Same man who received
the visit from the viper. One was
caught during a meal on the back of Il
chair, crawling toward the sittcr'S neck,
while he was just scanning the ground
to see whether any were about. My ser
want more than once turned them out of
my bed, usually little before l turned
in, but once at least from under my pil-
low Immediately after / had risen. Of
ten, no doubt, they were removed with
out people saying much about il, as bad
CStScS uuElnS cpluClliCS art usually COH-
cealed by the officers.
The nuisance was not quite so bad, or
good, however, as to make us desperately
face the foe and try to have done with ii,
by repeatedly allowing ourselves 10 be
stung on purpose, as sort of lnocula-
tion, said to steel the frame against the
pangs from any subsequent accidents.
A special short PAIR of tongs, however,
was at these times always with my ready
servant, and he used grimly 10 exhibit
to US with a grin, while we were at table,
any remarkable specimen which he hap
pened to catch, secured in these tOngs.
1 did not encourage him to catch them
rs sans facon as servants in India do
attracting the Yermin'S several eyes by
removing a short straw on the ground.
like some Pharaonlc locust, and then
elegantly taking hold with two fingers
of the tail-like abdomen close TO the
sting. The smaller and slender species
with narrow fangs of gall and bile yell
lOW-which warns us when seen in the
ribs of deleterious mushrooms and in
the flowers of poisonous plants found
to be no more numerous on the main
stream and in the delta nf the Nile.
| These crawl with tail curled up in all
seasons. When we asked our Nubian
friends about the manslaughtering pow
er of the dark hard ones, we got the in
direct answer that they will kill camel.
As soon as our friend was stung, we
| took hold of his arm, stopped the sur
face circulation by bandages above and
below, tried TO squeeze ont the venom,
and then applied ammonia on the wound.
The animal, which escaped, was "only a
shrimp" young one, and the pang did
not extend beyond the bandages, nor last
long alter the burning with ammonia
that is, about twenty minutes. We did
not apply ammonia inwardly. The gen
erai circulation of the blood was also
sufficiently accelerated from the natural
eXcitment to make any stronger eXpul-
sive stimulant than a safe glass of wine
unnecessary.