Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1881-09-10
THE DAILY RECORD-UNIGN.
. SNAKE TRYING TO SWALLOW A LIZARD.

aThis is the third one that has been
found in the park this spring, SAID
man at the Arsenal, holding out curious,
spiny-looking object for reporter to look
at. I" No, it's not toad, though they
call them horned toads. It's lizard, and
the people in the museum call 1t the
nhrynosma. The animal was about four
inches long, and unpleasant to look at. It's
BODY was fat, the upper surface covered
with short dark spines, and the uuder
surface with small plates. The b..ck of
the head was armed with several recurv-
ing short spines, with shorter s,eines here
and there. "You wouldn't think such a
creature would know anything, " continued
the owner of the lizard, "tut a snake has
to wake up early in the season to get the
best of it. l cali him Samson, because
the first day I had him. he pushed under
the leg Of heavy chair that was tipped
against the wall. and fairly knocked 1t
over. If man ',Fas as strong IN proper
ton to his size l4e could lift the obelisk. No,
that didn't show any cunning, but | II show
YOU where the cunning came IN. caught
a big stri Jed snake about two weeks ago
l was Standing in my yard, when along
came A big toad putting in its best hops,
and EIGHT behind it the snake, so intent on
tI.e chase that it came right up to me. |
nonght Il. and kept it for some time in
hoy with glass top, and one day it struck
me that the spines on the lizard must have
been intended as a preventive against
snakes | thought l would test it, and I
nnt Samson into the box. Then l dis.
covered that he was as wise as Solomon.
Won see this revised Testament business
makes man familiar with Bible names.
The snake evidently had not tasted food
since last summer-you know they sleep
all winter-and quick as a flash he darted
at the lizard, but, as the boys say, he got
left. The little fellow was around the box
like shot, but finally the snake cornered
him and caught him by the hind claw.
Now, toad or frog will squirm around
and face a snake and get demoraliZed gen.
orally, and give it chance to catch hold
of its head, but my lizard knew game
worth two of that. When the snake
touched him he turned his head directly
away. The snake tried every way he
could to edge up and get the little
fellow by the head, so he went
to work to swallow his tail first. He
stretched out his jaw and planted his long
teeth into the legs and gradually worked
the body into his mouth with the smaller
teeth. When he had taken in as much as
he could in this way, the long fangs were
lossened and thrown ahead aud fresh hold
taken, each side of the mouth edging ahead
in turn. Nothing could stand this pres
sure long, and in ten minutes half of the
patient lizard was out of sight. He was
only waiting for his turn, audit soon came !;
the snakes lips had reached his neck, when
operations ceased. There were four orfive
spines as sharp as needles, pointing out
every which way, that put an end to the
swallowing business. didn't see the lizard
laugh; he must have felt like it, for he
wasn't hurt in the least 1t took the
snake half an hour to get rid of him, but
it tried two or three times to swallow him.
At every jump the lizard turned his back
so that the spines faced the snake, and at
last separated them. Yes, it was rather
cruel, but l looked at it as scientific in
vesti cation. New York Mail.