The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1882-07-20
ABOUT SNAKES.

ABOUT SNAKES.
Pythons and ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Eggs and
How They Are Observation-Disclosures as
Food for Human StOmachs--Adventures
With Reptiles.
There was brought to the Star office
by Mr.. G. o. Starr Yesterday an enOrm-
GUS egg. 1t was twice the size of a
gOoSe-egg, but was not as regular in
shape. The outer covering, instead OF
being hard and brittle like q shell, was
SO soft that it could be easily indented
by the finger. This singular egg was
cold and Clammy 20 the touch, and it
gave person who handled it an IN
comfortable feeling like that which
would result from contact with q snake,
toad ortrog. -.
This egg" said Mr.. Starr, twas
laid 10y the three-hundred-pound python
which was brought to this city by Mr..
q. d. bunnell a few days ago. The
python is sitting upon nest fun of such
eggs, and in short time lot of little
snakes will be Matched out They will
be nice pets for people who have an adj
miration for reptiles. The mother snake
is twenty-five feet in length, and she is
ing the advent OF her young, Her tenn
per is just like that Of setting hen.
She Is very ugly. and if she is disturbed
Iuat gl}c, All MeUtuers 10 understand
that she wishes 10 he let severely alone"
"Whnt shall | do with this thing?"
was tn" inquiry made by the represent
ative OF the S ar, TO whom the python S
egg was handed
You rau haze it Matched artificial
"" was thc reply # the donor. Just
keep il in cotton in place which is
Neither I1n warm nOr too cold, and the
first thing YOU know You viii he the
owner Of = real, live python. Then if
you take proper care of the young
snake, it will grow SO large that it Will
Ire able 10 coil about YOU and crush YOU
in its yice-likc folds"
Mr.. w. A. COuEllng, Superintendent
of the Central Park Menagerie. speak
ing of reptiles said; " There is scarcely
any animal that commands so much
aversion as the serpent, and yet, in spite
Ot Ills, il is one of the most interesting
of all that come before The naturalist
Yet little attention has been paid to
the snake. rs compared to others
81 the an,IuHl kingdom. The ancient
writers speak in respectful tones OF SER
penis Of size aud power, Aristotle tells
o. the. immense Lvbjan serpents, 50
larGe that they pursued and upset some
of the yOyagers' boats that visited that
coast. The story Of the gigantic snake
that threw the army Of Reoulus iuto dis
order 10y killing and devOWing several
Of his soldiers, and squeezing few hun
dred to death in his folds, viii be re-
membered Regulus finally killed the
monster by aid of the engines used to
assail fortified places. The skin of this
python was I20 feet in length, and for
years adorned one the temples of
Rome" ..
Dir. Conkling added: The story
that snakes cover their prey with saliva
is IN error Sir Robert Ker Porter saws
the python does not first cover its prey
with saliva. The mucous does not pour
out OF the glands unless the prey is large
and It is required to lubricate the jaws
aud throat Tor the seemingly dispropor-
tioRata feast. Fythons viii cling by the
tail 10 some tree growing in the water
and then float upon the surface and wait
for animals that may come TO the water
10 qutnch their thirst. They often feed
upon each other. In the Geological
Gardens in London, one who had lived
fol years on friendly terms with a
brother nearly as large as himself, was
found one morning sole tenant of his
den As the cage was secure, the keep
er was puzzled 20 know how the serpent
had escaped. At last it was discovered
that the remaining inmate had swollen
remarkably during the night, when the
truth came out But ii you want a good
up and down snake story, let me intro
duce YOU 70 Prof Hutchiugs."
Can tell YOU anything about
snakes' shou'dsay So" said the Rev.
Mr.. Hutcbiugs, lightning calculator and
lecturer upon Bunnelps wonders. Sir,
! could tell you facts, sir-facts in rela-
ton to the betrayer of our common
mother that would overwhelm you with
amazement. 4 remember one in the
year 1854 was at Gilbert's Museum,
Market, near Second, San Francisco,
Cal Fifty in gold and ali expenses.
Those were glorious days; gold way up,
and myself generally in like condi-
ton. | noticed Tor several days man
they called Reynolds hanging about the
place. He was q man about fifty, no
taller than myself, gray locks hanging
over his shoulders. A bent form like a
tree that had been brought up wrong.
Eyes with tar-away look. He had q
peculiar gliding motion, and his feet,
muified in slippers, gave forth no more
sound than the reptile. Shortly after !
noticed the proprietor advertised for
snakes. One day q mountaineer came
in with box pierced with air-holes
From the inside came sound like unto
the rattle of musketry. ...-zf II, .r
What yer got, strangerF said Rey-
nolds, pushing through the crowd.
a. Rattlers, said the mountaineer.
q" Let me take one,' said Reynolds,
reaching for the box.
So Better look out; they bite, and
when they bite they kill. was the reply.
90 If yer brought these in answer to
the advertisement them's nv snakes,
said Reynolds, as he plunged his hand
into the box. In a second he brought
forth p six-foot rattlesnake, and holding
1t between thumb and finger looked at
1t. The far-away look in the eyes of
the mysterious man had given way to a
dancing, sparkling briliiancy, before
which the snake was powerless.
''' Amt he purtyP See the sun strike
its handsome hide and cum back in rain
bow colors. Kiss me, boy
"Slowly the deadly serpent went to-
wards his mouth. and then darted down
bis throat. The crowd did not move;
they scarcely breathed. felt my hair
rising; | might say, in New Haven slang:
I'VE were paraiyzed,' At all events.