The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1882-07-07
An Alligator Farn

An Alligator Farm.
If you want to see the ,j,;...t,,s1, a
he IS, observed the Colonel I 3 81,
want to talk with man who H.. heel,
brought up with 'em. If Won ,--<rt =
square view of the reptile I'M III. ,,stive
swamps, ride over to JUDGE Sneed' s
plantation. The Judge is the o,IT man
in South Carolina who can talk ALLIGATOR
all day long and not tel lie. y p
/ did want to see the allioato, IN his
native Jungle, and | rode across the
country and got down in front of an old
time, old-fashioned Southern ras;d erice.
with its long verandas and beautiful
shade. Half a mile away were The first
signs of the big bayou, and it was "a that
bayou that the alligator passed his years
in basiling and eating and keepino one
eye out for tie flash of a shotgun.
- Yes, | own that bayou, - said the
Judge, as we got seated. ..own allirs-
/ tors and ALI / was figuring IN the other
day and l calculated that / was heown-
er of at least 900 alhgators. OF course,
they come and go, but I calculate ON.
1000 reptiles which are steady tenants. -
q ANY very big ones in theres,' =
% A few. There are seven .orseipht,
old seekers which have been tbere for
thirty years. If | was pinched "a it a
think | could exhibit two or tbree ZEN
tiles at least fourteen feet icno and
there is one there which measures Evenly
TO an inch?'
% How long do they live ?'' -
''Well, that's hard question The
big one | speak of has been personally
knownto us for over forty years, and be
doesn't show any signs of second child
hood yet. | reckonfhe average alligator
puts in from fifty to seventy years in this
world of trouble. y
What do they eat?''
Most everything. An alligator is al
ways hungry. When he can't get food
he will chew away. at pine log, just as
hungry man win chew a tooth-pick
That big one devoured steer for me
this spring. and-was nosing aiound after
more meat in half an hour. | had 2 calf
tied'up to that tree down there one day
last fall, and a REPTILE came out- of the
bayou and took him oil, chain and all,
and if he didn't swallow the chain we
have never been able TO find it, Ihave
seen niger throw 'epla and old plow-
point, and it would be swallowed atagulp.
Are they dangerous to human be-
ings?' @
mot if YOU sit here; buff there is n
man in this country who dares cross that
bayou in skif lt1sHndoWn he can have
my plantation. Assnear as ! can figure
up those reptiles haze got away with fifty
I niggers, eight or ten White men, thirty
cattle, five or six. mules and no end to
pigs and geese in the last twenty-five
.lWhen arc theysthe liveliest?''
81 'sEarly in tie morning and after sun
Down. Let's sees It's after ten now.
and the sun is pretty hot, but guess we
can stir up a few.
We walked down to the edge of the
bayou, and the noise wesmade IN the
grass and reeds brought a~score of shouts
to the muddy surface. The Judge had
a billet OF wood in his hand,-and presently
gave it q toss far mt on the water. In
IAN instant there was a grand rush from
all directions, followed by ferocious
fight over the billet. and hisHonorquietly
observed; So
s'There WEREN'T over thirty in tnat
crowd Let me call the siog.
He whistlel TO one of the dogsleft be-
hind on the veranda and when the ami
NAL reached US it WAS encouraged to
| bark That fetched 'em. ] believe that
at least 800 alligators put in an appear
ance inside of a minute, some content
to remain stationary Others punging
about and blowing and fighting.
.Louder, King Zlouderr' commanded
the Judge, and the dog barked as if he
! had freed a coon.a The 'number of rep
tiles increased by at least n hundred
and the waters were thrashed and pad
died until the odor from them was quite
stiff.
Can fool the old veterans that way
observed the Judge rs Returned away.
''They are down ON the muddy bottom
Cor lying in the weeds, and they know
that this is only false pretense. Let !
niger come down with iish-pole, and
that would mean business. They'd swim
the bayou and not leave a ripple, and
crawl through.the grass as softly as a
snake
is the alligator possessed of intelli-
gence?''
You betr' j. regard him as keener
-thanthe serpent and sharper than the
fox. Let one start to crawl to the house
{ and he viii take advantage of the
ground and bushes and grass just as a
wolf or tiger would.
|. s"And can't you get rid'sof themP"
e.'Good landsl but Izdon't want to!
1 want to foster thenl.S want EN-
to thrive and increase and multiply
untilth bayou won bold EN-. Ten,
fifteen or twenty years hence the price
ofalligator hideswill befour times what
it is now, and then III turn in on EN-
and make some money. That bayou is
my alligator farm The, seeds are there
and the plants are growing, and when
can figure thatsIow $1,000 good sized
alligators | shall let cotton go for one
season and send alligator hides to mar
ket. Bless you, my boy, but wouldn't
let man crack away here with rifle
for a twenty dollar gold piece. He d
get 'em nervousz and skeery, and like
enough my whole alligator farm would
sail off down the river inssearch of a new
owner.s'I want. TO keep EN- right here.
There's going to- be big money in that
issortof livestock before we are ten years
/ Older. Cor. Detroit Free Press.
An Extraordinary Marriage in Georgia
and its Sequel.