Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1884-08-23

Life Along the Florida Rivers in the
Hot summer Months.

A telegram from Gulf Hammock, Fla. says:
The men who hunt alligatOrs for their hides and
teeth are now reaping their harvest. The warm
weather induces great numbers OF alligatOrs to
frequent the marshy banks Of the rivers, and
the absence Of spOrtsmen during this season
makes them comparatively fearless. The most
successful hunters hunt only in dark nights. A
few nights ago had my slumbers broken sew
eral times by the discharge of guns. On repair
ing to the banks Of the river the next morning
to ascertain the cause of the noises found tive
young men occupying hastily constructed pal
metto-fan camp. Six dead alligators were lying
around the camp, varying I'm length from four to
eight feet. The hunters had killed them the
previous night. One of the young men was
busy sknning the alligatOrs. while the other
with the aid of single cooking utensil. which
answered the purpose of baking oven and cof-
fee pot. was preparing frugal morning meal
The SKINS removed from the belly. the under part
of the jaws and the inside of the legs The
skin on the back is worthless. AS soon as the
skins are removed they are sailed and packed
In barrels, which are shipped to New York
firm. The hunters receive IL apiece for all hides
four feet long and upward.
After the skins are removed the hunters cut
off the heads, and place them on the edge of
the river, where they remain for about week
At the end of that time the teeth become so
loose that they can readily be pulled out with
the fingers. The teeth from half dozen large
alligators weigh about a pound, and are
worth 81.
The two young men killed fifty alligators in
the week that they hunted in this neighborhood
They begin hunting as soon as it becomes
thoroughly dark. Their hunting outfit con-
sists OF bulTs-eye lantern. in camp language
called ''look-'em-up." boubled-barrelled shot
gun. or 'kill-'em-sure." and hatchet, with
which they split the alligator's skull, and to
which they have given the very expressive
name of dynamite" The man who is to do the
shooting for the night fastens the lantern to his
forehead. and takes his place in the bow of a
small boat His partner paddles the boat cauti-
ousy along the stream. while the man in the
bow keeps sharp lockout tor alligator's eyes
which, under favorable circumstances, he can
''shne" with his lantern at a distance of two
hundred yards. AS soon as they discover pair
of eyes they paddle cautiously up to within
couple of feet of the alligatOr's head and dis
the shot is fired the paddler catches the alliga-
tor by the jaws, which he holds together with
one hand, while he cleaves the skull open with
his Ratchet.
Sometimes the allgators retain considerable
power Of action When such is the case it is
rather exciting work getting them into the boat
Sometimes very large alligators turn the boat
over. If an alligator is not handled at once after
being wounded, he sinks to the bottom and is
lost
l asked one OF the hunters who had killed
more than a thousand alligators. what was the
size of the largest one he everkilled and he told
me 1873 feet long. He said that his father killed
one on the st. Johns river ~ feet long, the
head of which when placed in flour barrel pro-
jected two inches over the top. He sold it to a
museum for sos