Arizona weekly enterprise., 1890-10-11
THE CHA MONSTER
NOT NEAR so DANGEROUS A VAR MINT AS IS GENERALLN SUP
 POSED.
Authentic Cases Wherein the Reptiles Bite Did Not Prove Fatal---What
 a Surgeon Says.
Corr. Globe-Democrat.

become familiar with a mercury which constantly bobs around the 100 degree mark before he is warned of the great dangers which threaten him here in the shape of poisonous animals and reptiles. He IS told to look out for centpedes and scorpions, for tarantulas and rattlesnakes, and, above all, for Gila monsters all of which Arizona products are held up to him as being not only unpleasantly plen- tiful companions, but companions whose acquaintance Is to be avoided, unless he desires to court death by receiving a bite or sting from them. And it does not take very long residence here to con vince anybody that the Arizona sand Is exceedingly prolific in it's production of these specimens of animal life, but at the same time their very plentitude generates a feeling of indifference toward them. They soon come to be regarded as any other pest would be; the tarantula, the scorpion and the centipede become mo notonous, and are no more feared for their poisoning powers than a well-organiZed and active hornet; the rattlesnake takes upon himself an everyday existence, al though he Is not to be fooled with; and the CSlla monster, although his possibili- ties are somewhat indefinite, Is not re- garded with that awe which both his scarcity and his reputed powers obtain for him further north.
 For a small animal-one IS inches long and weighing II pounds is the lar gest specimen ever seen in this section, and they are seldom over F inches i'll length-the Gila monster has d bigger reputation than anything else of his size that grows. Not only is he classed with the mythical salamander, who could sue cessfully and enjoyably withstand fire, but he equally refuses to suffer death by water. and to his extraordinary vital lty Is added thes5tory that his breath Is poisonous and his bite invariably fatal. These stories might readily be believed of him by those who have never made his acquaintance on his native heath, and have seen him only as a stuffed specimen in museums, for the Gila Is decidedly ugly looking brute. He is cross in ap- pearance between a green lizard and an alligator, with an ugly-looking blunt nose, a mean looking pair of eyes. and body freequently covered with dull red spots. He was apparently built neither for the land nor the water, as his legs are neither long enough nor strong enough for walking, and are not enough of tius to aid him materially in swimming. l Sometimes he Is found along the banks of | the creeks or acequias, and sometimes on | the very rockiest and most barren of mountain spots, but more frequently, 1 especially during this rainy season, lie will be discovered around ill patches of the young and tender grass which has | just sprouted, where he feeds on the vegetation and the flies and bugs which abound. The Gila monster is very little feared here, where he lives. He is moi too slow and clumsy to attack person but very grave doubts exist as to his ability to do much damage even were the attack made.
 During residence of several months ! in Arizona the writer has seen Gila mon sters by the dozens, and has killed them too, but he must confess to his sorrow for he came here with very high idea of this ugly lizards ability to do mischief
 +Lat the reptile inspires more fear thal
 his performances warrant. In and around
 Tucson there are number of well au
 thenticated cases of persons having beer
 bitten, but none in which the bite ha.
 proven fatal. There are also numerou,
 instances of reported deaths Gn grea
 agony) from the wounds inflicted by tn;
 Gila, but when these reports have gonr
 through sitting process back thTougl
 Tom, Dick and Harry, they have wount
 up in nothing. That the bite of the Gili
 is not necessarily fatal, as in general,
 supposed, or anything more than painful
 was shown here only few days ago
 when a soldier at Fort Lowell, just out
 side the city, had his finger seyerel,
 lacerated by one of the reptiles. Tn,
 soldiers name is Memo, and althougl
 death was predicted for him when tn
 monster sank his teeth into his flesh, h
 is still driving the mail wagon between
 this city and the garrison with great reg
 ularity.
 Some of the soldiers at the fort reliev
 the monotony of life by catching taran
 tuias, scorpions, etc., and a couple c
 weeks ago two of them brought in a Gil
 monster they had captured out in tn brush. It was -good-sized specimen
 about a foot lc- ;, and was placed in
 box ln one of the troop quarters and giy
 en an egg CT two week for its subsist
 ence. While 1t would run out it's tongu
 and hiss in an aggressive manner, it show ed little disposition to bite, and the me . became so accustomed to it that the would take it up in their hands A fe7
 days ago Memo picked the beast up an began fooling with it, allowing it to crav ' up and down his bare arm, and run il z tongue over his hand. While eoin v through these 1l6leEyers the Gila wer
 back or it's reputation for innocence b n suddenly grasping the soldiers forefinge u biting 1t to the bone, and holding on wit q, such tenacity that Memo had to use h 5 other hand tQ force open its mouth an u shake 1t of. He set gp howl of rag 5 and pain, and the Gila crawled away ul i, noticed under the locker
 The wound bled freely and Memo, pre- y0 ty badly frightened, commenced suckin V his finger and splitting out the blood, an
 started for the hospital on the jun
 Maj. Girard, the surgeon, immediate
 dosed the man with whisky and prepare a wash for the finger, but had no a
 prehensions of a serious outcome fro
 the bite as he says he has never heard an authenticated case of death from suC f. a cause, and has no reason to think a Gila monster Is half as poisonous as pr rattlesnake. His predictions in this ca m were at least correct, as Memo restt
 quietly all night and in the morning " D. as well as ever. His hand was slight ,p swollen for day or two, but the swellil f. soon disappeared and the wound heal m up very quickly. Maj Girard says it rs possible that Memo saved his life by is quickly sucking the blood from the bi IT, or that the Glla, from confinement, m
 have lost his poison, as, when ruIni to loose one of the reptiles articles of fo 1d is poisonous weed, but that more pro ct ably the Gila monster is not so black at he is painted.
 Not long ago an employe of the Emp in ranch came tearing into town op hor m- back with his hand bandaged, and so mi had three or four doctors in consultati
 over him. He had caught Gila ma
 ster of an exceptional size, and suppost
 ly killed it by blow over the head W
 club. As he was coming into the c
 on business he concluded to bring lni along and have the skin stuffed, so cee' hung the reptile to the cantel of his S ol- dle. Half way between the ranch { hB Tucson he reached around to see if gu, prize was still there, and found it V yI 5It The Gila had come to life again and sC lle ed upon his finger. Of course, he Y ar badly frightened, and as his hand ; arm painsd him before he reached ilt; city he wanted the doctors to cut off leu arm if they thought that thereby | Ine could save his life. This they refused , ne do, and gave him the usual antidotes Iiis iiis animal poison. The only effects he Che fered from the bite was temporary inc seI venience for q few days and he shows ,L on scar on his finger and points to his rot 'S:9 frame as evidence that the bite of { rs Ia monster might be fatal, but that it is "'' so ill all cases.
 The only case of a Gila monsters