New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1890-02-28
SOME FLORIDA SNAKES.
AND A GOOD MANY MORE FLORIDA TICKS

AMI oOOD MANY NUKE kLOhlDA liChS.
Alligator Laks, Fla. Feb. 2o.-He was . typical
sCrscker.s end when one Of party asked him
he had ever hsd any real adventures In hunting he
Displayed unwonted animation.
@waal" said he. @Pn allow was skeert once.
Turned my hA'r white In minnlt. was comm out
or water Oak hAmmick when list struck solid
ground put my right fut down within two inches
er the biggest dIamonSback eve- seen in these
partS-an' it's gum on snakes. He ratified an l
Jumped, but sfore he was fairly coled had Betsey
up en- put or ball thru his head. He measured
eight feet-pve got his skin ter hum. an kin
show II ter 70 ef ye misdoubt my word.
@snahcsa Well reckon. Fust Of all Is the
diamoa back: rsttlesnake you call him. He's
bottled hell fire. When he strikes It's like chain
lightning. Tier alnt any help fur 80. ye're dead
msn. Only the other Gay Indian was huntin
the Kissimmce River, an was struck three times
by . diamon'-back. He was dead inside Of half On
hour. These little groun' rattlers that lie in the
piney woods, hev seen their bite cured Big doses
Of whiskey'n do IT, But never knew the bite Of .
rale old damon back. such ss lie In the moist
ground nigh tho bay heads cured 'ccpt onct.
negro hand cuttin cane In the cane fields round
ST. Cloud, an was hit In the ankle by one. Tho
nearest doctor ter Kissimmee. six miles. an 10
TUX two hours tew bring him thcr. by that time
the mans legs swelled ter twice their material
sire. an the swcllin' creepn' up his body Doc
'lswed there was no time ter lose. He'd brought er
long er sum- kind o. cure for snake bites. an he
used 10. Directions said give teaspoonful an no
NOAH lie guv' tcaspoonful an the sweiilh
stopped. Then. rs the was nigh dead. he guy
i'm another. an the swellln' begun TO so down ne
guv' i'm third an next mornn' the Niger was well
I brut back bottle or that remedy. an next snake
bite hocr Nv I mean ter try It, No. Their ant many
damon backs roun here. Theirs three critters
tibet flows ter destroy 'em-decr. hogs ana blaek
akcs-an ali on ems pretty plentiful In TINS country
Whenever deer meet damon back they're oouh Wr
kill i'm cf it's possibility. seed an old buck 90 IL
onet He went tumpin toward him on all Tours az
onct and CT RATHER strikn' all Ter time so whch er
buck landed on his coil lie hadn't no pisen left an cr
buck cut him ter pieces with his sharp POOLS IN no
time Ginerally there's three or four deer attacks
tergether. Hogs hunt 'em down an KITS EN- much
or same way only they let's or rattler strike em on
the fat or er check, which does cm no damage Aier
KILN 'em, hogs eat cm. black snake gineraliy
tis tho damon back by jumpn' him an stranglln
him in his coils.
Beautiful crfttcr this diamon'back. His back IS
fist er row er mon'-shaped hggers CLOWN WIN
every sort er color an alookin' into his eye when
he's n little excited shows YOU the most wonderful
picters ever painted lady in Tampa's hevin' a
dress made Of ratters skins.
Rut the damon back Is gnteman side O. the
inoccasn,s continued the raconteur, shifting his aula
10 the other cheek. "Tms iustnaheu
alters gives notice afore ne strikes 30
whrrrr. But the moccasin hes 10" III
the tussock an strikes when yere thinkln' I'm a
thousan, miles of. kin cure his bite, though. My
hovs has got two little hound pups they think er
beap ov They was all down playn' side eF hio
Water Lake tother day. when one ov er pups run
SONAR on o tremenjus big moesih lie was a. DIE
roun' as yer leg. stranger. Ill low he was lie OH
the pup. an afore / got hum at night twas all up
with en- FL I'd been Their. could er cured him.
list take wet gunpowder an bind 1t on er bite. The
piscn IL take 1t In minnit-make 1t hard as stone
Ye keep blndn, 1t till 1t stops cakin an inc
wounds cured y
.Yes. there's other kinds o. snakes. There's the
buIsnake socalled, reckon cause he's got er neck
one out yere this mawnin'. Looks jet like RATHER
am is a sort ov pilot fur 'em. When We see one
The cuyiesest snake tho is the hoop-snske-s crns
thst lest takes his tail in his mouth an rolls toward
Why" said !, that's identical with the hoop
there the other day. struck at him and missed and
his sting vent far into gumt'ee that he eouid not
The Cracker looked at me curicusH, -.
wal. stranger. III low, We TUX the words right
over In the Gulf Hammck when was on hunt for
panther an bar only it wa, me he cSm TER an he
Al this point the Cracker betook himself on on ms
hunt. and We strocd back TO the nm keeping bright
lookout for the damon back. which might b. follow
ing In the wake AZ the pilot killed that morning We
saw snakes. but We encountered an army OF INC
levied war. They jumped upon Us from the trces ana
sprang upon Us from blade and twg and palmetto spe.
nm invisible army that the mischief OF II.
We went calmly ON, but III an hour awakened Ia the
situation. We were In the grip Of the Florida tck
The continued dry weather Of this winter has been
favorable 10 the propagation Of this mite. and 1t lit
orally swarins IN the pney woods Fol its size this
insect will do more execution than other creature
IN the Cosmos. IL l. lttle brown mite about the
size Of pinhead. with hard horny she'll Ike crap
placed under a microscope II looks very much like a
trab. At its business end two ancets with which
II burrows into the nch bury ing Itself IN very short
loo docs.
II again and again halfburicd An angry red blotch.
very irritable. follows. In II short time our bodies
we're covered with these hOtches. Some one recon-
mended salt and water. which brought partial rlief
We voted that unless we conld ciFeumvcnt the ticks
life would be uncomfortable. and went out Ia consult
The fat Jolly landlord. who was smoking on the rear
porch
'em Ne don't mind 'cni. ! often brush em on
BIZ the handful goin' through the tall grass In TIC
savannas Rest Is to git pair Of tight legsin's
Thatll keep em out"
have ordered the leggircs.