Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1891-10-10
THE CHA MONSTER.
testimony Respecting the Animal From q
Number Of Scientific Men.

| Testimony Respecting the Animal From q
! Number Of Scientific Men.
SOME DECLARE IT POISONOUS, WHILE OTHERS
HOLD AN OPPOSITE oPINIoN--aErrISa THE
| VENOM FOR HypoDERMIc NORTHUMBERLAND
OF THE cREATURE-A HELoDERaA AT THE 20
oLoGICAL PARK.
A CHA MONSTER HAS BEEN PLACED
- on exhibition within the last few days at
| the National Geological Park. "Heloderma
| suspectum" the label reads on the glass-coyered
box in which it is confined. Its last name will
suggest to visitors the imprudence of toying
with the animal Its breath, deemed 80 fatally
poisonous, has not done damage to any of a
| score Of persons who have accerted invitations
| to take a Whit of it. A foot and half in
length it measures, and it looks exactly us if il
were made Of light salmon-colored beads with
a pattern in black beads worked in When
eating it sticks out its big black forked tongue
and ticks each morsel well before taking into its
mouth and swallowing it.
The scientific men here in Washington enter
| tain widely differing opinions as to the poison
Gus character of this celebrated reptiles bite.
DIR. r.. W. Shufeldt believes that it is venomous.
He speaks from experience with ella mon
ster that was sent to the Smithsonian Institu-
| ton from Arizona while ago
BITTEN IN THE THUMB
81 had taken the animal out of its box for the
purpose Of examining il" he says, .'and was in
the act of putting it back when INV grasp
| slipped. IL made dart at me, and Selling
my right thumb in its mouth, sank it's teeth TO
the bone. inflicting severe lacerated wound.
1t loosed its hold at once. The bleeding soon
ceased, but it WAS followed by shooting pains
up the arm and down the same side So severe
| were the pains, taken together with the nervous
shock that l fell in a faint. Iperspired pro-
fusely. My hand swelled very much. but the
next morning the swelling was lessened and the
wound soon healed. leaving no scar. After in
fiicting the bite the heloderma appeared dull
and sluggish. just as a venomous serpent is tor
pid somewhat after having given a deadly nip
My impression is that the bite of this creature
might be fatal under some circumstances
This accords with the theory entertained by
Prof E. ID. Cope. the greatest living authority
on reptiles Said he:
THE heioderma suspectum to which gave
that name for reasons which seemed to me
justified, has four glands containing a saliyary
| secretion, concerning the poisonous nature OF
| which there is dispute. Its teeth are grooved,
| apparently for the purpose of conveying the
secretion made by these glands into the bitten
wound. This venomous apparatus, surprising
| 1t to be properly so designated. was presume
bly, developed in the, same manner and through
the same causes as produced the poisoning
| equipment OF snakes. In my opinion the
| poison gland, of serpents are simply modified
| saliva glands. To those animals being stepped
| upon has always been q cause of irritation and
| misery. On this account. in the course Of long
| ages. their saliva has gradually become poison
| Gus, 80 as to serve for the purpose of defense,
and at length special glands and apparatus
rendering their bites harmful have been de-
veloped. The same argument may apply to
| nj of ~ ;lo
| monster"
PROF. oIILs OPINION.
Another great reptilian authority is Prof
| Theodore Gill of the Smithsonian Institution.
He is very dubious as to the monster
poison. In response to question on the
subject he said yesterday:
lit may be that the so-called poison glands
of the heloderma contain n fluid which aggra-
Yates the wound made by its bite. but do not
believe that it is in any true sense a venom.
Experiments tried with small animals have
not been satisfactory thus far. Sometimes
they have died and OF other times they haven't
Nothing could be more absurd than the belief
that any creature breath could be dangerous
That notion is a survival of the old tradition
which attributed a poisonous breath TO dragons
and other fabulous beasts. which in cases ex-
hailed vapor from their nostrils that laid
waste ell the vegetation of a district"
DIR. MrrcBELL's EXPERIMENT..
DR.. Weir Mitchell of Philadelphia has been in
Washington during the last few DAYS. lie 10 a
believer in the veuomous character of the Gila
monster, and his opinion is worth something.
not only because he Is recognized as the great
est authority in this country on snake poisons,
| but for the reason that he made a series of ex-
| periments some time ago for ascertaininR the
effects produced by the fluid from the hello
dermas glands upon rabbits and guinea pigs
inoculated with it. A supply of the alleged
poison was got by causing the lizard to chew
the edge Of a saucer. A hypodermic syringe
was used to inject it beneath the skin OF each
OF the animals treated, and they all died. 1t
was found that the venom killed by paralyzinR
the heart. and this WAS deemed rather curious.
inasmuch as snake poison produces death by
paralyzing the breathing organs. The heart of
each guinea pig and rabbit ceased TO beat soon
after its incubation and the spinal cord was
paralyzed ALSO This method OF administering
the venom was employed because the deaths
might otherwise have been considered to be
more or less attributable TO the shock and
liberation of the bite. Snake poison, dried.
will preserve its properties Tor an indefinite
length Of time. 1t would be interesting to
know whether or not the venom of the hello
derma has the same property. However, DR..
Yarrow of Washington has tried experiments
with rabbits and guinea pigs BY inoculstinp
them with the poison Of the Gila monster with
out producing any results whatever and he
therefore believes that II IL not a venom at ali
or calculated to be In any way more injurious
| than ordinary saliva
DEATHS FROM WHISKY INSTEAD or rorsox,
It has been suggested that many deaths sup
posed to have been occasioned by the bite of
the Gils monster may in reality have been
caused by whisky. This IL the favorite remedy
employed in such cases as wen as for snake
bites. The first thing done ID to pour down
the victims. throat an enormous QUANTITY Of
| spirits. Persons often recover from snake
bites. but quart Of whisky taken within few
minutes is invariably fatal, and quantity con-
siderabiy less il very apt to be So Il Is q mis-
take to imagine that alcohol il an antidote for
the poison Of serpents; its usefulness il merely
to sustain the vitality for a while When 4
man is fatally bitten by rattlesnake or cobra
molecules OF living germinal matter are thrown
| into the circulation, speedily grow into cells
and ~ rapidly multiply. SO that In q short time
millions upon millions are produced ct the ex-
pense Of the oxygen absorbed into the blood in
breathing. Hence the gradual approach Of
GOODNESS. sleepiness and death. This esrminal
matter feeas upon the abrine and oxygen ia
the blood, which thus becomes dfsorRanized.
| It has been found that fishes readily succumb
70 the bito Of venomous make.
Il 10 believed that the ella monstoe lav