The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-12-04
A FEW RAT TALES.
AN EXOIrING HUNT IN THE SBw-
ERS OF NEW YORK.


lin Town"-Aow a Watchman Calls
Thousands OF Rats About Him-How
They Can be Temed and What Their
Intelligence actually Is.
CCopvri0htl
New YORK, Dec. 3-Rats! OUCH A
disagreeable subject. Yet, rats are rats and
they live as an everlasting torment to
human kind. They are classified as vermin.
Their very name is repugnsnt Contact
or even c7ntiguity with them is repulsive.
But like all else OF Gods creation thew
serve the purpose for which they were
made They are travellers. London, Paris,
New York interchange the breeding Of these
vivacious rodents-other countries con-
tributipg in this involuntary reciprocity,
because every vessel arriving at al Ameri.
can port lands more or less-snd generally
more. They are foreign rats.
They are everywhere and are generally
considered pest and torment to mankind.
Their determination has frequently, but
vainly, been sought by various and devious
means In the elder European cities they
| are considered an unconquerable foe.
Millions of them swarm the sewers of
Paris, Berlin and London. Over there pro-
| fessional ratcatchers have an acknowledged
business, and they earn reasonably good
money from the sale Of the skins Of the ro-
dents to glove manufacturers.
Many a society belle or swell dude wears
winter gloves made from the hides of these
despised creatures. They have not as yet
been hunted for business purposes in the
| New York sewers, solely for the reason that
few OF the species here have attained the size
requisite for the market. A few, however.
are used. and these are furnished from the
| - kksa
! writer attended rat hunt in the Canal
street sewer at the invitation of Capt.
| Webb, who had been superintendent OF the
| sewerage system Of the metropolis for over
| thirty years. During his term he had pa
trolled these undergroundatunnels, which
now aggregate nearly 500 miles, during the
past thirty years.
Our party consisted of nine men and
twelve thoroughbred rat dogs of superior
merit. Preparations mad been made to at
tack host OF rats at every possible point
Of vantage. The great Canal street sewer
i was selected for the hunts 1t is fifteen feet
in diameter from the North river front TO
| Broadway quite large enough to drive a
coach and four through. Sewer men had
been sent out in advance TO fix strong wire
MEETINGS to olose the modths Of cross sewers,
| at will, and barrels of garbage had been
placed where they would attract the hungry
rodents. These wire screens were arranged
10 De QEOppeu, 30 as TO 6I16CtudLly Cub OIL inc
escape OF the rats at the proper time.
Our party entered the sewer by row boat
from the river front near the midnight
! hour when business in the city had been
suspended for the day. The scene was that
of large tunnel, the strong old brick walls
being coated with grim yellow and grey
slime, varied at different points here and
| there; at some glistening with almost re-
hective power, and Others having fuzzy
or dull effect. The atmosphere was heavy
and oppressive, but not at all nauseous (6c-
cordiug TO the popular conception). At
times there was q sour or stale odor. but
upon the whole the air was far better than
10 breathsd in many OF the poor tenement
| houses in the city.
Over the bottom of the sewer there flowed
a volume Of water less than two feet in
depth. Under the rays Of the lantern,
cleaning over its surface, it looked black
and forbldding.
Being past the midnight hour, when all
business had ceased and the city at large
was asleep, very little of the usual fow-as
in day time-was visible
Everything was quiet, the almost inky
stream at our feet seeming blacker than
ever. and the curront went sluggishly along,
suggestive of the classic river Styx. imagI-
nations of goblins imps and spirits hover
ing here and there especially at the portals
of the smaller crossing sewers. Bitterly
cold draugh:s of air, as though forced
through frosted sponge, swept past us
with sound-now and then-like
the death song refrain of some abort
ginal chieftain, or the far off wall Of expir-
ing unfortunstes
These nominations were broken when
Capt. Webb. who had heretofore kept silent,
ordered halt. We stood still. His work.
men had hung up lanterns on spikes driven
into the walls OF the tunnel, and thus there
was enough light thrown forward from the
arch above TO enable us to see-in the sha dow
beyond-what seemed TO us thousands OF
electric sparks. Soon, however, oneS eyes
became accustomed TO the gloom, through
which we peered and could dimly perceive
the forms of thousands of rats, their eyes
all aglow with phosphorescent light, CLEAN
ing, glarinR and flashing toward US. AS we
gazed upon them they glared upon us.
They seemed to realize their peril and ap-
preciate their desperate condition.
The string of dogs, which, up to this
time, had been kept in the background and
were controlled with no little difficulty
were lei loose and dashed impetuously for
ward toward the hosts OF rats.
Instantaneously there was a transforms
tion scene. The whole atmosphere seemed
full of dogs and rats. The snarls and howh
Of the CANNES mingling with the screams
monium of the most appalling character.
Ii the twinkling of an eye there was q
Kaleidoscope spectacle of INDISPENSABLE con
fusion, in which the leaping, rushing to and
, fro, swapping OF teeth, snarling, yelping
barking and struggling of the dogs, to
, gether with the splashIng in the water anC
the screams, hisses and squsAls of the rat:
made a chorus Of Incompatible horror
, The echoes rang with these hideous sounds
as the struggle continued, and at times il
was almost impossible to distinguish dog
from rats as they sprang, leaped, clinched
snapped and tumbled over each other in
!. the mad contest.
The most that we could see was grim
, weird sort Of merry go-round of heads
, tails, legs. paws, teeth, claws and fur Of
rats and dogs.
, Meanwhile a wild mob of the rodents
. sought desperate escape by frantically rush
i ing for the only outlet, galloping and
scrambling in their efforts to pass where We
stood, leaping and tumbing and rolling al
, around US, with screams, Misses and hoars,
coughs, in horrid din, as we whacked a
, them with heavy clubs in merciless vigor
and also stamped them under our heavy
boots. But the struggle was brief and de-
: cisve The we'll trained thoroughbred dog
in their carnival of destruction made quick
, short, complete work with their natura
prey and besides what we failed to DESTROY
, with Our blud9eOnS yerY few esCaDet