The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1892-10-27
VENEZUELA SUGGESTIONS.
Women. 1t Is Believed, Bring Death to q
Snake bitten Person.

men of the Alto Orinoco? Probably
even the natural history experts of
New York are trifle.hazy on this point
In Venezuela there are all manner of
snakes, from the deadly twelve-inch
coral snake, whose bite is DEATH to the
tiger-striped hunting snake and the boa
constructor. Most persons in New York
know the habits of the boa constructor,
but know nothing of the tiger hunter,
which is quite as remarkable in its
way. Nothing will better illustrate the
point than the story of an actual occur
renee in this modern age of science and
civilization.
While the English railroad from Tue
acas to Barquisimeto was under con-
struction an Englishman holding an
important position in the work was Bit
ten by rattlesnake there known as the
culebra). The man was forthwith
taken to the English quarters and put
to bed While the English doctor was
being summoned the wives of the En-
glishmen at work on the road hustled
about and tried to do what they could
to help the sufferer. In the midst OF
the confusion a native came running in
with the kind-hearted intention of cur
ing the man.
Turn all the women out" said he.
"What the devilr' said the English.
mans friends. what for?"
''Their eyes are DEATH" explained the
native. "The man will not live if they
look upon him."
With that the Englishman turned the
native out of the house, and the bitten
man himself declared that if the En-
glish doctor could not cure him no SUI
perstitious native could. The physician
came in hot haste and w orked until the
perspiration ran down his face in little
streams. The women lowered around
and did what they could In exactly
two hours and half the man was dead.
The kind-hearted native heard of it,
shrugged his shoulders and went his
way.
On the following day a native laborer
was very badly bitten by rattlesnake
near the same place. He was not of
sufficient account for the we'll paid En-
glish doctor to bother with, so the ma.
tive laborers carried him off to house
and turned all the women out and sent
for herbs and leaves and such things.
They worked at him for an hour or SO
in the way that the natives and Indians
know, and the next day he was back at
work as though nothing had happened.
The thick-headed Englishmen could not
explain this, and they cannot do SO even
to this day.
Here is another story on the same
subject. A native woman's ten-year-
, son was bitten most frightfully by some
SOFT of venomous serpent Did she rush
tohim, clasp him in her arms, and try
, tocure him? Not she. The only thing
that she did was to send for her hus-
bind, and to hide herself and her fe-
male servants far away from the suffer-
ing lads presence. Her husband and a
heighbor or two hustled about and
. looked after the boy, and it was only on
the third day that she looked upon her
son. If she had looked upon him while
the snakes poison was in his blood the
natives had no doubt her eyes would
have caused him to vomit blood and die
Yet this woman loved her boy with all
a mothers devotion.
When the exposition was held at Ca
racas in 1888, the year of the Bolivar
centennial, two men from some remote
inland place had on exhibition box
full of exceedingly venomous reptiles.
Merely to look at these poisonous
snakes was enough to make one shud-
der. One day when the place was
crowded the box was overturned, and
five of the ugly things got out and be-
gan to run about in a remarkably lively
sort of way. A tiger let loose would
not have created half the excitement
and confusion. People went raving mad
in their desire to get away. Tables,
chairs and show cases were overturned
by the frantic mob, and for time it
looked as though half the crowd would
/ be bitten to death or trampled under
foot before they could get away.
The man who told this story pulled
off his coat and threw it over one of the
= snakes and the two snake exhibitors
4 caught the others in their naked hands
, One of the men was bitten several
/ times-so badly bitten, in fact, that il
I seemed to be impossible that he could
live twenty minutes.
e His companion knew just exactly
c what to do and did it. In the first
!; place he called for blankets or pieces OF
y cloth or anything that he could get,
:. and with feverish haste he wrapped up
=, his bitten companion completely out OF
4 sight This was done with haste that
well nigh amounted to madness. Then
the helpless man was carried across the
street to his hotel and put to bed. His
:, companion worked over him for two
h hours, and at the end of that time
S rested with a sigh of relief.
: "Why did you wrap him up in such
haste?" asked the man who told this
o story.
ITO keep him away from the eyes OF
: the women" replied the snake exhib'
itor.
What was the danger?"
IF women had looked upon him he
: would have vomited blood and died be.
fore we could have got him half way
l across the street"
This strange superstition is not con.
!, fined to Vehezuela by any means. The