The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-12-03
A RhTrLEsN1xE HUNTERS STORY.
More Than 5000 Snake. the Testimony to
His ProwesS.

More Than 5000 Snakes the Testimony 70
Els ProwesS.
SCRANTON, Dec 2-Mr. Clark Goodrich. OF
1913 South Sumner avenue. In the HYDE lnrR
section OF Scranton. hos killed more rattle
snakes than any other man In PennsyiVnhih.
Mr.. Goodrich was born and brought up III
Greenfield township. this county. and Is U0
years old. He is six feet tall and weighs 100
pounds. Very few Of his acuuaintances know
what grcat rattlesnake slayer he has beeh'
for he is not much Of q talker and I've ap-
pears to imagine that his experiences
among tho poisonous snakes arc OF no
particular interest to people. Mr. 9ooa-
rich is u coal breaker builder by trade
He has boon hurt by falling from scn,iolds
several times. and the injuries have crlppieu
him considerably. fIc Is now In the employ
Of the Now York. Ontario and Western hni'-
road Company Of it's switch and signal station
near the diamond crossing. short distance
north OF the Providence road Ono night last
week the writer found Mr.. Goodrich working
tho levers In his cosey little lookout mousse.
and between trains the old man found time to
toll some Of his experiences. -.
II have killed upward OF ). 900 rattlesnakes."
he said. and was on the hunt for every ono
OF them when killed It. The only rattlesnake
that ever came anywhere near striking me got
angry because l unintcntionally stepped on
Its tail and struck tho front OF my vest with
its fangs and left thread OF greenish poison
omit. The snake didn't get chance to strike
again. for pinned 1t to the ground and cut its
head of.
THE reason why began to hunt rattle-
snakes was because my mother had three
small cancers on her faco when WAS quite a
young man. The cancers smarted and burned
and gave mother q great deal OF pain. al-
though the skin was not raw. and she suffered
from them day and night An Indian doctor
told her to rub rattlesnake oil on the cancers
four or Ave times day. saying that 1t would
give her relief Immediately and prolong her
life. I went twenty miles for some oil and
paid So an ounce for 1t. It stopped tho smart
ing and burning right away. and mother felt
my mnd t 70 get enough oil to last her
ana - didn't to go Twenty mics 10 got
There were no rattlesnakes In Greenfield
township. the nearest rattlesnake grounds be-
Ing on tile Moosie Mount lin range. between
. rnttlesnake. but l heard Of an old rattlesuake
hunter on the mountain near the Pennsylvania
stI Of iS Nay trudsed iiiteea miles to his houss
to get him to teach mo howto hunt the rspttles.
He couldn't go with me- but he showed me how
erotched stick. and he pointed out Q rocky
side Of the mountain. vii he said. would
That was all the instruction had. and before
noon was convinced that the old snake hunt
all hSSts and hauns
suocessia ,It one ever had. NY only imp Gs.
knife. and quart bottle. l had the bottle to
put the fat In. the So ling to catch the snakes
os
ss o0y than TO hs dem
the middle Of the afternoon. The bottle wasn't
half big enough to hold aIl tho fat took out
box to put the rest in. It was long after dark
when got home with the fat ! had walked
nearly forty miles and killed 1S4 rattlesnakes
since 4 in the morning. and l was tired and
proud. tried out twenty ounces Of oil.
i" The only fat in ratt!esnake lies in q slen-
each side Of the intestines near the backbone.
It takes but minute e slit the snakes bs!ly
Is wSe as m Savs u try
that are LEFT amo%nt to "a almost nSthipg There
snake, have heard about men hanging rat
tlesnakes up by the head in the sun 80 as to
nothing but nonsense in such = statement as
| that Let q rattlesnaks hang in tho hot sun
and drop 81 oil KoSd s Sat
In the sun for two days and 1t would become
pieces like . rotten stick;
I'm ny ef sE With Mathematics have
alter they com. out q their dsns in tho spring
and when they congrsgate near the dens in
as they have when they return for their win
tors sleep, In the summer the snakes are
hunt them then The The rattiesnates leave their
dens from the 9Th to the 10Th OF May. and stay
to them T yest DAYS to
become satisfied that there are going to be %
more cold snaps they wander away. and they
some time between the middle Of. ,Septem Der
pd the AR rst IF rhsy
while they ar. waiting outsids in arg. mum.
to kIll them; l have been in berry fields
in the summer. but have never yet seen u
rattLesnake except when was hunting for him.
fss da 81 had on nls
hr in , SasSes aa asy
twenty.tRres ratties. That was r. largest
comes upon the rattlesnakss when they are
coiled. when they are stretched out. and whom
them and have always BEEN eate able blew to act
quicker than the snake could. have leased
and tormented hundreds Of rattlesnakes to
never succeeded in making one strike itself.
They ottener strike at persons without rat
| ting than with. The snake uses its rnttles
when 1t Is startled and for calling it's mate
and have frequently seer. male snakes rat
| Ting like sixty when no other snake was In
| sight and when nothing had scared it.
Mother used the, oil on hcr cancers for
eleven years. It kept the cnncsrs from spread.
ing, and 1t relieved her entirely OF pain. She
snakes nearly every spring and fall for Their
oil. There Is fascination In the work. and
one, who has got In the habit OF killing the
| snakes can hardly give it up"
| TOPICS ABOUT TOUN.
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