The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-09-30
CATCHING TARANTuLAs.
How Negro Boys In the West Indies Lur,
Them with House Lizards.

Them with House Lizards.
Coming dead with the gale the
schooner Norman ran ashore and broke
to pieces near the Delaware break
water. She was just from Jamaica
with a cargo of logwood, and the sea
was soon red of the dye with which
she was loaded. The trip up had been
frightful one, and for FIVE days the
crew had stood at the pumps day and
night, until none of them carried a
shred of clothing with them when the
men of the life-sav,ng station rescued
and took them into quarters. Wild
waves and furious winds had water
logged the Norman, and she simply
drifted at the mercy of the ocean, while
the crew were begging for life. No
one was lost, and the humane savers of
lives on the shore did the best they
could to put on TO the almost exhausted
sailors something to cover their naked
ness. and then food. How gratefully
it was all received!
A colored boy OF ten years of age or
SO, should say, was the center of the
diiapidated group. He had about
enough clothes on to wad shotgun,
as l saw him. but seemed to be the
cheeriest of all the crew. He spoke
English fiuently. and talked French to
one of the sufferers and Spanish to an
other with as much ease as he con-
versed in English with me. His man
ner was self-possessed, far beyond one
of his age. and it SO attracted attention
that I aclya6 hin, ho,,+ h;c life r. ic
romantic story, and one end of it
turns upon a subject that is of ex-
ceeGing interest to the people of
this country. who now and then see
one of the insects to be talked about,
and which are a part of the medical
history of the world. The colored boy
shall tell the story of the tarantula,
that venomous offspring of the sun
which sometimes finds its way to this
country in punches of fruit brought up
from those lands which lie close under
the equator. where ''all seasons are
summer" The lad talked well in tell
ing the story of his career in the West
Indies. Here is piece of his chat:
Catching the ground spider is fun,"
said he. 1T is jumper, and when
you are trying to take it two eyes and
quick leap are necessary to get away
from it. If it is a spider it is not only
a big one, but very quick and quite
cute. 1t will attack at any time, and
in going about the country you must
keep an eye on the tarantula holes in
the ground, or one may sting you any
moment, and then, as a rule, good-by.
I've hunted them many day. for they
bring fifty cents apiece at the stores in
st. Thomas, and that is good bit to
boy who has to cast about mighty
sharp to make dime in warm coun-
try where the negroes, who are poor,
are many and the white people few.
You see, mister, our chances in the
tropics are not like they are in this
country, where there is so much to do,
and so many ways to pick up pennies
now and then at almost anything.
Fifty cents for tarantula, dead or
alive, seemed heap of money to. US
young darkies down there, and getting
bit was not thought of enough to
brighten us from the hunt after them.
eve have no other dangerous insects
or reptiles on that island except the
but there are lots of them.
You must be mighty careful in going
about not to get stung, for very few
people live if they are bit. The best
and only thing to do if you are caught
is to use the poison of the spider and
sing or play music just as soon as pos
sible. The poison puts you TO sleep al
most at once, and it is mighty hard to
get person awake afterward.
There are about ten thousand
thirteen thousand who are on
the island, and at least half of the
families keep bottle of rum with
tarantulas in it in their houses. AS
soon as they are struck if they can get
where it is quickly they may live. The
sore part is rubbed with it, and some
times they take it inwardly. But you
see, mister, the bite is apt to put them
to sleep before they can get at the
poison in the rum bottle like what is
in their body, and they are almost sure
to die"
why do they bring fifty cents
apiece" said l.
They are sent to England to be
used for medicine. That is what a
in st. Thomas told me. tie
said that it was hard for him to get
in England. | don't know how they
ix them up, but that is what the man
that | used to hunt them for told me-"
How do you catch them?"
well, mister, you see we have tall |
grass growing all over the island, and /
when we go hunting we pick some OF ii !
and take it along. When we get where |!
-he tarantula holes are we just strip /
The head off of piece of this grass, /
make loop in the end and slip it over /
The head of one of these harmless I
house lizards, of which there are thou !
sands You find them everywhere, even /
n the houses They won't hurt any
body, and we pay nc attention to them /
When one is caught just take him to 1
he hole. drop him in u little way and /
he big spider comes up quickly after
lin. Just pull him slowly away from
he hole and the tarantula comes along. /
i on have the house lizard in one hand I
| single in the other. You put your
DOT over the hole and throw the shin
rle over the tarantula, ii you can Each
)ne is worth fifty cents dead or aliye,
( you don't break his body. You have
% strike him just right every time to
ret the fifty cents. Then you put him
n a bottle with a big neck and go look
ng for another hole. and there do just
Is you did before
''Supposing that he strikes you?"