Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1893-12-08

broke TO pieces near the Delaware
Breakwater. She was just from
Jamaica with cargo of logwood, and
the sea was soon red of the dye with
Thich she was loaded. No one was
lost, and tho humane savers Of lives
on the shore did the best they could
to put on to the almost exhausted
sailors something to cover their
nakedness, ard then food How
gratefully it was all received
A colored boy OF 10 years Of age
or so, | should say, was the centre Of
the dilapidated group. He had about
enough clothes on TO wad shotgun,
as / saw him. but seemed to be the
cheeriest of all the crew.
The lad talked we'll in telling the
story of his career in the West In
dies. The Philadelphia Times gives
piece of his chat.
Catching the ground spider is
fun" said he. ut is a Jumper and
when you are trying to take it. two
eyes and quick leap are necessary
to get away from it. If it is q spider,
it is not only 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, goodbye I've
hunted them many a day, for they
bring fifty cents apiece at the stores
in st. Thomas, and that is good
bit TO a boy who has tr east about
mighty sharp to make a dime, in a
warm country, 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 tarantuia dead or alive, seemed
heap of money to us young dar5ies
down there, and getting bit was not
thought of enough to frighten us
from the hunt after them.
I'VE have no other dangerous in
sActs or reptiles on that island. ex-
cept the tarantula but there are lots
of them. You must be mighty care
full 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 get caught is to use the poison
of the spider and sing or play music
just as soon as possible. The poison
puts you to sleep almost at once and
it is mighty hard to get a person
awake afterwards"
There are about 10000 of my
race on st. Thomas of the 1900 who
are on the island, and at least half
the families keep a 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
IL and sometimes they take it inward
ly. 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 bodies, and then
they are almost sure to die. "
why do they bring fifty cents
apiece?" | asked.
They are sent to England TO be
used for medicine. That is what
merchant in St Thomas told me. lie
said it was hard for him TO get
enough, for lots of them were wanted
In England. : Cont know how they
fix them up; but that is what the
man that l 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 30 hunting we pick
some of it and take il along. When
we get whore tarantula holes are we
( just strip off the head of piece OF
this grass, make loop in the end
and slip it over the head of one of
these little harmless house lizards OF
which there are thousands. You find
them everywhere, even in the houses.
They won't hurt any body and we pay
no attention to them. When one is
caught, Just take him to the hole.
drop him in n little way, and the big
spider comes up quickly after him.
just pull him slowly away from the
hole and the tarantula comes along.
You have the house lizard in one
hand shingle in the other. and
hlnh VI TURN dAOuliAlt gOu pNb CHA
/ foot over the hole and throw the
single over the tarantula, if you can.
/ Each one is worth fifty cents dead or
alive. if you don't break his body.
You have to strike him just right
! to get the fifty cents Then put him
/ in a bottle with big neck and go
! looking for another hole and there
do just the same rs you did before.
"Supposing that he strikes you ?"
"Well you must be mighty quick
when you hit him, and look sharp all
| the time after he follows the lizard
out of the hole, for he has his eye
on you as we'll as on the lizard II
he gets on to you then there is
trouble, and nothing can save you
except that poisoned rum l told you
about and constant playing on some
kind of musical instrument or sing
/ ing some well-known song But
everything has 10 be Done with great
! pnfplrna1g H., l. tftf,., %. IL