The Hood River glacier. (Hood River, Or.) 1889-1933, 1893-02-25
NO. 80.
RATTLEsNAKEs ARE HIS LIVING.
Five Times Bitten, but Not Ready TO
Abandon His Vocation.

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The popular idea is that a rattle
snake is curse to mankind and of
absolutely no use, except possibly to
give the male contingent in camping
and picnic parties an excuse for pro-
xiding a well known serpent bite
antidote. Andrew Akers, a white
haired examiner, who occasionally
comes to town from his lonely home
away up in the San Bernardino noun
tains, tells us that the rattlesnake is,
In its way, blessing to mankind.
Il reckon ought to know some
thing about the serpents, " said he the
other day, ''for l have earned the
whole living Of myse'f and wife for
several years in catching rattlers and
getting the oil out Of them. / know
some folks are mighty scary about
rattlesnakes, and for one who don't
know about the critters ways it is
pretty risky ness-getting fanged
by rattler. occasionally getnerv-
Gus among the rattlers. but l have to
keep a steady nerve and quick eye in
my business"
The old gentleman tells us that he
had always heard how valuable pure
rattlesnake oil is, and that several
years ago he got the oil from dozen
snakes that he came across in his
woodcutting operations in the noun
tains. When the summer was over
he had twenty ounces, and got two
dollars an ounce for all of it from a
Los Angeles druggist. He has since
made a business of hunting rattle
snakes up and down the mountain
sides and through the canyons. He
catches from $50 to 200 snakes in a
summer, and generally gathers from
$500 to $400 worth of oil from them.
The market price for the product is
two dollars an ounce, and there is
little fuctuation Rattlesnake oil is
used in rheumatic cures and in oint-
ments for some skin diseases. The
oil when sold has a pearly white
color and is free from any odor. It
tastes much like tallow. A good
sized rattlesnake will furnish from
one to two ounces of oil.
How do | catch the snakesi
Well, that is easy enough. Iwear
boots up above my knees SO as to
protect me from any rattler l may
tread upon, and always go with Q
strong forked stick or club in my
hand. / have to keep my wits about
me constantly, and to think quick
when am in snake locality and
hear rattle. ! always try to get
the rattlers by putting the fork of
my stick over their neck as quick as
flash, and then l have the critter
Just where | want him. l next
strangle the snake by pressing my
fingers down upon the neck. I get
the rattlers in this way so as to keep
them from biting themselves, and
thereby letting the poison into the
oil that l am after. In nine cases
out of ten rattlesnakes will bite
themselves if they have a chance,
and they are the smartest things
alive, except human beings. Once
in awhile l get the rattlers by
smashing them in the head, but I
don't like that way, for it's more
dangerous and the oil is not so good.
Have l ever been bitten7 Yes,
five times, and I suffered so much
the last time that all the money on
earth would not induce me to be
poisoned so again. That was four
years ago, and can feel pains from
it to this day. I don't believe any
one ever fully recovered from dose
of genuine rattlesnake poison. It 10
the most awful stuff on earth. I
have seen great big COWS die Of q
drop of the poison in an hours
time. Pomona (Cal.) Progress