Blackfoot news. (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1891-1902, 1893-07-01
DEATH FROM HIS BITE.
the oiLA MONSTER DOES NOT
MAKE A SAFE PET.
A Man Lost Ills Arm Playing with One
An Arizona Catrieman Reeouats
some Ugly Experiences
with the Reptile.

rattle fahcn IN AtlEouas A+-u AAs''
a bakers dozen years riding over
that country. has employed part Of /.
his time in studying the habits o. the
mysterious and uncanny beast OF the
desert, the ella monster He tells
some blood -eurdling tales OF the eff
teets OF its bite. writes New York
sun correspondent
There are many people down IN !.
TINT country, he says, .'who don't be-
lieye that the ella monsters bite Is
poisonous There's something queer 7
about that. too. I've known good .
many eases in which the bad effect .
81 the bite were triAing. ana some IN T.
which there were no evil effects al :
all And then again. I've known
some cases that were fatal. and some
that were 50 CHASTITY in their results
that when look at their weird, gro
tesque reptile, and think Of them.
can't help a shiyery sort Of feeling
about the heart rs il il were the rein
carnation OF some ma.eyOlent old
witch
.sFor instance. there was case 81
a bartender in Benson some years
ago. He had a pet ella monster that
he kept in a box on the bar. and
sometimes he would let il out and
play with it. He would put one fin
ger in its mouth and drag II UP and
down the bar. and the thing seemed
TO enter into the fun and would hold
back and wiggle its tail and appear
as pleased as dog. | told him once
that be was taking great chances.
and that some day the monster would
bite him Just as sure a. fate But he
only laughed at the idea 81 its biting
him lit knew him 50 well and even
if it should bite he didn't think il
would be poisonous.
We'll. one day ne put his finger in
its mouth when Il didn't happen 10
feel goodnatured. and IL sent its
teeth to the bone it, jaws closed
down like a wise, and the men in the
saloon couldn't pry them open u
just sat there and blinkcd its wicked
little eyes at them and held on. and
they had TO cut its head Of before
they could make il let %. That
poor fellows arm soon began 70
swell. and he suffered intense pain in
his arm and hand and in his back
And after a while the flesh began 10
shrivel and the muscles 90 become
weak. and inside u three months the
whole arm, from the shoulder down.
was as shrireled and helpless as a
paralytic's. That was some four or
FIVE years ago. but his arm remains
in that condition 20 this dag. and
there's no prospect that he ever
have the use Of il. There was no
permanently III effect. nothing but
the temporary pain. in any other part
Of his body
There was fatal case at a little
town on ms ranch pnly few weeks
ago A monster was confined in a
box, and vaquero came up and
began teasing it aud swapping hi.
fingers at il through the Stats in the
top Of the box. lie angered the
reptile. and presently II bit him. and
in half an hour he was dead
Then there was the Gaze Of Walter
Vale. one Of the wealthiest and best
cattle men in Arizona. He saw /;
big ella monster when he was out OF
horseback. and thought he wOulC
capture il as present for a friend HI
beat it over the head till he though
. he had killed IT, and then strapped /
on behind his saddle. But thes,
: reptiles are a. hard 70 kill as a cat
They have a queer habit Of com
/ ing to life again after you are per
i fectly sure you have killed them
, That is what this one did b. tn
q time Vale got home he had forgotten
all about the ella behind the saddle
i He put his hand back to dismouni
( and the things jaws closed down o
Z. his forefnger. lie called 70 some q
!. his men. and they ran to him an
/ tried to pry the monsters jaws oper
Z but they couldn't make II let 70
< and finally they had 10 cut its hea
/. of and pry its mouth open with iro
!. spikes
\ The first thing Mr. Vale did, eve
Il before he got his fingers loose, wa
j. 70 send one Of his men on fires
= horse to Pantano the nearest railroa
= town. thirty miles away. to Telegram
to Tucson for a physician 10 como 0
II special engine ~ Pautano. wher
" he himself would meet him The
,e ne bound his wrist and his fnge
n. with leather thongs. and with hi
penknife cut the flesh around III
bite. BY that time fresh horse ha
been saddled for him. and he lcapc
u upon its back and dartcd Off on thi
ls terrible thirty ride for his liT,
Of He rode the whole distance at
ID break-neck gallop. suffering much a
Il the time from the tightly tied thong
a. "He had not gone more than ha
Of the distance when the poison bega
ly TO make itself felt Dartlng pair
ID shot all through his body, he fe
is sore and weary and the pains in h
he back became excruciating. But h
al tirellly reached Pantano and the do
~ tor was only few minutes late
lc His first question was, have ga
ig taken any whiskyg and when Va
ugfI 10