The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1893-05-07
SNAKE CHARMING.
Ingenious Tricks Played by the Profess
sional Fakfr of the Orient.


II can tell you something interesting
about snakes in India" said Capt. w.
Tottenham, of the India army, recent
ly Il have made a special study of
snakes in that country. As a result
got at the bottom of the great snake
cilarmer frauds. and also. Think, made
an important discovery in connection
with the cure of venomous snake bites.
At least | never failed in my expert
ments.
when l was stationed at Kurmaul,
in the northwest provinces of India,
occupied the usual officers bungalow.
with huge garden around the build
ing. One day my servants complained
of the snakes in the garden and asked
if they might send for 4 snake charmer.
Of course | agreed. The usual profess
sional appeared and l consented to the
usual terms-ffty cents head for each
snake caught. Then he set to work and
l followed and watched him closely.
''He went to the stable first and COM
menced blowing horn. Presently a
snake came crawling out Of hole and
made toward him. He suddenly
grabbed it by the neck and put it into
a basket. This was repeated three
times. Once he got a bite on the
knuckle. They were all cobras from
three to four feet long and l watched
for results. He pulled a pebble from
his pocket. mumbled some insinua-
tions over it, and then bound it over
his wound, which he showed me. l
only chuckled. Two things had struck
me forcibly. One was that cobras do
not climb of their own accord. They
are ground snakes. Again it struck
me that he seemed TO know where to
go for his snake each time. ! ordered
him to catch some more, but he de-
clared that was all. / If sisted on his
trying and he marched around blow
ing his horn, but no more snakes came.
Then thought it time to turn the
tables. / paid him over the three ru-
PEGS and seized the basket with the
three snakes. He looked alarmed |
sent for nv sword and block of wood.
He asked me what / was going to do.
| told him that the snakes were mine
bv right of purchase and l was going
to cut off their heads. He fell on his
knees and writhed at my feet as only a
Hindoo can, imploring me to have mercy
upon him. | consented to give him
back his snakes if he would make a
clean and open confession to me. He
did So He said it was their custom in
the trade to go out at the proper season
and hunt mother cobra with her
brood.
"They kill the mother and capture
the fifteen to twenty little five-inch
snakes which constitute the brood.
They are too Young to be harmful.
Then they pull out the two eye
teeth. which are the fangs that
kill. Then they set to work to
train the snakes. They feed them
on a basin of milk, and blow
the horn when feeding time arrives.
| After three or four months the snakes
| got to understanding the signal and
| come from all parts of the room to feed
at the basin. BY this time they are
| grown up to decent size, and all read J
| for business.
! ''The charmer goes round the night
| before and plants his snakes in differ
ent places. Next day he approaches
! the premises casually and offers to rid
| the place of snakes at fifty cents a
head Invariably his offer is accepted,
as you can understand. Then he goes
and blows his horn. The snakes, which
are all starving with hunger, promptly
come to the well-llnown call for food,
and then he catches and pouches them.
No one wants snakes particularly, and
his humble supplication to take away
ably assented to by the goodna-
tured Anglo-Indian. In the course of
a week he makes a good deal of money"
Boston Traveller.