The Middleburgh post. [volume] (Middleburgh, Snyder Co., Pa.) 1883-1916, 1893-07-27

NNHN"o'NNf DNh ~ tthiDth Wht thlft1
up and / determined ! wouldn't be
beaten. SO, after few moments.
stepped again into the cage, caught
them both round the backs of their
necks, dragged them as quickly as |
could to the edge OF the cage and then
between us We flung them into the box.
Had not my assistants been near me
nothing could have saved me from be-
ing squeezed 20 death. Ali il was n
terrible adventure" continued Mr..
Hngenbeck, "and don't want a simi-
lar experience again. Now come and
look at my alligators and will tell you
of nm adventure had with them"
Passing by an enormous aviary. in
which fiuttered and screamed thou.
sands of beautiful parrots. we came q.
last to large tank in which were slow
ly padding round some spitcful look
ing nlligators. There" said Mr.
Hagenbeck, rs he pointed to the cruel
looking beasts, 81 had n ghastly ad.
venture with them once. / had to
pack sixteen OF them mp for the Dus-
seldorf geological Gardens. I grappled
hold of the first one and WAS pulling
him ashore. vixen he gave frighful
blow with his tail and knocked me into
the tank. where for brief moment, |
was alone with fifteen alligators
Those who were standing by told me
that as soon ~ | splnshed in number
of them made n rush. However. / was
out again like an India rubber
ball but the whirl of the water and
the open jaws of the disappointed
beasts told me that | had not been one
second too smart. This was very
narrow escape us il one of the croco.
diles had happened to get hold of me-
all the rest would have attacked me
swapping and biting Mt me at one and
the same moment, until there would
have been nothing left of me at all.
"Alligotors are the most determined
fighters even amongst themselves
Six of them, each about fourteen feet
long. had II frighful fight amongst
themselves once. and so desueratelv
did they fight tha. within fourteen
days they were all dead. Three q.
them had their jaws broken, and ia
some cases their legs were torn right
out of their bodies. This occurred at
night, and one of the keepers. happen.
ing to hear the frightful noise which
was made by the clashing of their jaws,
rushed OF To tell me what was happen
ing. We liz our liant arns and hurried
90 the scene of action, but beyond try.
ing TO separat, them with long poles it
was littlo we could do. They would
only renew the .igh. with greater
fiercenes8 than ever, AMI SO terribly
were they wounded that, MS 1 said,
they were NIL dead in II fortnight
Now, when | get new consignment
of alligators | always muzzle them for
four days with arope; they then calm
down and | cut tine rope of; other.
wise, if ! did not do that they would
begin fighting as soon as they came
out of the box, for the first sight of
daylight after the long journey always
seem to excite them.
"a fight amongst the snakes, also. is
n terrible thing. l had once five big
pythons, each over sixteen feet long,
IN one cage. One of the keepers flung
in dead rabbit amongst them. and
two of them, being very hungry, at.
tackled it Mt once. AT the same mo-
mcnt the other four flew at them and
IN one moment all the six were in one
writhing lump. The keeper fetched
me and ! Mt once attempted To uncoil
them. | succeeded but hardly had |
done SO, when the fight began between
the first two. The larger one threw
his tail round the small ones neck and
squeezed il with such force against the
wall that it lost all power, then the
bigger snake got hold of the rabbit
and swallowed II. after which il
gradudly looseneI its hold of the
smaller snake. Then came revenge
the small snake flew at the big one.
which was rendered almost helpless by
Is huge meal. bit IL in the back,
coiled round AMI round il, and
squeezed il till il could hardly breathe,
although II screamed rs 1 had never
heard any living creature scream be-
fore. When | went 10 see them next
morning they We're all right and per
fectly good friends
II was once turned out of bed at
o'clock III the morning by one of my
Keepers who came in with the news
that the big kangaroo had jumped a
siX-foot fence into the next stable, in
which there was large hippotamus.
When | came down there was most
wonderful fight going ON. The kanga-
roo stood up to his belly in water,
whilst the hippopotamus, with wide,
open jaws, snapped ut him right and
left, However, the kangaroo managed
TO get in good right aud lett with
his from. legs, and scratched the hip
popotamUs IN the face tremendously.
When the hipopotamus came to close
quarters, the kangaroo jumped mp,
gave him tremendous blow with his
hind legs, and tn sn managed TO get on
to'dry land. | caught the kangaroo
with big net, and for all the fighting
there wasn't very huch harm done"
just rs Mr.. Hlganbecd finished talk.
ing the polar bear nj our rear begun
growing. Mr., Hagenbecl went mp to