The Portland daily press., 1894-02-05
LIZARDS THE GIRLS WEAR.
The Bergh Society Will Try to Stop the
Sale of Them.

The sale OF little green lizards for or
naments was ordered stopped yesterday.
The Society for the Prevention of Cruel
ty to Animals gave the order and says it
will be enforced. The wearing of these
pretty animals tethered with gilt
chain to stick pin has been fad of
the winter among the girls. I he young
men, too, who wanted to be quite up to
date, have worn them similarly fastened
to their scarf pins. Many of the big dry
goods houses have had the lizards on
sale, and those dealers in mems furnish
ing goods who try to lead in every new
style have done rushing business in
them. They were sold as American
chameleons, name for which there is
some authority in the books. Their
popularity arises from the fact that like
the chameleon they have the power of
changing their color.
ave had to stop it," said the superin-
tendent of the society. people who
bought the lizards treated them as
though they were senseless articles of
jewelry. The dealers kept them cruelty
chained up, and did not feed them or
protect them from the cold. They died
by hundreds. The ladies danced through
the night, though their little pets lay
dying on their breasts. I went to the
Palestine Commandery ball the other
night, and saw lady with very low
cut dress. | saw one of the crawling
little creatures on the lace of her dress,
and at first was going to touch her arm
and tell her she had some foreign sub
stance on her. Just in time realized
that it was chameleon, as they call
them. On looking around the room |
counted half dozen of them on as many
girls For my part don't see how any
woman can wear such thing. AS to
the right of the society to stop the traffic
we went over all that ground a few years
ago when it was the fad to wear Brazil
ian beetles attached to a pin by chain.
We succeeded in stopping that"
A French dealer in novelties on Broad
way near the Society's Offices said he had
sold thousands of the lizards before the
agents of the Society interfered. When
the agents first spoke to him about it he
liberated all his lizards, and made an
enclosed space for them in his show
window, with dish of sweetened water
for them TO drink. At first he charged
SO cents for them, then 81 cents as trade
grew brisk, and finally, to meet the COM
petition, he reduced the price to 81 cents.
Yesterday he had offers of 81 for a lizard,
but declined. The women who came to
buy sometimes expressed anger at the
Society, and other women. who had al
ready purchased, were delighted to dis
cover that their precious pets were rare
and valuable.
JOSEF called the dealer to one of a
group of pretty saleswoman, shave you
got George with you?
The youngest of the group came up
smiling. She wore an Elton jacket.
She threw back the left flap of the jack
ct, and, reaching with her right hand
around under her left arm, she drew ont
a specimen of the American chameleon.
The lizard was fully seven inches long
from tip to tip, but all except two inch
es of head and body was slender, tap
ering tail. He was of light green color,
with patch of brown down his back.
Josie held him up to her lips and made
them smack. "Chirp! chirp! George"
she said, and the little monster blinked
with one eye. us he not pretty ?" she
asked the reporter. "You may touch
tame OF course, he knows me- He
knows his name, too. Chirp. chirp!
George See, he lifts his head. See,
he wants .me,,to stroke him under the
chin. He Hikes that" and the lizard
held up his inc ad as though he found the
petting entirely to his taste.
She did not.have him fastened with
chain. She said it was unnecessary. She
could always find him, and he was a
good boy George was. Then. she stroked
him with ONE fnger,along the, under side
of his neck, which he craned back so far
you would have thought it was going to
break. She said he had not eaten any
thing for day. She was afraid he was
sick. She saiid some accident had hap
pened to onetof his eyes, and it seemed