Lawrence democrat. (Lawrenceburg, Tenn.) 1884-1925, 1894-09-07
SOME ARIZONA REPTILES.
Unpleasant Creatures, But Not as Dead,
ms They Arc Cracked I'm to Be.


ms They Arc Cracked Up to BE.
''It's sure death to be bitten by a
tarantula. Such is the general inn
preston among people who have a
limited acquaintance with them" said
the campaigner from the southwest.
But think that my experience in
Arizona, covering period of five
years will not substantiate that state
ment.
had my largest experience with
tarantulas while on the Geronimo
campaign during 1896, and one night
while in camp at Guadalupe canyon a
man by the name of Mahoney was bit
ten on the arm by tarantula, whose
body was as large as walnut. The
only evil effect was swelling of the
arm, which went down in "a few days
without any recource to medicines or
drugs of any kind.
st might be well to add that in the
morning Mahoney found the dead
tarantula on his arm, where he had
smashed it during the night.
"Where we were camped WIS really
in Mexico, although the boundary line
was so close that it might be called mo
mans land. We were guarding wa.
ter hole and sending out scouts every
day to communicate with the troops
east and west of us, the whole thing
being a chain through which the hos
tiles had to pass on their way to Mexi
co or the United States. Troop G was
on the moth side of the water hole
and mine Il on the south, while a little
further up was the camp of our Indian
scouts. The rocks about were literally
alive with centipedes, tarantulas, scor
pions and skunks, yet no precautions
whatever were taken to guard against
them. | never knew of man, woman
or child in Arizona dying through be
ing bitten.
Pud' Griffin, of H, used to catch
tarantulas with his fingers, catching
them in the same way that boy viii
catch a bee, by grasping him firmly
about the center of his body where the
joint is.
"Centipedes are the worst thing il
Arizona next to the RATHER, and righ'
here ! want to say that was much in
terested at reading story, / think i
was in the sun, of hold-up where {
centipede crawled up a mans leg, ant
all the terror he felt because he dar,
not move for fear of being shot, and h,
expected to feel the centipede sink it,
feet in him at any moment, and tina
he knew was instant death. 1t wa
well written, and brought out tn,
wonderful courage of the man in mic,
style. But it wasn't so. If that cent?
pede had grabbed him he would hav,
yelled blue h, and grabbed hi
leg, gun or no gun. Then if the stag
robbers didn't shoot him first, his les
would have swelled little, and wher
the claws or feet sunk in the fiesl
would rot or drop out, and that woul'
have been the end of it. So far as hi
being near deaths door and all that
if he never dies until centipede kill
him he'll have to swallow one, and thel
get it in his death trap.
But they are nasty things, sur
enough, and wherever they crawl OIL
you they leave red mark, whicl
burns and itches like sin for a few
hours.
The rattlesnake is the piece-de
resistance of the Arizona menu. He
a scrapper, and there's lots of him.
know nice little place near the Sui
phur Spring valley where thirty o
forty nice big fellows may be bagge,
any time. These rattlesnakes must b
a different breed from those of tn
snake professor in Florida, of whor
one writer says that they are never ag
gressive. Well the snakes | hav
reference to seem to be under STANDING
orders to strike whenever anything
moves. They won't get out of you
way nor your horses way, but look a
you with steady eye, and when yo
come within reach they strike.-N. Y
Sun.