The Van Buren press., 1895-02-09
RATTLESNAKEY PARADISE.
Southern Arizona Is tho Reptiles
FavOrite Breeding Ground.
Experiences Of "lsAttief Jim" Davis. the
Most Celebrated sHake Killer OF the
soathwest-Efficacy of Whisky
as an AntldOte,


rs an Antldote.
There is no locality in the union,
SO Prof. Henry Palmer, Of the Smith
sonian institution says. that is SO nat.
urai . breeding-ground for the rattle
snake : the Crotalus horridus-as
southern Arizona. Similar authority
is quoted to the effect that there Is
scarcely more venomous reptile In
the country than the bloated rattlcr
OF this region. Tho rocks Of the
mountains and foothills are q heavy
yellow and gray color and the soil is
SO nearly the hues Of Il rattlcr that
snake can move slowly along and be
hardly perceived by person fifty feet
away. The hot, dry air, and the warm,
sandy earth, through ut least ten
months In the year, and the immense
quantity of small birds and ground
squirrels In the mountain canyons and
brush. all combine to make life for
rattlesnates In this region one of rare
ease md comfort for many long year.
There are literally tens of thousands
OF rattlers in the sage brush and chap
arral along the edge of the southern
Arizona wastes They grow to enor.
nous size, and 1t is common to read in
the local newspapers Of this part of
the territory items OF news OF the cap
ture OF rnttlesnakes Eve and six feet
long md with fourteen and fifteen
rattles. Localities and objects OF ma
ture all over the territory have been
named from the serpcnts. There are
rattlcsnake canyons, rattlcsnal,e Or
royos, rattlesnake creeks, rattlesnake
mountains and rattlesnake gulches
Over at Maricopa On old fellow has
named his dispensary of intoxicants
after tho most venomous American
snakes, and Rattlesnake Koost,"
painted In clumsy letters, stands In
bold relief over the door.
The best informed man in regard to
rattlers in this part Of the territory is
acknowledged to be Jim Davis. He is
about sixty-five years old, and has
lived on the border Of civilization for
fifty years. He Is one of the large
army of men who were eternally de-
moralized by the gold booms in Cali
fornia years ago, and became relegated
to devil-may.care, independent and
happy-go-iucky way Of getting his liv-
ing by using his gun and by travelling
across the mountains and over the val
leys with blanket pnd skillet across
his back. Everyone says that for un-
adulterated snake information there's
no one like "Rattler jim"
"Do I know much about rattle
snakes?" said the old man as he sat
tipped back In chair, sucking vile
corncob pipe, in q saloon in Benson,
A. T., the other day. "You bet yer
life know thing or two about 'em.
I've killed thousands of 'em. I've been
here In this snake country Just close
onto twenty-four years, and never
have been out Of it. could sit all
night and keep telling you something
new every minute about rattlesnalses.
Goshl how l hate the varmints. I
never miss trying to kill 'em of, but
it's about useless tryin' to clear out
this yere country Of rattlers They
breed so darncd easy. Every female
rattler is good for thirty or forty rat
tlesnakes year, SO I've about given
up tryin' to do anything more at snake
KILN.
This is the dryest year we've had in
long time in this end Of the territory,
and it's an awful season for snakes. 1t
is so dry and we have had terrible hot
weather since May. These here locust
bugs are all over the country, and they
buzz just like the rattlers. Whenever
Pm out hunting and kick bush
whole swarm of locusts, buzzin' for oil
they're worth, come flying out. Their
singin' puts me Off my guard, because
can't hear the rattlesnakes rattlin'.
Pm most afraid to hunt at all now, for
you know it's just about certain sure
death for an old white man like me to
get Arizona rattlesnake venom in his
body ut the end of long summer. I'd
rather be shot plumb through the chest
any day than to take chances on
pullin' through q pizenin' by desert
rattlcr, when he is puffed up plumb full
Of rizen as they are now. At some
seasons of tho year there amt any
where near as much danger from rat
tlesnales
But Arizona rattlesnakes amt near
SO dangerous in some ways as them
used to be back in the mountains of
Pennsylvania and Ohio. The desert
rattlers are fat and lazy. They amt
got no fight in 'em. They amt got no
real meanness in 'em. AS a general
thing the Arizona crawler will set up
q rattle and slide off in the rocks or
brush. Horses, cattle and sheep know
that rattle as we'll as man. Some
times they get bit, but that is only
when they tread on a snake. 1t amt
likely to kill n sheep if he is struck In
the wool A wild deer will kill a snake
every time he sees him He jumps
with all four feet together on to a
l.. ~ rs,rtnlx ~, nj