The star. (Reynoldsville, Pa.) 1892-1946, 1895-08-28
A GOPHER FARM.
The Unique Industry Started by a
Floridian.
Gopher Meat Asserted to be a
Great Delicacy.

German by birth, but who has been in
Florida long enough to pass for n
CRACKER" expects to have $4,000
gophers on the market inside of two
years Fifty thousand gophers ought
to contribute in some degree to the
discontinue of the beef trust
The gopher of Florida is not the
gopher of more northern latitudes.
He is called by the encyclopRd
the testudo polyphcmus, u species of
turtle which can claim first cousinship
TO the porpoisc. He makes his home
in the high-rolling pine lnud of this
s4lte. He and the rattlcsnake nre the
best of companions. Wherever II
gopher hole is to he found there also
will be found rattlesnakc. unless he
has met death by the violence of man.
The gopher snake is also good friend
of the gopher, who is always willing
TO extend warm welcome in his snug
retreat to the sinuous denizon of the
forest.
Dalywclle's farm is situated on the
banks of the Wekiya river. The We
kiva is named for the central figure, n
maiden, in Seminole Indian legend.
Miss Wekivn, the beautiful daughter
of the ancient Thomas Tiger Tail, cell
ebrated for the number of scalps he
had elevated, was once in love with n
handsome Indian youth, who stood
six feet in his moccasins and could
shoot an arrow through the heart of n
bear. The youth went back on Weki-
va and she wept SO copiously that
where once was arid sand there is now
beautiful and cool river.
Dalywelle lives with his family,
consisting of wife, three blue eyed
girls and two tow.headed boys, in n
two-room residence, the walls of
which are of hewn pine. in his first
struggle for existence in this state
gopher more often furnished the
piece de resistance on his frugal
board than Florida beef.
"Why would il not do" he asked
himself one day, 'to raise these
things for market?"
There WAS ample demand for goph-
ers in all of the Florida markets, the
residents of the country as well as
those of the city regarding the gopher
properly cooked, as delicacy equal
to the diamond-backed tarrapin. He
resolved to execute his idea. SO he
and his boys secured the country for
miles and miles, and gathered to-
gether all the gophers they could find
/ and placed them upon the 1000 acre
tract of virgin pine. The gophers
took kindly to the spot and industri.
ously set to work to dig themselves
homes in the yellow sand. The place
is now literally honeycombed with
their tunnels.
The only unpleasant feature to
gopher farming, according to DAILY
welle, is the snakes. Hundreds oi
rattlesnakes have fiocked to the home,
of the gophers. Not day passe,
but the gopher raiser and his hoy'
slay from three to dozen. They
never venture into the farm wlthou,
encasing their legs in heavy top boots,
heavy stick, and pint of antidott
in the hip pockets The snakes, while
dangerous, are made to yield II revenue
to this provident farmer. He cure,
the skins and sells them TO curio deal
ers. Tho curio dealers have then
manufactured into purses and hand
satchels and sell them to the Yankee,
who visit this state during the winter.
Rattle snake oil is far fumed as a cure
for rheumatism, and n number oi
Wholesale drug houses buy their oi
from Mr.. Dalywelle.
A correspondent of the Atlanta Con.
stitution dined with the gopher farmer
one day and had for his dinner gopher
soup and gopher steak. He hal
dined at the board of the old Mary
land aristocrat on canvas back ant
terrapin and can trutfully say tha
one dinner was as good as the other.
There is a rare favor to the gopher
that cannot fail to tickle the palate
of the epicure.
Mr.. Dalywelle says that in thu
course of few years the people o
the whole Union will be educated tc
gophers. Then, he predicts, the
gopher will not so begging at 20 cent
apiece, but will command $50 dozen
He proposes to inaugurate the kind
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