The record-union., 1895-09-28
ALLIGATOR FARMS.
Ten Thousand Baby 'Gators Raised
Every Year for Sale.

Every Year for Sale.
The attention of the United States Fish
Commission has been called recently to a
new and remarkable industry, the artiti-
cial propagation OF alllgators. For supply
ing the trade in Florida curiosities there is
large demand for young reptiles OF this
kind. In jacksonville which is the GEN.
ter OF the traffic, from 5000 TO 10000 alli-
gators are sold to tourists annually
nearly all of them baby ones The latter
are collected in considerable mum bers by
professional hunters, who receive for
them $50 to SO hundred. Some ofthem
are disposed of alive at retail, but many
are stuffed. An infant alligator stuffed
is worth twenty-five cents more than a
live one. Saurians six TO twelve feet Ion e
fetch Sl2 to S25.
The difficulty of securing young alli-
gators III sufficient numbers has led to
the establishment of the strange business
described. 10 find the nests of these
reptiles is comparatively easy. and the
eggs are shipped in bulk by the hunters
to Jack sonvIlle. In that city there are
twelve dealers in alligators, the best
known of them being man who has
earned the sobriquet OF Alligator Davis"
1t was he who originated the incubator
system, which is simple enough. The
eggs, about the size OF goose eggs, are
placed in boxes of sand and covered up.
The boxes are exposed on a root to the
torrid rays of q semi-tropical sun, and in
a few days the lizards are hatched. They
are six inches or so in length when they
first make their appearance in the world.
Some of them are killed and stuffed as
they see daylight.
A species oil true crocodile is found in
Southern Florida on both coasts. 1t is
hardly distinguishabie from the alligator
except by the shad g OF its head, though
it grows bigger, attaining length of
eighteen teet DR.. Hugh M. Smith OF
the Fish Commission says that young
crocodiles are Matched tor the market in
the same fashion. The mother crocodile
lays her eggs In the sand like turtle and
simply covers them over. Somewhat
different is the practice OF the maternal
alligator, who, in April or May, seeks a
sheltered spot on bank and there builds
small mound. The foundation of the
mound is OF mud and grass, and on this
she lays some eggs. She covers the eggs
with another stratum of grass and mud,
upon which she deposits some more eggs.
Thus she proceeds until she has LAID from
100 to 200 eggs.
The eggs, in the course of time, are
hatched by tho sun, assisted by the heat
which the decomposition of the vegetable
material generates. AS soon as they have
"chipped the shelP' the baby alligaIors
are led TO the water by the mother, who
provides them with food which she dis
gorges, showing much anxiety Tor their
safety. AT this early period of their ex-
istence they are exposed to many dan
gers, being favorite prey of fishes and
turtles. Alligators' eggs. by the way, are
sometimes eaten by Florida Crackers.
The robbing of the nests for the market
is helping to hasten the inevitable de-
struction Of the alligator fishery. which
has been an important and profitable In
dustry in Florida. Facts recently gath
cred by the Fish Commission show that
the reptiles cannot long escape practical
determination. Already they are becom-
ing scarce, and the price OF hides has
gone up.
1t is estimated that 2, 100000 alligators
were killed III Florida between 1880 and
1894. In 1889 three firms located at
Kissimmee for the purpose OF buy
ing skins taken in the region OF Lake
Kissimmee and Lake Okeechobee handled
$4,000 hides. During the same year
twelve hunters brought TO Fort Pierce
1900 pelts. Two firms in Jacksonville
handled 10000 skins in 1889. A few years
ago an expert hunter could easily secure
600 alligators in three weeks, and one
man at Cocoa killed forty-two in one
night. The skins are paid for In pro-
visions and ammunition mainly. Dealers
get % cents apiece for them from tanners
in New York.
In 1890 about 250 pounds of alligator
teeth were sold, hunters receiving from
81 to 81 per pound for them. They are
removed by burying the heads and rot
tening out the teeth. OF the best teeth,
about seventy make pound. The stuff
ing of alligators and the polishing of the
teeth give employment to forty persons.
Unfortunately, alligators grow very
slowly. At fifteen years of age they are
only two feet long. A twelve-iooter may
be supposed reasonably to be seventy
five years old. II is believed that they
grow as long as they live, and probably
they live longer than any other ANIMAL
Washinpton Evening Star.