Kansas City daily journal., 1896-09-27
BLACKSNAKEs AND RATTLERs.
Interesting Facts Told by q Man Who
Understands Reptiles.

Rochester Democrat and Chronicle.
ITS a shame to kill those harmless little
snakes" said Rattlesnake Pete yesterday
afternoon when reporter told of a recent
trip to the country, where he saw a farm
er kill several garter snakes. Pete had
Just finished placing thirteen new snakes
in the case adjoining the den of rattlers
which has long been the pride of his heart.
AS soon as anyone commences talking
snake" said Pete, II am right at home.
How many snakes have I in all? Oh
about seventy-hve. Those in that side are
al poisonous, but these are not known to
be very bad"
At this the snake fancier took from a
bunch of reptiles a light brown snake,
with dark spots on its body. Pete ex-
planned that it was a spotted adder. and
was one of new lot he had just received.
The spotted adder can bite" said Pete.
but there Is no poison" AS he said that
he opened the snakes mouth with his fin
tongue. but there were no fangs such as
the rattlers and other poisonous snakes
The new snakes received yesterday were
contributions from friends Of Pete's in Mi
ami. i. T. The box in which the snakes
came was marked "1lA pounds Of snakes.
writing on the box than the no
Of Peter Gruber," which Is Rattlesnake
Pete's more formal name. The box con-
tanned snakes of the following species:
snakes. copper bottom and mud snakes.
1t will be seen that most of these snakes
are very poisonous. The cottonmouth is
similar to the rattlesnake In every way
excepting the lack of rattles. 1t is said
that these snakes are more poisonous than
rattlers. but Pete. who has had consider
not believe it.
The chicken snake is black snake with
red spots dotted here and there on its
one Of u them fom the esse and aDed
It thoroughly he remarked that he guessed
there wasn't much poison about it. The
copper bottom snakes are similar 70 the
ern states. Pete also handled them with
great readiness. but. in taking the cotton
mouth. copperhead and mud snakes from
the box he used more caution.
While the reporter was talking to Pete,
a long box arrived by express which was
Immediately opened. 1t contained a large.
bright colored snake which is known as a
coach whip. 1t was seven feet long and
came from Chadwick, Mo. The man of
many snakes took the reptile and threw it
AS he locked the door he pointed to a
four-foot snake which was curled up in
one corner of the cage. He was a copper
bottom from Florida He had just swal-
lowed a field or garter snake, measuring
about three feet in length. Another snake
in the same cage had just been fed on six
In order to prove that the snakes would
eat almost anything, Pete opened the den
and placed an ordinary egg in front of one
of the largest reptiles. His snakeship was
he swallowed 1t he was seen to tighten his
body as If to break the shell.
The attention of Rattlesnake Pete was
called tola statement which was published
from Cleveland. stating that the army
worm which had beel doing much damage
in the northern part Of Ohio had an enemy
in the rattlesnake. Pete stated that not
only did the rattlesnakes devour the army
worms. but all snakes were fond of them.
III the farmers only knew when they
were well off," said Pete. their garden
truck would be much better IL they al
lowed the small snakes. which are gener-
ally killed. to live. that they might devour
the insects"
Pete has known for fact where snakes
have gone through gardens and picked
bugs Off the vegetables. Hence his appeal
wound up the conversation by describing
the attitude of the black snake toward the
rattlers. and. in fact. all Others but par
ticularly the former. Pete has a large
same cage When one of the rattlers
starts to devour a smaller snake or any
thing that one of the blacksnakes wants,
the latter twists around the rattler and
squeezes 50 that he can not swallow the
object.
The result IS that the rattler Invariably
chokes up whatever he has started to eat
and moves slowly away. He never at
often strike at objects which they miss
and happen to bury their fangs In other
snakes. but in all his experience Pete has
never had one Of these cases which proved
fatal
However. he claims that suicide is a
common thing among rattlers, as only
yesterday he had large rattlesnake die
from a wound self-inficted. 1t appears
that about week ago this big snake turn
ed slowly around when Pete was standing
in front of the cage and struck at himself.
Its fangs were buried deep in his skin and
yesterday he died