Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1896-08-26
For the Herald and Tribune.
LETTER FROM TEXAS.
Prairie Dogs, Jack Rabbits and Alligators--
Something About the Stock.

Prairie Dogs, Jack Rabbits and Alligators--
Something About the Stock.
MISSOURI CITY, Aug. Is, 1896.
I'll tell something of what I've seen
slice I've been in Texas. The first
animal / saw that attracted my atten-
ton was the prairie dog, as | went
from Bolinger to Robert Lee. He is a
little, reddish purp, some eight or ten
inches high as he stands on his
launches and yelps at the passerby:
they never leave their dugouts very far,
and as the old negro said by his bron-
cho thro wing him of, they are three
minutes quicker than l~ightning' get
ting into their holes. They are very
destructive to crops growing neal their
dens, and are killed by poison and fumi-
cation. Some counties have given re-
wards for their scalps, some parties
getting two or three hundred traps,
and make money by catching them and
thereby reducing their number. The
next was the prairie ground squirrel
which is striped like our own, but
nearly as large as the gray squirrel.
Then the jack rabbit, which is twice
as large as our own %cottontail, with
ears in proportion. The scissor tail
bird. about the size of the catbird. with
two long feathers in his tail with the
ends curled around like a pair of scis-
sors. The horned frog, or horned liz.
zard as it is called, being more like a
lizard than a frog; it has two horns
on its head and horns all over the body
but not so long. l stayed some time
at the junction of two leading railroads
the u. Z. q s. f. and =. Z. where |
saw many animals transferred; the
most unreasonable was a large turtle
from Port Lavacea, it was three feet
across, eighteen inches thick and
weighed 450 pounds. 1t was sent
to st. Louis. 1t had no feet or claws,
its fippers they call them look like
a picked chicken wing with one claw
at the elbow. 1t was laying flat ON it's
back with its fippers tied together
with a pillow made of an old gummy
sack wherein to rest its head. Here |
saw the armadillo, a small animal
about the size of the opossum. 1t has
no hair on its body but has "a shell
something like a %tarrapin, only it is in
ocStiohoi oOIuc leu VI bWclNt Vi tDbm
cover it, with a small head somewhat
like a rat only a little larger. The
alligator abounds here; it is u lizard
on o large scale, and is very destruc
tive to pigs and will occasionally slap
q dog into the water and eat him; they
20 at their game tail foremost and
knock it into the water then drown it.
They have some fine cattle here-Jer-
sey, Holstines, Durhams, &c.,-but the
homliest looking brute is the Burmah
or sacred cattle. They are large with
very high shoulders and their horns
grow nearly straight up from their
heads, more like a goat; they are raised
here for beef, as they have u fine large
carcass. There are n few very fine
horses and mules here, but most we
have is common Texas stock. They
range in price from ten to seventy five
dollars. The most of those who come
from the north bring horses and mules
with them and they are generally good
and better than any raised here. The
law here compells every owner of
horses or cattle to brand them. saw
three fine yearling heifers branded a
few weeks ago and one of them has
screw worms in the place so badly it
will require some attention to save it.
The screw worm is not our common
green fly maggot, but is much larger
n will always get into fresh wounds
If not watched. Thermometer is 98 in
the shade. JACK RABBIT.