The sun., 1897-01-17
CROCODILES OF SUMATRA.
GREAT sHTA0E sUARIANs WITH
A TASTE FOR HUMAN FLESH.

Dr. weyman's StnrtitnE Proof OF Thetr
Presenee-Croeodiies That Lie In Walt
Near yiiisge.-A Hu.b.na's Vengeance
Upon n Crocodile That Killed His wife.
I'm physical conformation thero Is no great
difference between the East Indian or tho
African crocodile and the American ALLIGATOR"
said DIR. Theodore Weymsn. naturalist and
traveller, who passed ten years In lands
washed by tho Indian Ocean. THE principal
difference structurally Is in the head. rhich
in the crocodile uarrows Just behind the snout.
whilo in the alligator the lines are straight.
This narrowing is caused by an exterior vcrtl
cal groove on each side of tho crocodile's up
por Jaw into which the lower canine teeth nt
whom tho creatures mouth Is closed. In the
case OF the alligator the corresponding tceth
rest in pits In the upper jaw. II II In disposi-
tion that the Two species differ most widely.
While the alligator is mainly nsh-eater, not
avcrse to gobblinR any animal Of convenient
size that he can cat III at the waters edge, he
seldom has been known. in North America. at
least. to attack human beings. Tho fercer
Asiatio and African crocodiles, ever on the
lookout for prey OF every kind In water or on
shore. srn inveterats maneaters. There is an
exception TO this rule in the case OF ono spe-
cics. the longsnouted Ravial of the River Gam
ges. which. while sometimes attaining length
| OF twenty-five Feet, is never known to attack
| man, or any boast Of considerable size.
"lt was In the Island OF Sumatra that WAS
most thrown. quite unwillingly on my own
| part into close proximity with crocodiles OF
the homicidai variety. I was passing some
months at the .dalay village Of Deshnk, situ-
| ated on tide river that. below the settlement.
widened into II brackish lagoon. I may OBJ
ssrvo here that the crocodile has none OF the
| aversion to brackish or even salt water that
| the alligator has, and this lagoon and the river
| above wero the resort for crocodles Of the bold
| est and fercest kind. My.Hrst O. periencc with
ono Of them was sufficiently startling to serve
| ms q warning against giving these saurians the
| least opportunity 20 get near me during the
| rest OF my stay in the regions where thoY
| abound. I had disembarkcd in large native
canoo from the Dutch coasting schooner that
| had brought me "a tho mouth OF the Deshak
| River. TO 90 up TO the town. The black waters
| OF tho lagoon cut by tho canoe were quie; and
unbrokcn near at hand by sign OF moving life.
on upon the shore where a mudbank shelved
into the water from the line Of mangroves
score or more OF crocodiles we're lying under
| the hot sun as motonless as logs. Here and
| there. at u considerable distance away. n black
object that might be a snout. IL II were not
bit OF dark. floating wood. projected above the
water. Others were unmistakabls as they
moved slowly away, leaving faint triangular
rpples widening behind them. indicating that
a saurian had been disturbed at our approach.
But there was nothing near the canoe TO de-
note the presence o: danger.
"Thoughtlessly LEANED over the side and
put my hand down. splashlLg the water as tho
canoe glided smoothly along. The master Of
tho canoe, a half-brced Malay. who was man
aging the steering paddle tehind me, did not
at once observe what l was doing. His loud
shout hnd the sudden sharp sweep OF his
paddle against my elboS, throwing my arm
upward above my head, were the fret intima-
ton received that he disapproyed Of my
proceeding. As l turned indisnantly 10 SEQ
what he meant by his action. hideous pair
OF open Jaws camo up alongside the canoe In
the place where my hand had been tho mo-
ment before, and ssw the omen nostrils. tho
long. pointed. canine teeth. with the sharp, SER
rated rows behind them. and tho cold. deadly
eye OF crocodile. The teeth clashed together
In tho air az. Immediately, tho head drow
hack beneath tho murky waters, but not so
quickly but that tho Malay masters paddle
had rung sharply uDon tho scaly armor in n
blow aimed at the crocodile's eve A mo-
ments delay, or n warning less emphatic on
tho part Of tho Malay, and my arm would
have been torn from my body, even II cs-
capped being dragged overheard.
After that experience never again trusted
70 appearances Of safety In waters which croc-
oiilcs were known to in.est. During my resi-
dence at Deshak | was accustomed to take my
bath each morning from n boat pushed out q
few yards from shore; but never velturei
TO do this except when ACCOMPANIED by two
men, one sitting In the stern with his paddle.
the other In the bow holding n loaded gun.
While I had no close calls from crocodilss
on any OF these occasions. the great reptiles
were enough In evidence TO show the need OF
, the precautions taken.
i,, I,.trt 1,ar hnn
maintained BY tho Government for tho de-
struction OF crocodies the natives do not
; hunt them systematically. But when some
member OF n tribe or village is killed bv q
: crocodile the relatives OF the victim. helped
by the other members OF the community. turn
8 cut to avenge his death. Their revenge Is sat
l isaed whom they believe they have DESTROYED
!, tho crocodile that did the killing. To maze
> sure OF the identity Of this particular croco
o die Is a less diicult thing than might appear
0 ut first thought. Not infreoue. lily one oi
= these saurians develop the same traits that
chsraeterize the man.ea,'ng tiger or leopard
: places where men and women work along tht
: shore. In attaining his pur2o TO seize and
u carry or any unfortunate who tnceuttously
'' ventures from the safety OF the land. he shows
: q craftiness aud SKIN in concealmsnt which u
Y not commonly attributed to reptilIans In
]. several Instances in my know ledge whers
. crocodi es known to be man-eaters were killed
=: crocodiies. immensely large and unwieiiy. oil
Q were apparently inoapacitated through age or
j, ailment from hustinR successfully for . liy inS
a With their fellows. Like tho old tiger in
2 capaciti.ted for pursuing his natural prov
q they had turned to man as tho easiest victims
" Some OF these man-eating crocodiles get up
% name OF terror for themselves In the respec
tive localities they frequent and have . Ions
> list of victims to their account before they ar,
:, brought To book. In this association there cam'
y under my observation one OF the unwrittei
- tragedies OF .he trOpic shores and waters, Sh
n carrying OFT of a woman by crocodile aud thu
- vengeance that followed.
"a "A short distance above Dcshak WAS . spo
~ on the riverside where tho village women wen
~ with their earthern Jars for water. Here tn
y bank gently inclined to the waters edge. witt
4 n gradual deepening beyond the margin.
~ was also for these water carriers q rendezvou
II for tho exchange Of village gossip. l wa
il watching them ono morning from the plat
Is form supported by piles above the water. o
"a which half tho vii age houses stood. Most o
la the women had fillod their lars and were stand
% ing IN the water near the edge or were scat
le tered on the bank. q laughing, chatterin
"a group, gay with their bright.colored garment
and gilt and silver ornaments. The one stand