The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1898-07-20
Cuba's Curious Animals.


Cuban sand flies and mosquitoes are
much like our own, but we have moth
ing to match the huge spider, whose
bite causes fever, nor the beligerent
and known as vivaiagua. a SCORPION,
though not so dangerous as the Euro
pean variety, proves itself unpleasant
enough to the careless traveller, and
the chigoe, or ''jiggcr,' deals swift
retribution TO an offender. Its method
of attack is inconvcnient, for it bur-
rows under the tocnail, and, unless
removed at once, builds its nest there
In that case inflammation occurs, and
the only relief is the painful operation
of having the little animal cut out.
Snakes are not numerous. but they
include some of the freaks Of the ami
NAL kingdom. The huge maja, longer
than two 6-feet men set end to end,
with a body 20 inches in circumfcr-
cnce, looks fierce enough and formid-
able enough to put whole regiment
to flight. 1t is all bluff, for the big
reptile is harmless.
Among the birds, the soldier may
exercise his taste for pets. Those pc
culiar to the island have beautiful
plumage, rich in coloring. There are
nearly 20O kinds to be found there,
and among them all the vulture and
the turkey buzzard are almost the only
birds of prey. They arc so useful as
scavengers to carry away waste mate
rial that they are protected from death
by law. Geese, turkeys, peacocks and
pigeons are the most familiar domes-
| tic fowls, and pigs, sheep, goats,
mules and horses, the animals used.
The Cuban horses are almost race
by themselves. They are very gentle,
they never kick nor bite nor play any
unseemly tricks on their riders. In
some parts of the island horses re-
ccive as much consideration as a mem
Der Of the family. They are not tied
or confined, but they wander about the
door yard, put their heads into the
kitchen windows to exchange the time
Of day, and even on occasion have the
privilege of entering the house. The
sight of humans and equines on terms
of such easy familiarity makes one
wonder if the days Of Gulliver and his
horse country have come again.
Sometimes the roads are very bad
and the mud so sticky that it holds
any foreign substance like glue. For
this reason farmers braid their horses
tails, turn them up over their backs
and tie them to the saddle. No
Northern pony would stand this indig-
nifty, but the Cuban pack animals seem
quite willing to endure it. In noun
famous regions mules are used to carry
coffee and sugar down the mountain
paths, and to save drivers, mules in
long professions are tied together,
ones head to another tail, and with
only one man at the head of the col
umn to guide the leader, they carry
down their burdens safely. The hind
legs Of Cuban mules must be worked
on different principle from that in
vogue among United States mules.
Here no insurance agency would in
sure a man whose business was tying
mules to one another tails.
The only wild animal peculiar to
Cuba is the jutia. or hutia. 1t is rat
shaped, black and small. 1t lives in
the hollows of trees, like our squirrel,
and eats leaves and fruit. It's flesh is
insipid. but it is often eaten. Curl
Gus notifications of felines and can
ines inhabit the woods. The animals
have sprung from dogs and cats in the
domestic state and differ from them
only in their size and habits. Some
of the intelligence Of civilization
seems to remain with them, and they
cause the farmer much anxiety by
their carefully planned attacks upon
his poultry and cattle.
The matter Of lights is small item
of expense TO the poor man in Cuba,
for in the phosphorcsccnt fly nature
provides him u lamp free. This fly,
the cucullo. about the size Of our
roach, is perfectly black with a trans
parent breast. Two eyes in front, and
one in the point of its breast, give
out so much light when It's wings are
spread that one can sec by it to read a
letter. Children make pets Of cucul-
los and shut them up in reed cages.
If they feed them on sugar, the sticky
particles adhering to their legs exas-
perate them so much that they TALL
upon each other like prize fighters
Tho children avoid this by giving the