The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1899-04-28
81 SNAKE 4 | !: :. COLL CIT Ns,
Washington Has One. Of the Very
Best in the World.
Ugly heDtiles from Africa, Asia
ana Ameriea to BE seen In
Our Famous National
Museum.
Especial Washington letter.

VINO is afraid OF snakes? Above
all others of human kind the wom-
en- have the greatest dread Of rep
tiles. Whether this instructive feeling
comes of the experience in the Garden
OF Eden, or not, each of us must con-
lecture. The fact is generally conceded.
"A poet once said, that woman,
though only part of mans rib, if the
story in Genesis don't tell fib, caused
Adam to sin, and serpents to crawl, and
folly to follow the lives of us ALL
The story in Genesis says that the
serpentwas more subtle than any beast
OF thelfield, and that the serpent tempt
ed the woman, who tempted the man,
SO that they ate of the tree of knowl-
edge of good and evil; and they were
expelled from the garden "lest they
take also of the tree of life, and eat, and
live forever
The penalty placed upon the serpent,
the original tempter was, Because
thou has done this, thou are cursed
above all cattle, and above every beast
of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou
go, and dust shall thou eat all the days
VI Wy AlCs
Eternal enmity was also decreed be-
tween the seed of the woman and the
seed of the serpent, and from time i'm
memorial there has been this enmity;
SO that instinctively wherever we see
a serpent. we proceed to kill it, for it is
known to be deadly, subtle and cow
ardly. Moreover, all women shrink in
terror from every species of reptile.
Consequently it is the most unnatural
thing on earth to see, in travelling
shows, the anomaly of women coerced
into handling snakes for the delecta'
ton of curious crowds.
The modern men of science never
give even passing thought to the story
of original sin, but study snakes just
as they study other phenomenons OF
nature; just as they dissect frogs, fish,
cattle and human beings. The scien.
tifc men of the national museum and
Smithsonian institution have gathered
practically every variety of snake on
the face of the earth, including prehis'
toric specimens. The collection has
been placed in the northeastern corner
of the museum building. There are all
sorts of reptiles and creeping things
in the gallery nook, and the smell of al
cohol and other preparations in which
they are preserved is plainly notice
able. The place is dark and gloomy, a
veritable chamber of horrors, and a
glance at the immense bottles with
their loathsome contents is not calcu-
lated to inspire confidence in the minds
of the beholders, who seem to be fig
uratively, as well as actually, "seeing
snakes
The scientist in charge of these curl
osities recently showed to some visitors
a number of species lately received
from all over the world, two or three
of them being of far more than ordi-
nary interest. One of the reptiles
shown, which was secured by the ex-
petition to Liberia, of which Prof
Cook was member, is horned snake,
an entirely new variety so far as the
museum is concerned, and one which
would be regarded as a specimen OF
value by any institution of like char
acter.
The reptile is of the viper variety, and
is known, scientifically, as the ''bitis
gabonica," the latter name referring to
the Gaboon, in whose neighborhood
it is found. It is one of the few horned
specimens in existence, but the horns
are plainly discernible and occupy a
prominent position on the forepart OF
the head, on each side of the nasal
holes.
The snake was secured by Mr.. Rollo
Cook, who was member of the Liberi-
an expedition. It was, literally, run