The San Juan County index. (Aztec, N.M.) 1890-19??, 1900-06-29
R%ATTLEsNAKE KING.
A MAN CONDUCTS A REPTIL-
IAN FARM,
Abner Dodge Of California Has Foi-
lowed the Peculiar Business for Twsn-
ty-Eivs Years - Characteristios OF
nattlora.

MNHAA ALAA"H
Dodge, who lives in San B~ernardino.
Cal. He served in a New York regi-
ment during the civil war and after
ward sought his fortunes in the west.
For some years he was a trapper and,
hunter, but about 10 years ago he suf-'
fered a severe fall in the San Antonio
canyon and has since devoted his en-
tire time to the hunting and c~ultiya-
ton Of rattlesnakes. He lives in a
small cabin near the headwaters OF
Lyle Creek Canyon On the San Ber-
nardino spur OF mountains in the
Sierra Madre range. He Is a bachelor
and his only companion is a green.
lanky lad Of IA, whom Dodge has
adopted. The old man dresses in self
made clothing of skins and rough
woolens Of all hues and fts and Is al
ways 3 subject Of keen interest to the
many travellers in that section OF the
country. He is well informed and evil
IDENTITY received a good education in
his youth. His long life among the
wilds of the mountains and ANYONE
have bad their effect upon him. and
he is o a typical mountain charac-
ter. Abner Dodge and his boy assist
ant get their livelihood from the sale
of rattlesnake oil to the druggists in
the mining regions Of California and
Arizona, and also by selling the dry
skins and rattles from the snakes TO
the dozens Of eurio shopkeepers in
southern California towns, where east
ern tourists flock every winter. The
old man roams ver the mountain
sides, searches through irrigating
bitches and arroyos, climbs up and
down in canyons, and travels the
country for miles around in search OF
rattlesnakes, with now then a shot
at some game. He has been in the
rattlesnake business about 25 years
and in that time has handled perhaps
1000 snakes. He gets about 40 cents
worth of oil out of each snake. The.
oil is in pure, white fat that lies in.
the strips along each side of the rat
tiers intestines near the backbone.
The fat is tried out carefully in earth
en- pots. The snake season opens in
April and lasts until December. Dur
ing this time Dodge and his boy as
sistant are kept very busy searching
for the venomous reptiles. Owing to
his long experience with the snakes
he is considered an authority on them.
AS he says Il have lived next door
neighbor to the critters for 25 years
and 1 ought to know something about
them" He says there is not a wiser
or more curious specimen Of life in
the brute creation than the RATHER. Al
though he is attached to them in a
way, he would not trust n for a mo-
ment if 1t was in striking distance,
They want to be left alone and never
show any disposition to become IA
miliar. Dodge has a pet RATHER which
he calls Doctor" He raised him
from the time that he was 2 months
old, and from him has learned many
characteristics peculiar to rattlers.
The old mans observations have also
set aside many theories regarding the
habits of rattlers. They do not strike
unless they are hungry. When a rat
tier has killed and swallowed enough
for one meal, anything that is left can
crawl on him aud tumble him around
and he will not offer the least objec-
ton. People all over the world be-
lieve that when a rattlesnake is she'd
ding his skin he gets blind. There is
no mistake that his eyes do get COW
cred with a blush film at that time,
but just put a mouse in his cage and
he will coil uD and send for it and
hit It in the neck every time. A rat
tlesnake always strikes his prey be-
fore he eats it; but you may fill his
cage with rats or mice or frogs, or
anything else he likes, and he'll never
touch one of them unless he's hungry.
A mouse every other day will make a
rattler fat in a very short time. When
a rattler is taken into captivity he will
often not eat or drink anything for
months, and some have been known to
continue the fast for IA months.
The old snake farmer has eve been
able to ascertain how the snakes get
their old skin off. He says that he
has gone to bed at night and left his
snakes without their showing any
more signs OF peeling themselves than
sticks Of wood. but In the morning
their old clothes would be lying ia one
corner Of the cage and the snakes
would be as bright in their new toys
as bright patchwork quilts. The Cal
ifornia rattlers change their skins
twice a year, in July and in September.
The venom Of the rattler acts diff
ferently upon various animals ami
upon different people. Some animals
unI hNmHu mill nrnnr arraR Tnnl su hAVu1-
ders as soon as they were bitten;
others live for hours and days, and
some fully recover. Last summer.
near 81 Monte. two mules were Bit
ten, and both died within two hours,
Dozens Of mules have been bitten and
were we'll again in a day or two. Hogs
are impervious to the bites of rattlers
The venom has no effect upon them
and they are great hunters of the
snakes. They grow fat on them as a
diet. Dodge once had a hog that he
used to help him hunt for the reptiles
When the hog would scent or scare
up a snake, Dodge would rush ahead
AID kill II before the hog could reach
and devour It. The effect upon human
beings depends to q great extent upou
temperament and physical condition.
Some people die in a few hours after
suffering intense agony unless re-
lieved by whisky or ammonia, while
others Will show only slight signs OF
the poison for perhaps a day or two
It Is best on all occasions 70 follow
the advice OF Mr.. Dodge and not gel
within striking distance OF the rep