The Montgomery advertiser., 1901-08-01
BIG ALLEGATIONS TEETH.
Work of Shortening Them Gave
 Fourteen Men a Lively Time.

New York Times.
 remarkable operation was perform
 ed last week by Superintendent Horn
 aday and Curator Ditmars, assisted by
 dozen keepers, on the thirteen-foot
 alligator which is kept in the west end
 of the reptile house in the Bronx Zoo-
 logical Park. The alligator, which is a
 powerful animal, had shown signs of fierceness for some time. He believed
 much and at times got spells of fury,
 during which he dashed the water of
 his basin with his tail and sent the oth-
 CT alligators flying from him in terror.
 Just what aiIed him was not known. Superintende mt Hornaday said that 1t
 was prosperity. which did not agree
 with him. He became worse and worse
 as the days went by and wound up one
 morning by killing an eight-foot alli- gator in the same tank.
 Somehow the smaller alligator an-
 gered the big fellow, who began chas- ing him around the tank. all the time
 believing furiously and flashing the wa ter with his tail. Finally he cornered his opponent With his two-foot maw
 he seized him by the middle of the body and shook him as terrier does rat Ther he dropped him and the in- 1ured reptile slunx into corner and died It was found that the teeth Of the big fellow had crushed their way l through the thick hide, laying open the | back so that the bones and muscles could be seen.
 Then 1t was decided that 1t was nee
 essary in the interest of the future wei fare of the remaining alligators that | the big ones teeth should be cut. The work was done one morning be- | fore the house was thrown open to the visitors. The smaller alliGators
 were first driven out of the'tank. Then | a stoneboat was lowered into the tank. the shutterlike platform being about
 the dimensions of the alligator himself. The water in the tank was allowed to
 run out. Meanwhile a dozen keepers
 and assistants brought poles and
 blocks and tackle and several suspi- cious-lookinR saws.
 Steadily the water ran lower and lower and the stoneboat, sank with 1t
 until 1t lay almost beside the alligator. By means of long poles the reptile was prodded toward the spot where he was wanted All this time the huge fail kept flashing back and forth every time the alligator thought he was near enought to hit a man, but each time | the keepers gave him all the room he wanted. Then a rope with q sling
 was lowered over his head and drawn | taut. and the tall was similarly treat | ed. Each of the legs was next secured | in a like manner.
 | The work was a ticklish job as the
 reptile kept up fight that will be re- | membered for many a day by every l one of the fourteen men who took part 1 In 1t. His jaws went shooting back | and forth and with lightning-like ran | jdity he darted them toward first ona | and then another assailant. bringing
 them together with a snap of his sharp | double row of teeth. A last the com | hined efforts of the men were enough t0 hold the alligator. Then he was turned over on his hack and dashed to the boat
 SO that he could not move either tail or | foot.
 | But the worst of the job remained. l for his jaws were yet to he secured | By patience and repeated trials a lassn was gotten into the ponderous nav. | The alligator gave one chew and the | rope parted like a thread. This was | finally gotten into place. and the upper | jaw was tied to the hoard. Sticks were | then pried between the jaws to keep | them from clashing together. Thus held. the reptile lay helpless and the work of saving off some of the long
 est and most dangerous teeth was soon l accomplished.
 ] When he was united and allowed 10