Akron daily Democrat. [volume] (Akron, Ohio) 1892-1902, 1901-01-29
BITTEN BY A NEvILLO
ONE OF THE TERRoRs OF LIFE ON
THE lsTHMUs OF TeHuANTEPEc.

A Lisard From whose Deadly Poison
only One Man Is Known to Have
Recovered--'rhe Treatment which
saved Him From Death.
II guess I am the only living man
that has been bitten by the neville.
venomous lizard of the isthmus OF
Tebuantepec," said William w. Gloon,
New Yorker with Central American
experiences. This lizard is of the ella
monster family and Is a horrid looking
reptile of notified liver color and
Is from six to ten inches long. lts bite
Is deadly. aud. as said, am the only
person known who has lived after be-
ing bitten. 1t was ease of nip and
tuck. though, and didn't get over 1t
for two months or more
"The brute bit me out of pure malice,
for wasn't doing thing to 1t. had
q coffee plantation down on the 18th
mus several years ago and Just be-
fore the hot season began, which was
In March, had as my guest DR.. Fer
gus Macdonald of the Smithsonian
institution. who was in that country in
the interest of science. While he was
with me we received an invitation to
visit the great plantation of DR.. Pedro
Arguilles, one of the most prominent
men of that country, and we went to
his hacienda near Minititlan. The
ladies of the family had all gone to
Mexico City, and as the weather was
hot we men loafed around In our py-
jnmas, the upper garment of which Is
a big sleeved affair called camisa.
zone day DR.. Macdonald and had
adjourned to the patio or court of the
building, and while lay in the grass
talking to him he was busy greasng
and putting into shape his guns and
revolvers, He was six or eight feet
away from me, and I was lying with
my head propped up on my arm. from
which the sleeve had slipped, leaving II
exposed to the elbow. which rested on
the grass. OF course neither of us was
thinking about reptiles or other dan
gers right there in the court of the
building. Suddenly, as | talked. the
doctor threw his hand up in warning,
4
saw there was danger in my moving.
and | must keep still. So I kept as
stendy as could, and then felt some.
thing go up my arm toward my head
and stop near my wrist.
81 couldn't see what It was but
knew something about tropical reptiles
and / kept perfectly quiet while the
hnpfnp fat ttupt np htG raunIUpIs,
and threw a couple of cartridges into
1t. He aimed across my body and fired,
and as ! jumped to my feet nevillo
at least seven inches long fell wrlthing
to the ground. shot through the head.
The bullet had gone on into my arm
and came out at the elbow and was
bleeding. Between the bullet marks,
though, were the fang marks where the
neville had stuck its teeth into my arm,
and told the doctor | thought II had
got me. AS soon as he saw II he gave
me some kind of hypoderinc iniec'
ton in the left leg, the right arm hav'
ing been bitten. ,and at once took bis
knife and slashed me across the fang
marks. Into the wounds OF my arm
he poured a bottle of concentrated
ammonia. Almost Instantly after
had been bitten began to grow dizzy
and to see what seemed to me to bt
clouds of light smoke, and when the
ammonia struck me keeled over in q
dead faint.
Five days later l awoke In a mud
bath by the riverside. my body twice
its normal size and my tongue sticking
out Of my mouth. They had carried
me there as soon as l tainted, ant
night and day my guide and his daugh
ter had been watching by me, with
fires at night to keep off the animal!
from the jungle Every II hours my
arm was lifted from the mud ant
cleansed. and on these occasions II wa,
always found to be Of n green color
AS soon as | returned to consciousness!
l was carried to the house and put t.
bed. and there for two weeks | re
mnined and then went down to tn,
coast and up to the we'll known no
springs. where was treated for tw,
months until every bit of the venom
had left my body. During II ALL suf
fered no pain. nor have l ever felt thu
slightest inconvenience since. Whn
effect the bullet wound in the arm ha,
l don't know. Possibly the blood tho
came from the bullet wounds save
me. Anyhow something happened tha
never happened to any other perso,
bitten by neville. or wouldn't b
here TO tell the story"
Mr. Gloon barred his arm for the ben
eft OF the listeners, and il an arm eve
looked as II II had been through har
campaign that one did. 1t was scarre
/ as II burnt with hot irons and covere
: from the elbow down with all kinds 0
, peculiarly shaped mottled spots o
about the same color as the lizard
New York Sun.