The Chickasha daily express. (Chickasha, Indian Territory [Okla.]) 1899-current, 1901-03-26
eoa coNsTaIcToa nuNrlRs.


Men in south America who Hunt the
snake For Livelihood.
1.-THE boa constructor IS fairly COM
mon in the forests Of Western Near
aqua and Costa Rica. said one OF the
canal engineers who was in the city
recently. "and there are natives in
that section who hunt them exclusive
" for a livelihood. While we were
engaged in the survey work we heard
a good deal Of these big snakes, and
all the white men in the party stood
in the greatest dread Of them, although
they are not half as dangerous rs the
small poisonous variety During two
and a half years spent in the c0un-
try / saw only one live boa. but the
experience is pretty firmly stamped on
my memory and / have no yearning
for another I had gone out. with
couple Of native assistants. from
town called Japan. on the south side
Of the lower lake. to shoot some plum
age birds, and while we were crossing
a rather open piece OF forest I noticed
what l supposed to be a peculiarly
malf0rmed limb on a large spicewood
tree. Ii sagged down from the trunk
Of the tree and seemed to be attached
TO another growth nearer the ground.
/ started toward it to Investigate, and.
when only few yards away. the thing
| had taken to be a limb suddenly
raised itself in the air. and I saw that
1t was a gigantic snake. hanging head
down from an upper bough / had
often feard the expression paralyzed
By fear but ! never knew what it
meant until then. I was so badly
scared that I couldn't have moved If
the fate Of the universe depended upon
1t, and l simply stood there. stock
still, and staring while the boa swayed
back and forth a few times and final
" glided into the upper foliage. 1t
seemed fifty feet long and as big
around as q barrel. / think It was
really about twelve t that iuncture
my natives came up. and when they
heard what had happened they NJ
once insisted upon catching the mons.
ter. They made a moose which they
attached to a pole. and while | retired
10 a safe distance one Of them climbed |
the tree and seized the snake by the |
tail, while the other tried to slip the |
loop over its neck as It lowered its
head. 1t was too agile for them. how /
ever, and escaped into another tree.
where it weht too high for pursuit.
'The Central American boas are
brownish red In color. with black
splotches on the sides and back. and
the native hunters tan the skin bv
stretching it over a log. A good skin
with no bullet marks and including the
head sells for $40. Mexican. down
here, and TO avoid holes and mutila-
lion the hunters always catch the
snakes In moose and XIII them by
stab under tie jaw. They make an
kinds Of leather articles out Of the
lide-belts, pouches. leggings, slippers,
md elen neckties. I made many in
lulries during our stay, but / could
lever hear Of a case I'm which boa
Iad attacked q human being. The
make | saw was undoubtedly lying in
gait for some small animal. and. IL
ne had passed under the tree. would
ave dropped on its back. The In
ians Of the region call the boa chula,
which Is the same word they use for
oward; so. you see, they have no
reat opinion Of its lighting qualities"
New Orleans Times Democrat.