The sun., 1901-08-04
EAsr 10 PICK Ur sNAKEs.
Anybody Can Ds 10 n He Knsws How
AMI ilss me Nerve.

Anybody Can Ds - n He Knsws How
ami fIss she Nerve
From As 81. Louis Globe Dsmocrof.
William Lee, whose houseboat h anchored
near the Davis street ferry landing, Is a
professional snake catcher To him man
Of inquiring turn went and asked to be
shown how he piled his trade.
$50 you are Interested in snakes. are
you3' said Mr.. Lee. well, know thing
or two about them. and l don't mind tell
ing you, II you've got time to listen, or
showing you. II you'd Nike to take trip
with mo-
! The investi gator said he was athirst for
snakelore, and wanted to be told and shown
also.
/ An right said Mr.. Lee. 'Pvs got few
snakes on hand now. and you can look at
them: then. II you'li meet me Tomorrow
we viii 70 out and catch some more. Ever
catch snake?'
The investigator admitted that he never
had. and confessed a doubt that he had
enough courage TO try.
well. there is something Of knack in
it, conceded Mr. Lee, .and reckon you'd
better iet me do the work. unless We run
across q garter snake or q racer for you
to try your hand on. They can't hurt you |,
you know. As q matter Of fact, though.
there are not many snakes that are really
dsadly. Out Of the several hundred varie-
ties found IN this latitude, there are not
half dozen whose bite is more to be dread
ed than the sting Of bee. The ones to be
afraid Of arc tho ootton-mouths. the rattlers
and the copperheads. There are several
kinds OF ootton-mouths, all Of them worse
than the rattlers. for they are more sluggish.
and wont get out Of mans way. Besides.
they don't have to coil to strike. and a
rattler does. A little south Of here We
find q very ANAL snake that Is said to be
even moro deadly than q cotton mouth.
II 10 similar to the kariet Of India, which
/. kills more people than the cobra does. The
negroes call this reptile the white-oak,
snake. 1t Is very rare. Inever aaw but one
Of them. although have been In the snake
catching business twenty years. The speci-
men l saw was only about Is inches long.
1t was marked something like a rattler. and
had the broad fiat head of ths most poison
Gus 50 pecies. ] did not have the opportunity
to examine 1t for the poison sacs, but am
confident it had them. The negro who had
It said II had bitten dog and the dog died
In two hours. If that was true the white
oak snake is much more deadly than the
rattler, for the bite Of a ra ttlesnake rarely
ever kills a. dog. But come in and see my
collection OF snakes
In the rear apartment OF the houseboat
Lee keeps his stock Of snakes. They occupy
q box about feet long feet wide and
feet deep, divided In two compartments.
The non poisonous snakes are kept in one
section and the poisonous ones In the other
I've only got six rattlers, three cotton
mouths and couple Of copperheads. said
the proprietor, but hero ID a. fine an a.
sortment OF racers and moccasins as you
ever saw
Thrusting his hand into the wriggng
squirming mass in the compartment for the
black serpent OF most elegant and slender
shape. This said he. SIS king snake.
He IL a cannibal, and he gives me trouble
by eating one OF OF his roommates OCCASION
ally. lie can whip any rattlesnake that
ever rawled and Is always dead willing to
do It. This (producing another) Ia rattle
snake pilot. Whenever you see one OF
these snakes you may DO sure that there
Is a rattler close by. 1t Ia venomous. but
not Deadly about like a water moccasin
You will observe that the rattlesnake pilot
y marked very much like the rattlesnake,
but he has not the broad, fat head Of the
latter. That Is because he has not the big
poison bags
So. from snake to snake did the profess
sional pass. telling OF the idiosyncrasies Of
each, and handling them with as little fear
as small boy does fish worm. In handling
AZ h.
methods Of doing it with safety. One was to
grasp the snake firmly close to the head
and let the tail wave free. The other was
10 catch the snake about inches from the
tail and hold it head downward.
Poisonous snakes, explained the expert,
-are heavy. and cannot raise the weight Of
their body by the tail IA the constructors
can. consequently If you are careful to
hold them head down they cannot reach
up and strike you
After exhibiting his stock Of snakes Leo
renewed his promise to take the invest ga
tor on snake-hunting expedition next day.
He kept his word The two started short
ly after sunrise, rowing across the river in
a skin, then striking for a swamp In the
American bottom, below East Carondelet.
Leo carried a bag and a heavy stick about
81 feet long.
aThiss has been great year for snake
catching he said. The drought has driven
Nilc hldhc5 Out VI tic anu h'ihS w tic
vicinity of the lakes and ponds, and they
are easy to locate We are getting into
good hunting ground snow, and guess I'd
better get ready for work"
The getting ready consisted OF slipping on
a pair Of thick leather gloves and hanging
the bag across his shoulders. Keeping a
keen eye on the ground alongside OF the
path Lee strode along. talking snake as
he went
Il sell uanst oSnly snakes t' s&ioaAp
concern tfaVin oil Of them,' Ne said
-and the others are taken by museums and
snake charmers. The snakes that you see
handled In shows are nearly all harmless.
Al least the persons who handle them think
they are. although sometimes they are not,
You SEQ. when we catch bad snake we
usually draw it's fangs. This renders them
harmless for time but the fangs grow
out again, and they are az dangerous as
ever, but they have got used TO being han
died by that time and don't try to bite
unless the handler pinches them. The only
way to permanently render q bad snake
harmless without killing II Ia to burn out
the poison bags This Is done with catistio |
and Is better then drawing the fangs, but II
Is q very delicate operation, and not many |
men In tho business know exactly how to |
do II. Hellol There's a snakel'
There was grecnish blue streak gliding |
through the bush at the side Of the road, |
Lee made a detour and headed the snake |
back toward the open path, II was only a |
car,nr upaka bpt yvbau n had ham baulaI |