The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1902-06-27
A TEXAs 1NnI,srRY

'u.NpItu america.
Jidne
,bie A TEXAs INDUSTRY
- You may cav remarked the doctor I
lh some degree n pride that have
cen directly Instrumental ~ haHing over
1cpco0 srnt Into this state aud expended
FOR snakes alone within the past five years.
Il receive orders fnsieg than cln I'LL them,
mud at Corpus Christi ] keep twenty 10
thirty MexicuLs ON oycd al the tine
catching snakes TO supply the demand from
foreign markets
II pay - cents per pound for snakes; 81
each tor ella monsters, 81 60 $40 for pee
cary boys nr Wild hoUrs 50 tn $40 each
for long aud short tHl ! opard cnts, aud
varying prices for an bindS II native Wild
animals, reptiles and raye fowls.
Il hiyr just rece we'd ~ any depository IN
Corpus Christi ten igvlltnas. or pgcc1ry
ftrty hohtau catanouurs brought overland
Mexico
The snakes arc easily caught. a stick
vifh draw string uetaNy being used,
hut frequently a furkrd stick is employed.
which fastops tho snakes head to tho rarth
Until II ran b" gtoSped with the hand nnl
throuB in'c d > elk rr other receptacle.
Afier he nr c'ushr. n handled cOrefuliN
they get 50 dueilc IN two or three days mt
they VII "a hilo In fact snakes have
othcl creature in the world procure
practically Nh my rattl7snnkes from around
Corpu On su ADD ihc counties between
there and tho Mexican border
Eat THREE TIMES 4 YEAR.
"The rattlers rnry In length from one loot
10 seven ana onc-hnlf fect and weigh from
half pound to ten pounds, Averaging about
pound to the foot The ~iticr Ia the
most poisonous snake IN North America.
It's lons fanEs throwing the poison Of which
II contains large amount than any other
spak = deep into the blood n oats but
three tines a year--carlv In the spring. IN
midsummer aud lHtc iu 'ho fall, II mates
In the spring and It's young are born In
August This snake is very docile IN INIT.
ing time. rarely offering to bite, one char
acttrlstic peculiar to tho RATHER Is that It
nerer cats anything II can not kill with It's
poison, indicating that nature has pro
%ded the poison solely FOR selt-prcserva-
'SThe Joint or crystal snake "a specimen
If which was shown the reporterl IA really
species. Of lizard without feet, II is
striped Ike the gartor snake has = short
hard and hollow. with a core having four
rells like cookie burr This tail breaks
like glass anywhere below it's which
Is usually about nne-thir0 the length Of
the tail. II Is not true, as you perhaps
have often heard stated, that the pieces
rome together again after being brokcn,
hut nature provides In q short while q new
growth whore broken. This snake. ns YOU
kcc. has two now grNwths showing thnt
Il has hecn broken twice during It's brief
Nx'stenCe. II has small cars Ike the lizard
being the only snake that has cars, and
sometimes. hut rarely. two ia four feet.
They are found more frequently In the
know of. This specimen was captured Just
outside the south limits ~ this city
HooP SNAKE MYTH.
"There Is no sucs thing as the hoop
snake The white racers and hull snakes
src very frequently found with horns from
ono half to ono inch long on their tails, but
they are entirely harmless 1'hoy travel So
rapidly that they have tn. appearance Of
making half loop motions, whence arises
the popular superstition that they travel
Ike hoop.
The ella monster Is found west OF the
Pecos river In Texas, In Arizona and In
New aud Old Mexico. At certain seasons
Of the year this Is the most deadly reptile
In tho world; Al other times 1t IL harmless.
Every year during the months of Jnne. July
and August 1t contracts disease some
thing like the rabies. All of them have
the disease at this season OF tho year, but
by one OF them during this period becomes
raying maniac aud dies IN great agony
10 from ten minutes 70 two hours. Nothing
but immediate nHd heroc treatment win
save the person bitten. Al Seymour, Texas,
six years ago my wife was bitten on the
hand by one Of these monsters. | was
standing near and had to pry its teeth
loose, SO firmly did II hold on TO her hand
The. most powerful antdotes We're at once
used, hut for nine hours she was rayina
manisc and her life hung by n thread. hui
she hnslly recovered, though II took years
for her to fully get over the effects OF It's
bite
"'rhe ella monster eats only once a
month during the summer months. after
which It eats nothing at all from the ers,
Of November 10 the first OF April. II eats
from four to six eggs at a meal"
The doctor rendered The Post representa-
tive the key and the freedom Of his snake
den. hut assuring him that all up-to-datS
reporters had seen snakes enough the re
porter promised TO send the editor OF the
.'Alkii Eye" around at the first oppor