The Coconino sun., 1903-01-03
WOMAN HUNTS SNAKES
Resident of Oklshoma Makes Good Profit from the Oils for tine Cure Of Rheu-
 mstIsm and Other Diseases.

The most novel occupation fol-
 lowed by any woman in the United
 States is that pursued by Laura D.
 Nasal, a resident of Lexington, Okla.
 She hunts snakes, makes them cap tive and sells them to menageries and park boards and geological gardens. and says she is well satisfied with the profit she gains. Mrs Nasal was at one time a circus performer. Her face became disfigured accidentally. so she left the circus and took up the business of supplying snakes to show charmcrs, scientists and cura- tors of museums. She collects ser pent poisons, which are being stud jed extensively now in the hope that they may yield valuable antitoxins for bacterial diseases.
 Mrs. Nasal, says correspondent of the Chicago Chronicle, drives a large trade also in snake oils, war ranted to cure many diseases, from Rheumatism to insanity. The business is quite remunerative. She came to Lexington the other day to put $25O in in the bank, the proceeds of a sale of snakes to circus.
 Her method of catching snakes is remarkable. With her half-breed hus- band, Mespah, she lives in a little hut in the mountains. At short distance from the house are huge powder and spring called the Venom spring. Spring and powder are infested with snakes of all sorts.
 Mrs. Nasal has ap old flute, and a few tunes on it day or night will bring out an audience of squirming. missing snakes. They hide about within few feet of her in the grass. Rattlesnakes especially are fond of the noise of the flute.
 In catching the snakes the woman uses long pole with short running moose on the end. She drops the moose over his snakeship's head. pulls it tight and then seizes the reptile just below the poison sac on the head.
 In triee the struggling snake is safe in the four bag she carries. and few twists of the bag prevent all danger of the fangs striking through.
 Poison Peak. as Mrs. Nasal calls her home, is the locality in which Apache Kid. well-kDown Indian snake hunter, met his death in 1892. 'He came to the place to get snakes for the worlds fair" said Mrs. Nasal. 'He went into Death cave on the south side of the powder and began beating tom-tom
 "A splendid rattler glided out ard Apache Kid undertook to seize it. He was not quick enough, the snake sank its fangs in his arms and he died in an hour"
 Mrs. Masall declares that snakes ex- ert curious charm on those who fol- lew the business of snake hunting She calls the reptiles in her collection "pets" and handles them as if they were kittens.
 The snake market varies greatly. Of late years there has been a large de- mand from physicians and scientisrs. Grcuses and museums afford a more steady market.
 To collect the venom Mrs. Nasal in- duces the snakes to strike again and again, discharging their poison in a sort of glass hood. The venom sells by the drop and is very valuable.
 Mrs. Nasal maintains that the moe casin has no poison sac. The adder. the cotton mouth and the copperhead she ranks next to the rattler.
 Hoop snakes vii. not come at all. They live quite apart from other ser pents, and, according to this woman snake hunter. are extremely poison ous. They have to be tracked with care and are difficult to locate.