The Cooperstown courier. (Cooperstown, Griggs Co., N.D.) 1902-1913, 1904-12-29
BATTLES BETWEEN SNAKES
Fights Sometimes Waged for Hours
When Angry Reptiles Come
Together.

Fights somstimss Waged for Hours ;
When Angry Reptiles Come
Together.
Snakes are comparatively rare In this
country, and, as rule, harmless. 1t is
true that there was chronicled not
long ago the appearance Of q fierce mon
ster in North Wales, with head as
large as q mans hand" But that was an .
exception. says London paper.
Much discussion took place recently
as to whether snakes were given to swal- /
lowing their kind. When one Of them |.
is hard pressed by its enemies, and
there are young ones playing about. the
latter promptly crawl down their
mothers throat out Of harms way.
It is painful to witness the agony Of .
mother snake sometimes when, in the !;
furry and excitement following the
appearance Of a man amongst q group Of ,
the reptiles, the offspring Of some other
snake accidentally take refuge down her !
throat.
She has not the capacity to hold her |
neighbours young and her own. of course,
and when she has been filed up with
strangers. and couple Of stray ones Of
her own appear on the scene and clamor
for admission, her position indeed be- |
comes trying one.
Her own offspring is, in fact, often left
to perish, while she reluctantly saves
the lives Of others which do not belong ,,
to her. The maternal affections of
snakes. whatever may be said Of their
poisonous qualifications and biting pro-
pensities, certainly entitle them to some
consideration.
The graceful way in which couple
of youthful snakes will gambol together
on the grass, twisting around each other
and Kissing playfully and atfectionately
In each others face, is a sight, once seen,
to be long remembered.
The sight is, of course, a somewhat
rare one, for as soon as the intruder is
observed the buck snake Immediately
abandons his love-making, and makes
in the direction Of the stranger with all
the savagery of his nature displayeA in
his flashing little eyes and his fercely
7
The traveller requires a good nerve
{ ands q long stick when he il attacked in
this way. The reptile Is desperately in
earnest, and no thought of fnjlry to his
body, or even death, viii deter him from
hia purpose Of gssenkipg the Intrusion
upon the sacredness or his wooing.
/. II the male snake should happen to b.
killed in the encounter, as is very often
the case, the female will approach. the
dead body OF her mate quite regardless
of the presence Of his destroyer, and pro-
coed to fawn upon, the remains. and ina
general way ostentatfously bemoan the
fate of her comrade. All Of which goes
to prove that the snake. is not such 2 bad
creature as she is painted.
There seem to be various develop
ments of the bump of combativeness
among the Australian snakes. Some are
arrant towards; others assume a belli-
cose attitude upon any and every occa-
sion. The. tiger" species is most given
to fighting. e z 81 Il
The traveller in the bush often comes
across two "tigers" pegging away at
each other for dear life.
I They are invariably so taken up with
the quarrel that they may be openly ap-
|proached and captured orekilled at the
intruder's pleasure.
/ Sometimes the two belligerents will
fasten on to each others Aail,and re-
tain the grip with all the tenacity of a
bulldog hanging on to another's hind
leg. @ E N 5
4 have often caught them locked to-
gether in this fashion, and have known
them to remain in that position for sew
eral days at time. When they show
any sign of relaxing, all that you have
to do is to give one of them smart
pinch.
He Immediately blames it upon his
enemy, and redoubles his grip upon the
tail.
The other, feeling the extra pressure
suddenly put upon his tail, retaliates
promptly in similar manner, and thus
the silent and deadly battle goes on.