Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-09-24
SN lakes FIRST
By Frank II. Brooks

4 dllllIldlS, 1SpIllCS dllu IIlScCIS IlldkcS
the assertion that snake stories have the
call. He AYERS that ever since the snake
story in the beginning, as told in Genesis,
humanity has been interested in reptiles.
In my collection of stories," he says,
the snake leads by at least four to one
Some years ago an author in search of
material about the animal kingdom asked
me to send him all the information |
could vouch for, especially about snakes
he said. l had no occasion to draw on
my imagination or rely upon that of 9TH
ers in carrying out his request. l may
have strung him few on some things;
but when it comes to snakes truth dis
tances fiction. | never understood why a
man had to drink in order to find snakes.
You find city man anywhere in the
deep-tangled wildwood, or in places
where there are rocks and crevices, and
the first thing he asks you is: Are there
any snakes about here?' The human race
has been looking for snakes ever since its
mother was tempted to lead Adam astray.
I'm the quadruped line the bear comes
next in my collection of stories. If you
go to any geological garden you will find
the crowd going from the snake-cage to
the bear-pit. Of course the monkey
amuses. The Darwinian theory makes
the monkey drawing card; but the
bear for study, and amusement as well.
Some years ago when | was in a
sleepy old town in England, a man who
ranked pretty high for his learning asked
me, just as | was about to take my de-
parture, if l ever saw a real bear. | had
a few bear stories which | had held in
reserve and when l told them he asked
me to remain under his roof for another
day. If l had seen fit to lie about the
animal | might have remained in that
mans house all my life.
For the animal that is strenuous,
commend me to the wildcat There is
something in the name that quickens
your blood; but aside from that the wild
cat is real The animal is becoming
scarce, and the man who is engaged to
send in wildcat stories has to take some
thing to make good one.
"A genuine mad-dog story is good any
time of day, and comes about as near
crowding display advertisement out of
a newspaper as anything that can happen.
Men don't hunt mad dogs as they do
snakes and bears, but when they hear
of one they want all the particulars.
The bull has a conspicuous part in
my collection. Spain has done its part
in making the bull interesting. If you
go out in the country and see sign in
field, Beware of the Bullp it's about
the same as if you had read Smallpox
Here on the side of house. The only
difference is that in the latter case you
hurry along, while in the first you hunt
a safe place and sit down and wait for
the bull to show up. A few summers
ago l was at w-Jersey resort and
noticed man who seemed to be avoided
They told me he had mumps. But l
knew it wasn't the season for mumps.
learned later that he had been tossed
over fence by bull, and as soon as |
scattered the information that man had
to fight to keep the crowds away from
him. They kept him up so late, telling
about what the bull did to him that he
got thin for want of sleep You prob
ably have heard of the man who stayed
in Rome until he had to send home for