The Irish standard., 1905-07-15
IN. THE SNAKE. DEN.
NOT THE LARGEST, BUT IT WAS
BIG ENOUGH.
The Barker Utilized Every Means to
Entice the Nickels from the
Pockets Of the Crowd
and Succeeded,

Largest snake den in the world"
read the sign on the face of the plat
form upon which stood the barker call
ing on the people to come in and see;
and if it wasn't really just that, it was
perhaps the oldest.
Four or five steps led up from tho
sidewalk to the level of the platform,
in the center of which the den opened,
its mouth surrounded by a wooden rail-
ing There was thick semi-circle of
people standing on the sidewalk in front
listening to the man on the platform,
who was energetic in voice and man
ner. and at intervals individuals would
step forward from this listening throng,
convinced by his eloquence. and pay
nickel to another man, the cashier, who
sat at little desk at one side of the
stairs. and mount the steps to the plat
form and join the people there looking
down into the den.
And what one saw on looking dowL
over that railing was canvas-sided pit
about nine feet in depth. square at the
opening at the top and about nine feet
on side. Its sides sloped down to the
bottom. where the pit was about seven
feet square, and where, to be sure, there
We're to be seen plenty Of snakes, and
a snake charmer.
The snake charmer, woman, one
could judge by her garb. and an Indian,
If long straight back hair and copper
colored skin would vouch for that, sat
in one corner at the bottom of the pit,
,,,l,Dl S,, ~
the snakes, which lay. a lot of them, big
and little. around on the floor of the pit,
while there We're others to be seen In
fiat, shallow, open basket in one cor
ner. They were for the most part pretty
quiet snakes but now and then big
fellow from the lot on the floor would
run its head up in corner, apparently
in an effort TO escape.
Occasionally the charmer would
bend over from her corner and pick up
big snake from the basket and add it
to the collection on the floor of the den,
and sometimes she would pick up
snake from the floor and put it in the
basket and then she would pick up
some big snake. and handle it as snake
charmers do, while the people looked
down into the pit over the railing
around the top.
Once the barker turned and leaned
over the railing and said something to
the charmer, who picked up snake
six or eight feet long and then stood
up and handed it up to him out of the
mouth of the pit, the barker then hold
ing it up to the crowd in front, sam
pie of what was to be seen in the den.
1t was good business.
Once again he turned and leaned over
the railing and said something, perhaps
In Spanish, or it might have been in
Indian. but certainly it was not in Eng
lish, whcreupon the snake charmer bent
over the snakes on the floor and began
to make loud strange noises down there
among the snakes in the pit, while.
turning once more to the front:
Hear her holler!" shouted the barker
to the people, waving his arm as he
spoke. Hear her holler!"
Which was very good business, and
the people came in, dropping their
nickels on the desk of the cashier sit
ting just to one side of the stairs, and
mounting the steps to the platform to
join those already there looking over
TIL" railing down into the snake den
II is possible that the sign on the
front. Largest snake den in the world"
did eXaggeratc ii a little. but as they
put ii up II was big enough to attract.
IN. Y Sun.