The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1906-11-20
ANaIENrs ANe -.



GFeeIss and Itonial-
me tsnowiedge Of aninais ana tiieit
habits which existed among the an.
efent Greeks ana Romans was most
fantastic.
Among other snakes deseEtoe bed n the
ancient natural Histories, for example,
was the basEIlsk. which Pilny called
the sslzing Of serpents." According %
the description. It was six teet long.
-v,,t,e a white crest ON Its head and had
n skin spotted with white. Such was
The abundance of It's venom, according
to these reports, that Il made the oody
thine an over. The air was poisoned
where this vile reptile passed. aud
great plants were enyenOmed with Its
subtle and luminous huId. while the
birds In turn fen before the odor ex-
hailed by the trees. But this monster
was an easy prey to the weasel Inc
dragon was the largest OF serpentS and
Inhabited especially Ethiopia ana
Egypt. When he Jew out of his cav
ern he furrowed the air with such yio-
Ience that 1t cleaned with IRE. HIS
mouth was small, and It was not the
wounds which It Indicted which made
power of his tail, which was capable OF
destroying even elephants.
It is interesting to notice that the
mythical dragon was already evolving
toward the boa constructor. The real
siren lived in Arabia and was sort
OF white serpent which ran so marvel
ousIy that most men say It dew."
Most Of the facts which are recorded
concerning birds are more accurate.
for the sport of falconry only made
men observers of their habits Still
there are few strange myths concern
ing the eagle. He was said to seize his
young fn=his talons and to make them
ok their eyes on the burning rays OF
the sun. Those alone that could gaze
without hInchfng were kept and nour-
ished Us worthy OF life. This Is not
cruelty says the simple writer. but
Judgment" The eagle had the power
OF renewing youth Mounting higher
and higher till his plumes were burned
by the sun, he fell into fountain.
where he bathed three times and was
thoroughly rejuvenated.
The habits OF the ostrich, an old book
said. were regulated by star named
Virgil. When the star began to rise the
astute bird laid its eggs, covered them
with sand and left their Matching to
the sun Another remarkable thing
was the influence which the chanticleer
exercised over the king OF beasts His
shriII crow put him in full hight-even
PlIny says so-but to do this his plum
age had to be pure white.
1t would not be doing justice to the
middle ages II the account of the uni
corn was withheld. It was the size of
n horse, though its legs were shorter,
and its hide had generally tanned col
or There We're three kinds: Ihe mag
nfficent white unicorn had a purpse
head and blue eyes. The horn was a
cubit in length, white in the lower part.
ebony in the middle and red ut the
end. 1t had the head of a stag and the
gigantic deer and had a very sharp
horn. The monoceros was like an OK
The ordinary unicorn of the middle
ages had a horn three fe0t in length
aud so sharp and hard that nothing
could resist It When he prepared to
fight the elephant, the animal he hated
most of all, he sharpened his horn
against n stone and when the day of
battle came dealt the enemy a fatal
blow in the paunch. This noble animal
fell an easy prey to the fluctuations of
innocence and virtue. In India. espe-
cIaIIy among the dweIlers Of the Can
ges, when It was desired to tame q
unicorn q young and virtuous girl was
chosen and led TO his cave. The animal
at once appeared and did homage to
the damsel and was easily caught and
tanned by the engaging wiles OF the
maiden.