South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1915-03-04
RAISE SNAKES, IS
ADVICE TO FARMER
Allen S. Williams Says This
Reptile is One of Mans Best
Friends - Dozen Varieties
Are Useful on the Farm.

Every farmer and every poultry
raiser should keep a few snakes as
protection to his crops or his poul-
try" says Allen s. Williams of No.
156 Fifth avenue, secretary of the IN
ternational Herpetological society.
Mr.. Williams is a traveller and lect-
urer and snakes are his hobby He
has collected snakes in every part OF
the Western hemisphere.
Many of the finest specimens of
reptiles in the New York Geological
park were presented by him. His
mission in life is to demonstrate To
the people of America the truth about
snakes and to assure them that snakes
are the best friends the farmer and
the chicken farmer have.
The idea is simple" said Mr.. Will
Hams rats weasels and other rO
dents destroy crops and are the nat
ural enemy of domestic fowls. Snakes
are the natural enemy of rodents.
Keep a few snakes to kill off the
young rodents and in time your crops
and your chickens will be safe.
ITO the cereal crops alone in the
United States rodents cause an annual
loss of $100,0OO.OOO This statement
is made by the United States depart
ment Of agriculture. If only harmless
snakes were let alone, and not bru-
tally killed at every opportunity,
think what an immense saving this
would be TO the farmers. If snakes
had even half a chance the loss TO the
farmers and poultry raisers from rO-
dents would be reduced to practically
nothing.
Dozen Varieties Useful.
There are dozen varieties of
snakes that might be used with ad
vantage, but perhaps the milk snake
would be as good as any for purpos-
es of protection. The milk snake is
small, too small to eat eggs or kill
young chicks even if it wanted TO. IL
is too small to even kill full growth
rats, weasels muskrats minks or
opossums, which destroy chickens and
crops. But they kill off the young
rodents and by thus multiplying the re
production they soon would leave
crops and poultry free.
THE chicken snake also might b.
used with profit. This reptile is so
called because it frequents barnyards
and is enormously supposed to kill
chickens. The truth of the matter,
however, is that the chicken snake
kills the rats and weasels, especially
the young ones Almost any of our
non-poisonous snakes of the north
eastern United States might be used.
None of them, with the possible eX-
ceptiOn Of the mountain black snake
are large enough to cause any dam
age to poultry.
THE snake is the natural friend OF
man, and it is only prejudice. super
stitution and error that make it 9TH
erwise. l have been told that man
instinctively hates a snake, but
have proved the truth of the contrary
by having small children hold snakes
in their hand. The children had not
yet learned all the fallacies they
would be told in later life about
snakes.
Easy to Tame Snakes.
Snakes are the easiest animals in
the world to tame. | have tanned
snake in a few seconds. BY just
handling it gently for a moment the
reptile will see that you mean it no
harm. its fears of a human will be
dispelleG and il will be your friend
Chickens too, may learn not to fear
snakes. I have taken photographs
of snakes and chickens posing side by
side"
Mr.. Williams recently returned
from a snake hunting expedition TO
the island of Trinidad, the British
West Indies and the delta OF the ORR
nOcO river, in Venezuela. He was as
sisted in his search by bush negroes,
Caribs and Warrcun Indians. Ac-
companying him was Mrs. Williams,
better known as Elizabeth Reming-
ton" an artist and writer
He asserts that travel along the
South American trails, in spite of
crOcodiles, centipedes, constructors.
scorpions venomOus serpents and
nlalarial fevers is far safer than in
the automobile ridden streets of New
York city.