The Washington herald., 1921-08-07

Rattlesnake eoiled, the only position
from which he strikes, ready to
launch his iayelin-like head at foe
CTR. sTEJNEGER," inquired Of the
- Governments reptile specialist, may
We expect that the mortality from snake bite
VIII be greatly increased this year because
of the diniculty in procuring the generally
used antidote?"
Quite the contrary" he responded:
''there VIII be fewer deaths this year from
make bites than usual because, Of the
fact that 1t is harder to get whisky. Whisky,
instesd Of being a cure for snake bite, de-
creases the chances of the patient to re-
cover. People suffering from snake bite
have often recovered after administering
copious quantities Of alcoholic stimulant, but
they have recovered In spite of that sttmu-
Iant and not because of ii. There doubt
less have been many fatalities from snake
bite which would not have resulted had the
afflicted person never been given excessive
quantities of alcoholic stimulants.
This belief that alcohol is a cure for
snake bite is one of the most widely spread
fallacies from which a people has suffered.
1t is an alleged remedy of which everybody
has heard. It has been very widely and per-
<istently advertised. Despite the fact that
il has been known for nearly half a CEN
tury that It was entirely Ineffective, 1t Is
still probably true that nine people out Of
ten believe whisky to be a cure for snake
bite. Il is true that in a certain phase Of
the suffering from snake bite q certain de-
gree of alcoholic stimulant might help the
patient bridge over the emergency. This
alcohol, however, would need to be given
very sparingly and at just the right time.
1t would serve as stimulant to heart ac-
ton. Excessive quantities of alcohol place
an additional burden upon the heart of the
stricken patient. That heart may already
be approaching exhaustion from the effects
of the snake bite. The additional burden
which the alcohol places upon it may result
in its breaking down, where, otherwise, it
would have lasted through. So difficult is it
to determine just when and just what guam
tity Of alcohol may help in an emergency OF
this sort that safety lies in not using it at
ALL"
With the season Of the year at its height
when most people go into the open and,
therefore, are more exposed to snake bites,
had sought out that man in the Govern
ment service who was its speciality expert
upon the subject Of reptiles. DR.. Leonard
St.jneser, head curator of biology of the Ma
tional Museum, is the Government reptile
specialist A man who devotes himself en-
tirely to the study Of reptiles is set down as
q hsrpetologist DR.. Stejneger is a herpe-
tologist. He has given a long and busy life
to the study of those creatures whose tum-
mics drag the ground, and has specialized
upon the poisonous snakes Of North Amer
lea. He Is as familiar with poisonous snakes
as IL a farmer boy with pigs and chickens
Of the barnyard.
The members Of the reptile family" said
Or, stejneger, exercise peculiar fascina-
tion over most people. There seems to have
developed In the human being an instinct
which tails him to Kill snakes, regardless Of
the kind Of snakes they are. To be sure,
rreat majority Of snakes are entirely harm
less and incapable Of doing injury to man.
There are certain varieties, however, that
ere more or less deadly, and in protection
aga1n5L LueLu uuu mas Uccu given q ASNuASAOh
..,fnst an reptiles and an instinct to exter-
inmate them-E 80 .- -
'.It n well that this be true, because
few people can Be expected to learn to dis
crininats between the harmless and the
venomous snakes and q mistake may prove
fatal, Wherever there are poisonous snakes
there are sure to be harmless snakes which
s.et TO initiate them. These harmless snakes
act IN this way In self protection, knowing
,nstinetivsiy that bluf II often as effective
With nothing back Of II as though It were
auped with latent death. Many an entirely
harmless snake has frightened away enemies
that night have killed 1t BY shaking Its tal
a. would rsttlsr and producing an initiative
uciss By striking that tail against . dry
lest's . -
(which are the poisonous snaksf'
s,ksd. -, go --s.s
sTrHERE are In North America but thres
j OF four kinds OF snakes that are poison.
ems. OF these the rsttissnaka IL the bsst
Known and the most widely distributed, It d
10 be found from coast 10 coast and from
the Canadian border to Msxico. Tho Cana
diau border, however. d about the northern
sxtreuhty Of It's place of abode, There are
. great many different kinds Of rattlers,
ranging from the white RATHER Of Lower
cslifornla and the hqrAsd RATHER Of Arisena