Texas Nature Observations and Reminiscenses Page: 142

                                
142 TEXAS NATURE OBSERVATIONS AND REMINISCENCES.

nished their food.     These hilly
regions around the metropolis of
Texas today, in late years have
been entirely   cleared  of  these
beasts, and governmentt Ilill-the
lower part of which is still known
as "Rattlesnake Hill," Tobin Hill.
Laurel Heights, Prospect Hill, Ala-
mo Heights, Beacon Hill, I)igno-
wity Hill, Knob Hill, an(l other
suburbs are now nearly overcrowdl-
ed with elegant, up-to-(late dwel-
lings and palatial residences, andm
the surrounding country converted
into fertile fields andl commercial
enterprises: and 'Tex'as in general.

with  its vast  territory  of over
two hundred thousand square miles,
has also been cleared of venomous
reptiles and poisonous insects of
all sorts during late years: dlue to
its miraculous rapid up-building
and   immense    cultivated  plains.
Vast numbers of these reptiles
have been exterimin at.'.l I) hunt-
ers, birds and animals of prey,
and by professional reptile dealers.
But, of course, there still exist
large, secluded regions where the
dreaded rattler and moccasin re-
main unmolested, and( occasionally

-but    nowadays rarely-- farmers,
hunters, fishermen, outing parties
and   others on    trips  over the
prairies or along river bottoms,
in the fields and forests, etc., are
likely to be bitten lbv a more or
less dangerous serpent or sonic
spider species, especially the small
and speckled vagabond or jumping
tarantula (" Latrodeetus Mactams")
and a few other varieties of poison-
enls insects.
A regular "'lI t-hl,,i'" (' snakes
in the rear of Saln Antonio -10
miles south   is the old Mitchell
Lagoon, but    likely th e  dreaded

rattlesnakes is v'(i iarel\ eo'iunll ter-
ed( as in former yea rs, for reaso0li
of the   surroll(nding :area1 being
converted all l'around iIlto cult ivatted
fields. But the lake itself contains
in its tall  jungles, llundreIds and
more so-called "mloecansins." These
snakes, however, at least lst the great-
er majority-, are not the genuine
andl highly poisolu s cotton- nouth
mo(casin ; they   are  ati entirely
harmless variety of water-snake,
ibut of such   feairfuil proportions
and  appearance, that they     are
enough to Imalke the timid and un-

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