Texas Nature Observations and Reminiscenses Page: 53
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TEXAS NATURE OBSERVATIONS AND REMINISCENCES. 53
she could be safely returned to
her home.
In , is publications on ;Texas
reptiles and spiders, Dr. H.
W. Cruse of Victoria, Texas, re-
lates the following interesting
case of spider bite of the small,
jumping variety by some hunter:
"In the month of October, 1865,
I was hunting in the woods three
miles north of Halletsville, La-
vaca County. Thrusting my hand
into a blackjack stump, I felt a
sharp pain in the back of my
hand between the thumb and fore-
finger, of my right hand. With-
drawing it quickly, I found a spi-
der (Latrodactus Mactams) fast-
ened to my hand. I crushed it and
proceeded with my investigations.
In a few minutes my hand began
to tingle, like it had been asleep.
and a place around the bite, the
size of a half dollar, began to
discolor. I started for home about
one mile away. In the meantime
the tingling had turned to a thou-WHITE AND RED SPOTTED JU MPIN; T ARAN TULA
(Magnified alive three times.)
sand needles being thrust into my
hand and arm as high as the el-
bow and I got sick at the stomach,
and when about half way home I
laid down and vomited freely. Ar-
riving at home, I had another
vomiting spell and felt very faint,
and the pain in my arm was going
up. There was little swelling inthe arm, but the spot around the
bite had turned the color of dead
flesh, and the nausea was very
great. I secured a horse and start-
ed for town, three miles to a doc-
tor. Six times in the three miles
I stopped to vomit, and when I
got to town the intense pricking
pain had gone up my arm and
around to the shoulder blade. I
went straight to the office of Dr.
Troup. My eyesight was dim. MIy
brain was muddled, the nausea
was intense, and the pain in my
hand, arm and shoulder was very
severe, and I lost all mental fear
of what the result might be. The
doctor gave me something which
relieved me of all pain and I went
to sleep. When I awakened he
was examining my shoulder and
arm. About where vaccine is
generally placed on the arm was
another place similar to the one
around the bite, and still another
on the shoulder blade. They were
all about the same size and color,
slightly raised and hard. I was
in bed two days. About the fifth
day a sharp line had separated the
healthy flesh from the diseased
flesh at three swollen places, and
the dead flesh fell out in a lump,
leaving a clean, healthy hole that
would hide about two half dollars.
I lost flesh and it was about a
month before I regained my usual
health. I do not know what reme-
dies Dr. Troup used."
The breeding nest of these spi-
der species is an interesting study.
They do not dig funnel shaped
nests underground, like some of
the larger tarantula species or
prepare web nests in hollows of
trees, like some other spiders, but
they prepare a neat, flat, or glob-
ular, dense nest in some corner-
probably under loose wood or
bark of old trees or rotten wood,
or in secluded places of stables
and old-fashioned privy vaults.
During an outing in the post-oak
valley of the Olmos settlement,
north of San Antonio, some time
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Menger, R. Texas Nature Observations and Reminiscenses, book, 1913; San Antonio, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth143558/m1/57/?q=menger: accessed April 23, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting University of Texas Health Science Center Libraries.