THE ALLIGATOR'S LIFE HISTORY 47 



extra large one taken in the swamps of the Red River had 

 swallowed a 'coon. I have never known of but one 

 authentic instance of an alligator willfully attacking a 

 human being unprovoked. I have known of several peo- 

 ple who were supposedly drowned or bitten by alligators 

 in the water, but on following up the cases I have proven 

 everyone of them to have been attacks by large alligator- 

 garfish. 



Female alligators will attack man to protect their nests 

 and young, but their movements on land are so slow, that 

 there is no trouble in avoiding them, and in the water, they 

 always give warning if they are about to attack by hissing 

 and guttural grunts; giving a person ample opportunity to 

 get out of their way. It is a wonder more men are not in- 

 jured by these powerful reptiles, for those who make a busi- 

 ness of hunting them for their skins are most careless in 

 handling them; but it is a rare thing for any one to be hurt 

 by an alligator. 



I once saw an alligator about four and a half feet long 

 catch one of my hounds by the side of the head as it was 

 swimming a bayou on the east side of Avery Island after a 

 wounded buck, and it came near drowning the dog. It 

 twisted and tugged at the dog's head with such power as to 

 pull the dog under the water causing it to lose its sense of 

 direction and to become so fatigued, I am sure it would have 

 been drowned had I not gone in the water and taking the al- 

 ligator by the neck, killed it with my hunting knife. On an- 

 other occasion a five foot alligator caught by the side of his 

 head one of my bear hounds, Bull (who was an unusually 

 large and powerful dog, but old), as he was drinking water 

 from the bank of a pond near my house and drowned him. 

 No one saw the alligator pull Bull in, but he was found in 

 the pond dead, and a five foot two inch alligator, which I 

 shot, watching his carcass. The side of his head and ear 

 was badly lacerated by the alligator's teeth. 



On another occasion I was shooting teal ducks in a long, 



