228 Photography for the Sportsman Naturalist 



and since the days of the Garden of Eden fable 

 to the present time he has been persecuted with- 

 out just cause wherever found. It is remarkable 

 that he is not already extinct, for with most 

 people the first thought, upon seeing one, is to kill 

 him as quickly and thoroughly as possible. His 

 habits and characteristics are less known to most 



Milk Snake. 



people than are those of many of our wild things, 

 and it is a common belief that every snake is 

 poisonous. I well remember the utter horror 

 with which several country dwellers once watched 

 me pick up a three-foot garter snake which I had 

 found them stoning to death. When they saw 

 what I intended to do, they kindly warned me 

 that it was sure death, and I verily believe that 



