162 TEXAS NATURE OBSERVATIONS AND REMINISCENCES. 



markings are all beautiful and dif- 

 fer one from another. They have 

 no fangs but long sharp teeth. 

 When approached they blow like 

 a snake, and act very similar. The 

 tail is short and stubby, and the 

 head is broad and flat, resem- 

 bling that of a rattlesnake. The 

 back is covered with a hard beady 

 skin, and its abdomen is supplied 

 with scales, the same as a snake. 

 They have four short, stubby legs 

 and feet and move about the same 

 as. a lizzard; and they possess 



gentle treatment and general good 

 care. 



The size of this Gila is fifteen 

 inches and its weight is one pound 

 and eleven ounces; and its age is 

 estimated by Mr. Marsh at thirty- 

 six years. It was captured "near 

 Tucson, Arizona. 



The entire body and feet of this 

 animal, from head to' tail end, is 

 beautifully spotted with all sorts 

 of light cinabar or vermillion red 

 bands and figures, and these are 

 all studded with pearl like protur- 



GiLA Monster (Gently Held by Mr. Marsh's Fingers, Mouth Partly Open) 



some intelligence and can be 

 trained. They shed in spring and 

 fall the same as a snake, and live 

 to be very old, and no one seems 

 to have a knowledge of their ori- 

 gin. It is claimed by some au- 

 thorities that they are deadly poi- 

 sonous, whilst others claim the 

 contrary. ' ' 



The specimen Mr. Marsh pos- 

 sesses is very old and as gentle as 

 any house pet: an example again 

 of how wild animals of the most 

 vicious nature and deadly dispo- 

 sition can be trained to submit to 

 the willpower of.njan: including 



berances of the skin, and they 

 glitter like diamonds in bright 

 light. It has very short but most 

 powerful looking feet, with a 

 claw shaped nail on each of the 

 five toes, and as seen on the pho- 

 tograph herein,- prepared by the 

 writer, in different positions (one 

 photo showing Mr. Marsh's hand 

 gently touching the animal's neck 

 parts). These powerful shaped 

 feet indicate the haunts these 

 dreaded animals live in: in the 

 sandy rock deserts and mountain 

 regions of Arizona, where they 

 seek their haunts in the holes and 



