Arizona Gardens 229 
sometimes afflicted with rabies, the belief has 
arisen in a ‘“‘hydrophobia skunk.’’ Of course 
no such peculiar species exists. As the habits 
of the Eastern skunk afford no analogy, I was 
naturally skeptical that the animal had any 
such remarkable trait in Arizona, but Dr. 
Hornaday writes in this connection: 
The fact is now established beyond question that at 
least one species of skunk in Arizona (just which one 
I am unable to say) does bite human beings, quite 
without provocation. ... Of course there can be 
no such thing as a “‘hydrophobia skunk’’—that is to 
say, a particular species to which the disease is con- 
fined. It is also equally certain that very many 
skunks are not afflicted with hydrophobia, and that 
the occurrences are due to accidental circumstances, 
which necessarily are quite beyond human knowledge. 
Rattlesnakes are not wanting but while one 
may be heard of in March, very little is seen 
of them until the middle of April, and you 
may ride for days without encountering a 
snake until the heat of summer brings them 
out. The “corral” snake is a large and formid- 
able-looking serpent, conspicuously marked, 
but though he has the reputation of killing 
the rattlesnake, he has no poison glands and 
his bite is harmless. A most bizarre-looking 
personage is the Gila monster, who crawls into 
