NATURAL HISTORY. 



38i 



rare for one snake to own more than 21 

 rattles. If you will examine those given 

 you I think you will find proof that they 

 are from different snakes. There is no such 

 thing as a button. What is called a button 

 is only the pointed end of a rattle. Every 

 rattle has a similar point, which extends in- 

 to the rattle back of it. Snakes frequently 

 lose a good portion of their rattles. I have 

 killed hundreds of rattlesnakes and the larg- 

 est one of all had only 3 rattles. The small- 

 est had 4, and was only about one foot long. 

 Its rattles were no larger around than an 

 ordinary wheat straw. 



C. E. Pleas, Chipley, Fla. 



ANOTHER DEER HEAD. 



In August Recreation, Mr. Carson, of 

 Frostproof, Fla., describes a pair of red deer 

 antlers in his possession, which he claims 

 are record breakers. I have a pair of the 

 following dimensions: 



Length of right beam, 30^2 inches. 



Number of points on right beam, 13. 



Circumference, 2 inches from base, 7% 

 inches. 



Length of bez-tine, J 1 /? inches. 



Length of left beam, 29^2 inches. 



Points on left beam, 12. 



Circumference, 2 inches from base, 7 

 inches. 



Length of bez-tine, 8]/ 2 inches. 



Spread between points, 19^4 inches. 



Widest spread, 28^4 inches. 



R. Gilfort, Orange, N. J. 



A SQUIRREL'S STRANGE MEAL. 

 I recently witnessed a curious proceeding 

 on the part of a red squirrel. It ran to the 

 end of a branch and there tore off leaves, 

 which it began to eat. Several of these 

 leaves fell to the ground and on examina- 

 tion proved partly covered by a white mold. 

 In this mold were certain shapes which 

 might have been animal life. The leaves 

 were eaten almost to the end of the mold 

 before being thrown down. Is this habit 

 common to both red and gray squirrels, or 

 to red alone? What was on the leaves that 

 afforded this squirrel a meal? 



Eliot C. Brown, Burlington, Vt. 



THE REDBUG. 



I saw a query in Recreation as to how 

 to fight the redbug, or " jigger." 



Procure an ounce or 2 of oil of penny- 

 royal, and apply it to the bump produced 

 by the insect. In a few minutes he will curl 

 up and die. You must, however, rub the 

 afflicted part thoroughly, that the insect may 

 be well bathed in the oil. 



If you rub the oil on the hands, face, an- 

 kles and neck, the " chigger " will not bother 

 you. Fred. Nelson. 



den crop unless I kill as many of them as 

 I can. Even then they get the largest share 

 of some things. It is almost impossible to 

 raise, peas, corn, squash or pumpkins. The 

 jays know exactly where the seeds are and 

 never fail to bore down and get them. They 

 also destroy my potatoes. They are doing 

 more to destroy our song and insectivorous 

 birds, by stealing their eggs, than all other 

 causes combined. They are not insectivo- 

 rous. I have dissected many and found 

 nothing in their crops but grain and seeds. 

 Put a bounty on the blue jay and then note 

 the increase in other birds. 



Isaac Anglemyer, Buena Vista, Col. 



NATURAL HISTORY NOTES. 



The snake stories of Fuller and Carr, in 

 Recreation, made me smile. They 

 brought to mind a similar adventure of my 

 own that occurred here on the old farm in 

 Durham. I was " fixing fence " some 

 years ago, when I ran on to -a large striped 

 snake, which I quickly despatched. I 

 started to take it to the house for exhibi- 

 tion, when I noticed a little snake fall from 

 its mouth. Dropping the snake I began 

 squeezing it and — well I hesitate to tell the 

 rest, out of regard for my own reputation as 

 well as for the feelings of Mr. Carr. 



But just as I was about to cut stick and 

 run, for fear delirium tremens had caught 

 me, I squeezed the last little snake out. 

 How many? There were 44 little snakes. 



Some one has mentioned woodchucks. 

 I suppose I have been the death of hun- 

 dreds. How many of your readers ever 

 saw one climb a tree? I never did but 

 once. He went up a hemlock, like a cat, 

 and came down quicker, on the invitation 

 of my old 6 shooter. 



I wish the fellows would tell about their 

 6 shooters. What do they carry for small' 

 game? I take a target pistol, 10 inch bar- 

 rel, 22 calibre. 



Will it improve the 40-82 charge, for bear, 

 to use a 330 grain bullet and less powder? 

 Pine Tassel, Lisbon Falls, Me. 



THE BLUE JAY. 

 Blue jays are a pest in this region, and I 

 shoot them at sight. I cannot raise a gar- 



I want to supplement Mr. Boyd's re- 

 marks on the blue jay by relating an in- 

 stance showing the jay's impudence, and 

 pugnacity. A lover of birds discovered 

 that a pair of these had commenced house 

 building on a porch in front of his sitting 

 room. Before the nest was fairly finished 

 the birds claimed possession of the entire 

 porch, not only scolding, but actually driv- 

 ing the family away from it. As building 

 progressed their impudence increased, un- 

 til it became necessary to tear down the 

 nest to insure safety for the children and 

 ladies of the house. 



Yes, he does steal and hide, both. A lady 

 who owned one, told me whenever the bird 

 could escape from its cage, by cutting away 

 the wood frame around the wires — a not 

 uncommon occurrence — he would cun- 



