224 



RECREATION. 



times in the fall I took her miles in the 

 woods. She would follow me anywhere 

 like a dog. I would try to leave her and 

 get back home; but every time she 

 would come humping along a little later. 

 In November she hibernated under a beam 

 in a hay mow, and would only show her- 

 self a little on mild days, eat a little and 

 go back. In March we had a warm rain, 

 and she left never to come back, although 

 she came back in August with a family, 

 which she raised close to the farm. She 

 was so tame that she would 'bring them 

 almost to the house at night, and could 

 often be seen. Talk about calls or noises! 

 You could hear all you wanted without 

 having any owls mixed in. Later in the 

 fall the family fell the victim of coon 

 dogs. 



I consider Recreation the best maga- 

 zine in the States, and will guarantee it 

 will cure any game hog if he will read it 

 one year. When I first took the office here 

 there was not a copy coming here. Now 

 there are several, and thanks to Dr. G. B. 

 Johnston, they are still increasing. Doc. 

 is a hustler for new subscribers, and can 

 dissect a game hog so he would never root 

 any more. They would better keep away 

 from him. 



M. H. Douglas, Abbotsford, Wis. 



I have had several coons as pets. One, 

 a youngster, became friendly with a neigh- 

 bor's pup. The coon was kept chained to 

 an iron pin, and the dog came to play with 

 him several times a day. When the pup 

 wandered away the coon made a noise as 

 if to call him back. 



Last spring I caught 3 chipmunks and 

 put them in a cage. I had heard that these 

 animals do not take kindly to captivity, 

 but 2 of mine became exceedingly tame. 

 While they were busy putting away their 

 winter's supply of food, one killed the other 

 2. Now he is alone, storing all the food 

 he can get into a box. 



George Ross, Carrollton, 111. 



I was much interested in F. W. Collard's 

 article entitled "Do Coons Chatter ?" What- 

 ever they may do in Georgia, raccoons 

 certainly chatter in Ohio, both at large and 

 in captivity. While uttering the cry they 

 usually stand on their hind feet and rub 

 their forepaws together. There is no 

 question in this region of confounding the 

 coon's call with that of the red screech 

 owl. In 50 years spent here I have never 

 seen one of those owls. We have the grey 

 screech owl, but its cry is unmistakable. 

 S. W. Riggs, Sullivan, O. 



In November Recreation I read what 

 was said about coons making a noise. They 

 have a fuller, deeper note than a screech 

 owl, and it can be heard farther. It does 

 not seem loud when heard close by, but 

 the sound carries a long distance. I was 



in the middle of a city one summer night 

 and heard a coon's cry. I spoke of it, and 

 a friend said, "There is a pet coon about 

 2 blocks from here." 



M., Princeton, 111. 



SNAKE TALK. 



I have read with much interest the dis- 

 cussion in Recreation as to how rattle- 

 snakes reproduce their young, arid I should 

 like to hear from someone who knows 

 what he is talking about as to the height 

 a full grown rattler can strike, and what 

 thickness of clothing, boots or shoes would 

 resist a strike of its fangs. A miner who 

 had prospected in Arizona 7 years, and 

 whose word I never had any occasion to 

 doubt, told me that once while he was 

 sitting beside a trail in that country he saw 

 2 roadrunners approaching. Suddenly they 

 stopped, their attention seeming to be 

 drawn by some object on the sand before 

 them. After holding their heads together 

 a few seconds, as if debating what to do, 

 they separated and began to gather pieces 

 of cactus, which they placed in a circle 

 around the object of their attention, a 

 sleeping rattlesnake. After completing the 

 circle they ran a short distance away and 

 began to chatter in a noisy manner, to 

 awaken the reptile. Hearing the noise, the 

 snake made a start to get out, to learn the 

 cause. Finding his way barred by cactus 

 he turned to go in another direction, only 

 to find the same thing. After going from 

 one side to another and finding no exit he 

 became mad, and turning struck his fangs 

 into his own body. The birds, which were 

 watching with great interest, and which 

 seemed not to notice the miner, waited 

 until the snake had made his last struggle. 

 Then they entered the circle, dragged out 

 the body and inspected it, turning it over 

 first one way and then another, all the 

 time chattering at a great rate to each 

 other. After satisfying themselves they 

 proceeded on their way. 



Geo. R. Dunahoo, Los Angeles, Cal. 



ANSWER. 



The height a rattler can strike depends 

 altogether on the size of the snake. A 

 reptile 4 feet long could, if he tried, strike 

 a point 2 feet above the ground ; but they 

 do not usually try to strike very high. A 

 boot or a legging that would come just 

 above the knee would probably be safe in 

 all cases. Editor. 



I have taken much interest in the snake 

 stories in Recreation. Several years ago, 

 while walking with friends along a country 

 road in Franklin county, N. Y., a greenish 

 snake 2 or 3 feet long was encountered. 

 To our astonishment it opened its mouth 

 wide, while into it rapidly disappeared 8 

 or 10 young snakes .3 to 4 inches long. 

 The reptile was killed. When it was lifted 



