E. D. PETERS, 
38 Pbroiyal Street. 
DOKCHESTEE, MASS., Ma 7 1 5 » 19 04 
My Bear Mr. Bean': 
A friend of mine has sent me the following (. enclosed^) clipping 
& is greatly exercised about it,because,only a few months ago,I assured him 
that the Gila Monster had no venom,and that no poison sacs had ever been found 
in him by dissection. That,when serious results followed,they were due to 
blood poisoning,as the creature is carnivorous,and usually has decomposed ani¬ 
mal food between' his teeth.. This printed article is one of the wildest 
efforts of the imagination that I have ever seen. j have spent some years 
, put it all together,where Gila Monsters were as plentiful as chipmunks are 
a 
here. I have had a dozen staked out rjind my tent, experimenting with them, and 
dissecting them,and have never found a poison gland or duct,or seen any specific 
effects arise from their bite,beyond what might be expected from the fright 
& blood poisoning arising from the bite of any carnivorous animal. Nor have I 
ever known of but one death of a humn being from such a bite. And that occurred 
from distinct bloodpoisoning ( and after a week or 10 days after the bite,wh. was 
a terrible one, as the brute held on to the nan's hand until his head was cut 
off and his jaw's pried apart. Sc the hand was badly mangled, and the man fright¬ 
ened almost to death,while the heat was intense,and fever set in soon. 
If you cannot speak positively your self on the subject,! know that you 
are in a positiou to get me an authoritative opion from some zoologist,whose 
statement will carry weight. What I particularly desire to have an answer to is 
"Boss the Gila Monster possess poison glands in the roof of his mouth, or any» 
where else?7 It may be that I am all wrong,and overlooked them in my dissec¬ 
tion's, and that my puppies and chickens that did not suffer from the experimen¬ 
tal bites of my Gila Monsters, were of a peculiarly hardy at Dr. 7 e i r 
Mitchell had the same results later,I think. If you could get me an authoritati 
ve statement on the above point,it would be a great favor. 
Sincerely Yours 
