48 
CREATURES OF MYSTERY 
a dugout has a tenant, then comes the dangerous task of locat¬ 
ing him. The danger is somewhat remote, provided he is in¬ 
side the hole, as would be the case during cold or rainy days, 
but on warm winter or spring days he delights in coming forth 
from his damp quarters and taking his sun bath. In doing this 
he employs all his serpent cunning to the end that no possible 
passerby may discover his presence. First, he shuns with 
meticulous care all holes with barren surroundings. Occasion¬ 
ally he takes up a position in front of his hole to sun himself, 
but only in cases where the front yard is ideal but the back 
yard too barren to enable him to hide himself. While he en¬ 
deavors to cover his tracks like a spy, he will leave some sign 
which the trained observer will take note of. An occasional 
heavy rain during his period of hibernation will serve to oblit¬ 
erate all sign, but should rain fail, then he takes no chances— 
he does not like the idea of being betrayed by his own markings 
upon the ground. Hence he slides quietly away, taking up 
residence across the branch on another hillside, or maybe some 
distance away on the same knoll. 
Such tactics are often the cause of the most skilled hunters 
excavating a dozen holes before they finally come upon the 
culprit who has been the cause of them thus laboring in vain. 
Once it has been determined from the fresh sign encoun¬ 
tered that the rattler is about his premises, then comes the 
thrilling task of finding him—an undertaking fraught with the 
greatest imaginable danger unless one has been painstakingly 
coached by some person thoroughly conversant with his manner 
of life. The thrills to be had lion hunting in the wilds of Africa 
surely rate first by the barest margin, if danger and difficulty 
of detection are to be considered as part of the excitement. On 
one occasion we witnessed one fully six feet in length and 
weighing eight or nine pounds hiding underneath a sheer de¬ 
posit of wiregrass little larger than an average size straw hat. 
He was so nearly invisible to the human eye that the most 
skilled hunter would have passed him by time and again with¬ 
out discovering his presence. He delights in tucking himself 
away in a deposit of dead wiregrass. When enemies come near 
he often thrusts his head and neck outside the grass to observe 
