CREATURES OF MYSTERY 
245 
purpose of drawing them near to him, but it was not quite 
proved to my own satisfaction, hence I shall not pass it on to 
my readers as an established fact, but it certainly is worth keep¬ 
ing in mind. Now, gentlemen of scientific bodies might seek 
to disprove such contentions by dissecting a rattler. Finding 
no vocal cords, the whole idea would surely be dismissed from 
further consideration. The true secret lies in the fact that he 
does not need such—he has one of the most perfect and in¬ 
genious whistlers imaginable. If the reader has the courage 
to look one in the face from a distance of twelve inches or so, 
he will observe that his lips do not fit tightly together, but 
rather form a sort of “Cupid’s bow,” the edges being formed 
by the scales of his upper and lower lips, the same possessing 
a cutting edge. When this fellow fully inflates his long and 
spacious lungs he can play you a tune comparing favorably 
with the Scotsman and his bagpipe. 
Man is full of pride by reason of his achievement in every 
field of endeavor, but surely lays himself wide open to the most 
scathing indictment on this score. He has been living as close 
neighbor with the diamond-back since the day the Spaniards 
landed at Saint Augustine and Ponce de Leon initiated his ill- 
advised exploration into the heart of new America in quest of 
the fabulous Fountain of Youth. All of us, at best, are imita¬ 
tive creatures, learning quickly that which someone else has 
shown us, but fearing to venture out over unblazed paths. 
Almost every one who has spent much time in the wild, in the 
infested belt, has at some time or other heard the call of the 
rattler, but man lacks at least ONE essential faculty, i.e., that 
of tying together all the things which bear a definite relation¬ 
ship to each other, and thus compel such chain of circumstances 
to relate a true story. 
The call, or chirp, employed by the rattler during hours of 
daylight bears such a close relationship to that of many birds 
that I know that it is a rather difficult matter to reduce the 
same to writing, and by these means enable the reader to iden¬ 
tify it without being otherwise instructed. It bears a very close 
resemblance to the blue jay, yellow-hammer, or the call of the 
ordinary chicken-hawk, but is a perfect imitation of the Indian 
