Jasper Republican, Volume 1, Number 30, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 9 April 1875 — Hairs Turning to Snakes. [ARTICLE]

Hairs Turning to Snakes.

There are few- boys or girls residing in the country who have not heard marvelous stories of horse or cow hairs turning to snakes when thrown into water. Very likely these wonderful tales of the metamorphosis of hairs into squirming reptiles were told them by some fond mother and indorsed by all the neighbors ; and who hut a born skeptic could disbelieve such unquestionable -authorities upon all subjects which naturally attract the attention of inquisitive children? Fortunately for mankind, a few do escape from what may be termed a life-long subjugation to the *“ tyranny of errors, and, though it may cost them many a pang and heartache to see the idols of their youth dashed to pieces, one by one, by the remorseless hand of the scientific investigator, still the final results are very much like the extraction of a molar by a skillful dentist. The pain may be acute during the brief ‘ operation, but there is always a peculiar sense of relief which somewhat compensates for one’s sufferings. But the majority of mankind do not pass through any such ordeal, but remain steadfast and true to the faith of their childhood, else the hair snakes and similar marvelous productions would have long since died out, instead of being alive and as lively as they were centuries ago. This common belief in the transformation of hairs to snakes has been forcibly brought to my mind of Hte by several paragraphs on the subject which have appeared in a Western paper,- the editor of which has been sharply criticised by some of his readers for doubting the existence of such productions. Of course the only facts brought forward on the part of those who hold that a hair may become a living reptile are their belief in what somebody else, equally as ignorant, had told them. Without claiming to speak as an authority on this subject, perhaps I may throw out a few hints that will aid those who are in search of tie truth in regard to the nature and habits of what are ■ termed “ hair snakes.” It is probably unnecessary to add to What I have already said that hairs do not turn to snakes, no matter how much they may wriggle about when thrown into water. There are, however, several species of small black, or very dark, parasitic worms, found in water and wet places, which, to the unassisted eye, look

very much like snakes; and these are the wriggling creatures supposed by many persons to be transformed horse hairs. Very few of our scientific naturalists have made the study of the Gordius or hair worm a specialty; hence, their true life history may not be fully known; but tbis much has been discovered, towit: Thcv live through the greater part of their lives in the intestines of insects, such as spiders, crickets, grasshoppers and various species of beetles which live on the ground or under stones in low, wet places. The next question which would naturally follow is: How do those worms get into the insects? Let us suppose that one of these worms is living in the water or under a stone where it is damp or wet and there deposits her eggs, which are so minute that it requires a glass of high magnifying power to detect them, although they are fastened together in a long string of many 'thousands in each. From these eggs minute tadpoles, like worms, are hatched, and these lie in wait for some luckless cricket, beetle or other insect of proper size to supply a comfortable home for the worm in which it may thrive and grow to full size. When such comes within reach the little tadpole makes the most of the opportunity and penetrates the body, where it thrives on the contents of its habitation. When the .worm is fully grown it agaiu escapes to the water the first chance; ana anyone who has sufficient interest in this subject to catch a few of the large black crickets in the fall and throw them into water will be pretty

sure to find an occasional specimen containing one or more of these hair worms. The worms will leave the cricket almost instantly upon touching the water, showing that they are waiting for just such opportunities to escape to their apparently natural element. The worms may hie kept in a fair condition for examination and study in alcohol, although they will become quite brittle if the spirits are of high proof. I have obtained specimens of. the Gordius from various species of the cricket family, but the most interesting specimens in my collection are from a species of large Texan beetles known as Gasimachus. In collecting the beetles they were thrown into alcohol, and the worm thinking (if worms do think) it was water started to leave its home, but only succeeded in withdrawing about four inches of Us entire length (whatever it may be) before the spirits killed it. In another specimen ot the same species of beetle there appears to have been two of these hair worms, both having made an unsuccessful attempt to leave at the same time, but King Alcohol stopped their progress beyond a certain point just as he does some other creatures of a higher order. Hair worms, or horse-hair snakes, are not transformed horse or cow hairs, no matter how many persons there may be to testify that own eyes" witnessed the transformation. A- pair of ordinary eyes, backed by a good quality of brains, don’t amount to much in these days of superior compound microscopes, either monocular or binocu-lar.--Rural New Yorker. —England is on a grand wild-goose chase far nore of Shakespeare’s books.