Title: The American Museum journal
Identifier: americanmuseumjo17amer (find matches)
Year: c1900-(1918) (c190s)
Authors: American Museum of Natural History
Subjects: Natural history
Publisher: New York : American Museum of Natural History
Contributing Library: American Museum of Natural History Library
Digitizing Sponsor: Biodiversity Heritage Library

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Great Lake, in Craven county. North Carolina, was the haunt of the largest alligator I ever saw in a wild state, and he may still be enjoying his ripe old age there in spite of many attempts to cap- ture him Alligators I Have Known By H. H. B R I M L E Y Curator of the North Carolina State Museum TO ONE who has associated with alligators on more or less friendly terms for any length of time, certain incidents connected with the association stand out prominently. And the record of a few of these may convey possibly a better idea of the ani- mal in its native hannts than more gen- eral statements would. Among those I have known, perhaps the strongest men- tal impression was made by "Grandpa," the largest alligator I ever saw in a wild state. "And how large was he?" you ask. I do not know, as he is still en- joying, to the best of my knowledge, his ripe old age in Great Lake, Craven County, North Carolina. The first time I saw "Grandpa," I had followed a seven or eight-footer in shore, shooting at its head—although unsuccessfully as to result—every time it came to the surface. While it slowly and unconcernedly made its way into a small indentation of the wooded shores, there showed up the head of tlie largest alligator I have ever seen, or ever hope to see—the "Old He One" I had so long wanted for our North Carolina Museum. We followed him into the little bay. I shot at something that in the shadows loomed up like the head of a sixteen-footer (but which later proved to be a cypress root), there was a flurry of water, a huge, scaly back showed for a moment in the shallows—and that was the last I saw of "Grandpa" that summer. He was—and I hope still is—a wise old bird. In subsequent years he robbed my nets that were set for fish speci- mens, tearing them up scandalously. I once set for a neighbor a hundred yard net for "eating" fish. This, "Grandpa" took off the cork line for two thirds of its length, and I saw his great, rugged head moving slowly away out in the lake, while I was examining the torn-up not. I have set baited lines for him, with a whole cormorant lashed on the big 481

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