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Show RUNS TURTLE TRUST il "OLD BILL" 8ETTLE8 CATCHES "CRITTERS" BAREHANDED. Keeps Kansas City Restaurants and Private Families Supplied with Material for Soup Blue River Supply Nearly Extinct. Kansas City, Mo. In all tho rivers nnd creeks of Missouri turtles aro abundant In all. except one, tbo Blue river, near Kansas City. There tho turtle Is rapidly becoming extinct, nnd all becauso of "Bill" Settles, who says ho Is tho champion "barehanded" turtlo chaser of tho world. Just where Bill Settles first camo from oven ho himself doesn't seem to know, but about two years ago ho camo' to tho Bluo river, built hlmsolf a small, ramshacklo cabin and has lived thero over slnco, earning his living liv-ing by selling turtles bo catches out of tho river by diving. Settles' method 0f turtlo hunting Is easy for him. Clad In n rough shirt - and trousers, with his shoes split from the mouth to tbu too to lot tho water out, 1)111 roams tho banks of tho stream until ho sees his victim on a log near tho bank. Tho gamo in sight, Bill creops up as closo as positolo. As soon ns tho turtlo sees him nnd bo-gins bo-gins to slip into the water, Bill dives after it. Tall, JllppcrB or bead, It makes no dlfforonco to tho turtle huntor; ho tloundors around In tho water until ho grabs somo part of the turtle's anatomy and thon tho light begins. Tho turtle wiggles, scratches and squirms. Bill puffs nnd treads wator. Tho turtlo Is patient. So Is Bill. Tho turtle finally becomos exaspornted that's oxactly tho term Bill uses and sticks bis head out from undor his sholl to blto tho Intruder, And that's what tho Intrudor has been waiting for. With his right hand, upon which ho wears a husking glovo, Bill grabs the turtlo by the neck and starts for tho shoro. It's all over thon. Tho turtlo can't pull his head back undor his shell, and ho can't blto. Thcnnll-bound Thcnnll-bound glovo Interferes with nil thoso things and tho rest ot the turtle's llfo consists In being thrown Into a gunny sack, hauled to tbo city In a small pushcart with a dozen other turtles, and thou sold to restaurants and private pri-vate families. Tho price of turtles ranges from 50 cents up, nnd on a good day Settles often makes as much as $10, ot which ho saves about $9.50, so that ho my have a sinking fund for wlntor. Bill Settles nnd his pushcart aro familiar on tho downtown streets ot Kansas City. Always has ho a following fol-lowing of small boys and somo men and always ho may bo counted upon tor streot corner lectures on tho genus turtlo. .-D2t).'t, thp;: evjr Uta , yfltt?--we-ono asked us Settles pushed his little rart through the streots the other day. rho answer of SettleB was merely a look of contempt. "Who, moT" he asked, finally, "Do I look Ilka I'm makln' bait outer my-lelf my-lelf for them vannlnts'f How kin thoy blto? Don't I grab 'om by tho neck?" "Yes, but what's tho turtle dolns beforo you grab hlmT" . "Tryln to git away, that's what. Just llko a snake; run llko a houso nflro till you get 'em cornorcd. Thon they'll scrnp. Say, suro got a mighty flno ono this mornln.' Biggest I over caught. Lookly! Worth threo dollars if bo's worth a cent." Settles pointed to n gunny sack containing a turtle almost as big as a bushel basket. "Had an awful scrap with him," Settles said. "Had to call ror help to got him outcn th' wnter. But, Lordyl he's wuth it." Tho chlor part ot Settles' trado lies In the more faBlilonablo parts ot town nmong tho "high llvors." Thoy aro tho ones who havo learned to oat the fresh wator turtles and who Bay It Is really delicious. And they, too, aro tho ones who aro willing to pay the prlco Settles asks for his turtles. Tho turtles nro dressed by being placed in scalding wator. This loosens tho skin nnd It can easily bo removed In segments of tho shell. Tho sholl is cooked with tho flesh of tho. turtle, and tho gluo or gelatin In the shell gives tho soup body. It makes a flno dish, Bill Settles says, and Bill ought to know, "l'vo caught about four hundred turtles this season, nnd thoy'vo brung mo n right smart lot o money. Gess I kin get through tho wlntor all right. Ennyway, th' ol' Bluo's Just about fished out ot turtles. Guess I'll havo to movo aotnowhere olso whon . th spring comes on." |