“ROPERITE” STRANGE ANIMAL
Much of this country is still covered by forests which, according to the best-informed lumbermen, harbor strange and dangerous animals unknown to science. One of the most remarkable of these, says William T. Cox, state forester of Minnesota, is the “roperite.” which carries on the end of its nose a sort of running noose. In fact, this prolongation of its snout takes the form of a lasso, with which the creature captures jackrabbits and other prey, pursuing the latter with enormous leaps and bounds, and uttering the while ferocious yells that can be heard for miles. Even human beings are not safe from attack by the “roperite.” Stories are told of men, and even women, pursued by this extraordinary animal, snared with its ropelike proboscis, and dragged to death. ————————————————– Hopkinsville Kentuckian. (Hopkinsville, Ky.), 12 June 1917. Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers. Lib. of Congress.