Southport telegraph. [volume] (Southport, W.T. [i.e. Kenosha, Wis.]) 1840-1850, 1841-11-16
M | S C. E L l. A N Y 9.
Translated fom The Spanish.
THE YELLOW SERPENC-DIS COVERY OF
THE GUACO PLANT.

THE YELLOW SERPEN C-DISCOVERY OF
THE GUACO PLANT.
One hundred and fifty years since, a
muatto slave followed the current of the
Orinoco, in the vicinity Of Guyana, and
not far from the place where that river
emptIes into the Atlantic Ocean.
Wandering by chance many days in
those hot regions, the slave Travelled w h
the uneasiness and caution Of a man who,
IN the midst of savannahs abonnding in
poisonous reptiles, believes he might rest
his foot, when least expected, on the scaIy
body OF serpent. lie examined with
much care every tree; each thicket of
bramblcs appeared to him as many shelf
ers tor wild beasts, where enemies, the
color of which might be confoundcd with
the foliage, lay in ambush
Suddenly he paused he cast himself
upon the ground, and pressed the earth
even TO the joints of his limbs. Without
motion, relying on the Indian fig tree as
the or y defence, he awaited the result Of
what he saw. Withoutthe convulsve trem-
bling which agitated his body, any one
would have believed that he was dead
He had Just seen the most terrible Of all
the serpents, whose race is yet found in
those regions. 1t was not certainly a mon
strouS animal-onc of those colossal rep
tiles which, when sleeping on the banks Of
Il river, or IN the dense woods, presents to
the traveller the aspect Of the trunk Of a
tree, thrown to the ground by tempest.
Neither did il possess the & igantlc pro-
portions which the European people so
much admire when they contemplate the
skins stuffed with straw Of some Of the
kings of Ohio.
1t was the Yellow Serpent.
Whoever has seen its Ittleness. and ex-
amined its thin body, could not believe that
so weak reptile could kill partridge, al
though its bite would kill a man in such Il
manner that, the wound being made, death
cnsues in less than three minutes.
The slave knew it and trembed.
His immobiluy was complete. For the
whole American empire he would not have
dared to raise his eyes. He would have
given ten years of his life to have found
himself far from such frightlul enemy.
Neither did the serpent move. Raised up
in his coil he overlooked the grass Of the
savannah, with his head dotted with spots
of the color of ochre, of yellow and or
ange; his eyes, like velvet, and blue as
the clouds OF that region, spanked and ap-
pcarcd to emit sparkles Of fire like a bril-
liant stone. He brcathed the air with vo-
righteousness, and offered, little by little,
every part OF his body to the burning rays
Of the sun.
For man ignorant Of the danger to
stop IN the proximity of this reptile, i,
would be a real pleasure to contemplate its
delicatcness, the expression Of its ewes, and
the grace OF its movements, The serpent
did not delay long in beginning to leap,
drawing in the air rapid circles, producing
weak sound like silk coming in contact
with a wall The slave trcmbled more and
more, when he heard a strange noise which
he believed came from the grass, which
shook with force. HIS Imagination pre-
scented an cutire family of serpcntS. ready
10 cast themselves upon him. Fear obliged
him 10 enlarge his sight. What was his
aStonlShment on seeing that the serpent
sustained a terrible contest with a bird /!
He then knew that his life was not threat
cncd, and blessed Heaven, in the sequel
dsposing him to flee when, seeing that
the reptile had lost the greater part of its
vigor, he wished to be present al the end
OF that strange combat
His post was not now dangerous, and
his curiosity detained him.
The combat continued with 'crocIty.-
The blrd kept in constant motion his sharp
taIons, and wounded the serpent deeply
with lis pointed beak.
The serpent, being much exasperated,
dragged itself through the grass, and divi-
ded the air in all directions. appealing to
lis whole force and cunning, throwing
himself toward the river to avoid the ows
OF his enemy. But the bird followed him
through the air without stopping between
the grass, to the brink of the river, and
attacked him each time with renewed ge
Only now and then the bird granted the
serpent truce. 1t LEFT the place Of com.
bat covered with blood. and flew with IA
pidty to a shrub near by. He picked up
some Of the leaves. and swallowed with
haste some pieces of bark Of the same tree,
and returned to the attack with the great
est courage,
The slave observed all, and could moi
conceive how it was that the serpent was
almost dead, and the bird full Of lie in spite
OF having his body covered with wounds