The weekly Portage sentinel. [volume] (Ravenna, Ohio) 1854-1861, 1857-12-17
WHOLE NUMBER $40

$500 .' e''.s ls5 ilgneiy ringing at intorvals,
abdeisiag forth that paralyzlar sound q vbios.
once heard, Is ,remrwbered iorevsr: NJ,
reptile all the while being . SohssioS. ss Of. ..s
to sport with, whileiiseekina 10 excite ~
terrOrs. Now with its Iast head. s,..thii
mouth and curVing neck, would il dart forth ,'t
its long form to warn her-its fatal teeth.
unfolding on either side Of lis upper Jaws.
seeming TO threaten her with instantaneous
dea'hs while its poweffuf eye ahot forth
giances Of that fatal fascination, malignant.
ly bright which, BY parslysink with NOV.
ed form Of terror and Of beauty, may readily
account for thel spell which il possesses os
binding the feet Of the timid, and denying
even toafsar the privilege Of flight. 5csuld
shs have fisdH She felt the necessity but
the power Of her limbs was'gons; and there
1t still lay, cOiling.and uncoiling, its archea
neck glittering like ring of bronzed COP
per, bright and ldrid, and ths dradfnI
beauty Of its eyes still fsstessd, .eSSeriy
contemplating the victim, while the pendu.
lous rattle still rang the death note, a IL 10
prepare the conscious mind for the fate which
IS momenturily approaching the Slow
Meanwhile, the stiffness became death.like,
with all surrounding objects. The bird had
gone with its scream and rush. The breeze
was silent. The vines ceased to waye.---
The leaves family quivered on their stems.
The serpent once more lay still, but the
eye was never turned from its victim. lie
corded muscles are all in a coil. They have
but to unclasp suddenly, and the dreadful
Tolls will be upon her in full length, spd The
fatal teeth will strike, and the deadly Venom
which they eecrete will mingle witt tiie
life blood of her veins.
'"The terrified damsel, her full conscious.
ness restored, but not her strength, feels ali
her DANGER She sees thdtlhe sport of tie Ter.
ri6le reptile isiafan end. aiShs canned no1
mistaks The horrii. erpressioa Of has sgs ~
She tried to scream, but her voice died atsy
to feeble guraling in her throst.l Her
tongue is paralyzed-her lips sealsd; once
more she strives for fight, but her limbs re-
iuse to DO their Office. She has nothing left
OF life but it's fearful consciousness ! II 81
IN her despair, that as o last effort she SUI
ceed to scream, single wild. cry Forces
tromhe BY this accumulated agony: sLe
sinks down upon thegrass before her enemy
her eyes still open, and still looking urcn
those which directs ever upon them. Sha
sees him approach, now advancing, now n.
ceding; now swelling in every part with
something like anger, while his heck Arch.
ed antfully like that of a wild horss 81.
der the curb, until at length. tired "a II were
Of play, like the cat with her victim, she sees
The neck growing larger, and becoming com-
pletely bowed as ifto strike-i9the huge avs
nncloSing almost directly above her; the
long. tubulated fang charged with venom.
portrudiDg from the cavernous mou,hand
she sees no more! Insensibility camoato
her aid, and she lay almost lifeless under the
-, ;,,' y','u%o' 'ne monster ,stAs y
7 Nbthing in ancient or modern literature i
more strikingly conceived, or viyidly dessri
bed than this scene. At this moment wheH
we feel that the summer air is UNCHANGED
with this evil presence. and nst5fe lesIs
aghast in her solitudes under these human
pangs, the arrow Of young saysGe trans.
Fixed the neck Of the reptile, and thus turns
aside the deadly fang. The accesscries tfs
all in keeping-the snsks.Ifke svihs:a shs
golden and crimson blooms, the shadows of
the old ldwoods, the cry Of the bird, all efnl:
hance the sense ofthe beautiful and romans
tic, while the touches which we have ital;c;-
'cd heightsn the effect, till we feel the gli..
tering eye of the snake, and its terrible IN.
iuutions rise imagelike to the mind, ana
we see how all the benignities Of nature are
ltwarwith the spirit Of the reptile. @@
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