The Nashville daily union. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1862-1866, 1864-11-20
A Night With Snakes.

The following thrilling tale of horror
is extracted from a volume Of ad
ventures recently published in Europe
The hero of the scene is a sailor, who
with bis companions, we're on an Easr
India island, preparing to leave, but
could not finish sail they were fitting
He says:
We worked hard, and being bunglers
much of the work had to be done over
again three or four times. We were
however, pretty near the end of the
Job, when an adventure befell me, the
recollection of which reproduced in
dreams, often makes me start up in
bed in cold sweat of terror. / have
seen it, not quite correctly, in popular
periodical, probably by some one who
had heard it directly or indirectly from
me 1t thus fell out: The sail, lug,
did not set well. I having, or believing
l had, more knowledge upon the sub
iect than the others, remained by the
the boat, whilst my mates returned to
the ship, turned, in, and made them
selves comfortable. L worked on till ]
had thoroughly wesried myself-for
the Southern night, with its glorious
moon aud fields Of splendid stars, was
brilliant as the day, though cold for
the cline, chill wind having set in
immed ately after sunset.
This. with the work was engaged in
-cutting and stitching the saii-did
not induce warmth, so that | psrtook
moro freely than it was my wont to do
of the excellent brandy had provided
myself with. At all events, tired, veXed
for | could not so set. the sails as TO
bend it on ship shape-and perhaps
more than half seas over { was not an
abstemious man in those days. lay
down under the lee of the boat, took a
few pulls at the brandy hask and
dropped OF TO sleep. SIeepl yes, the
sleep Of devils Frighful, horrible
dreams oppressed me. l was stiaed,
crushed with nightmare. That was
the impression on my half unconscious
mind. At last I fully awoke. Good
God the ICY chill that ran through
my veins, when l, by moonlight, dis
cerned the cause Of the nightmare
which was sitting me.
The fetid, horrible smell Of serpeuts
was Ia nv nostrils, and l saw that two
cobrss, one the largest | had ever seen,
were lying on my breast-where they
had no doubt crept for warmth-twlned
together, and, being quite motionless,
were, | Judged asleep. To stir, TO awake
them, was certain death. In less than
an hour, if was bitten ever so slightly,
I should be a mass of corruption. Par
alyzed, fainting with fear, lag perfect
ly still, but believing that the dreadinl
suspense could not be long endured j
that l must soon start up and east on
the horrible reptiles at any risk. They
were evidently asleep, and might be
flung at a distance before being able to
make use of their fatal fangs.
But merciful God they begin TO stir,
to wriggle from each other. Lam lost {
Halls that the swapping, chipping
bark Of our pet mongoose, (icheumOns)
which alarms the reptiles Let me ex-
plain:
Z mongoose is the natural enemy Of
Euhhcss hlA III y COuADat VIII VIC - hDIt
TO be the victor The bite Of the snake
produces bat rnomentary effect upon
the little aninal-aPpears to make it
giddy for a few moments, when itseems
to recover itself By eating some herbs
growing amongst the grass This, how
ever, is disputed point However it
may be, the mongoOse swiftly returns
70 the attack, and the snake, as I was
told, Is invariably killed
The island furnishes iehneumons al
most as plentifully a. snakes LafTanc
aud Dupent msusged to tame and do
mesticate three OF theTn-Rot a very
difficult task--knoWing that not one Of
the serpent tribe viii approach where
they are or have been recent -, no more
than a cockroach vii venfare out Of
its hole into kitchen where hedge
hog keeps watch and ward Our ich-
neumons Wer special pets Of mine and
we're they seeming the serpents, and
missing me and the evening meal | had
always provided for them, coming 70
The rescued
Yes, by heaven the quick ears. OF
the serpents have recognized the rs bid
approach Of the dreaded mongooses :
their horrid snake glAncss glow with