Prescott journal. [volume] (Prescott, Wis.) 1861-1871, 1868-07-31
THE GREAT TENNESSEE SNAKE.
The monster shot Dead by his Pursu.
ers--His Length, Thickness and
General Appearance--TheS skin 60 DC
Exhibited Throughout the country
TRIUNE, Tenn. : Jply IA, 1863

The Monster Shot Dead Dy MS FuI "a "a
General Appearance--The skin TO be
Exhibited ThroughOuf the Country.
TRIuSE, Tenn, :. July IA, 1865
To the Editor of the Nashville Banner;
NV letters to you on the subject OF the
.sbic snake" seem to have excited more at
tention than / dreamed of and l am sorry
that wrote at ell, especially as SO many
exnress doubts as to the correctness of my
statements. Even you, yourself, seem to
think l am only trying the gulhbility OF
the public / would not now come to you
again, even with a sworn statement, did l
not have proof that will convince the most
skeptical, all burlesque and sensational
kilograms to the contrary notwithstanding
Truth is stranger than fiction, and II a
man only believes what he sees, how little
of history would be recorded.
But am even able to offer, to doubt
ing public, that proof, namely: The mon
stor himself IN propria persona-for we
have him. the fiery snake that has created
such an uproar. However, l will proceed
with my narrative, and give you plain
unvarnished statement of facts:
wrote you on the Sth instant, that the
serpent had broken his box and cleared Tor
the woods. This created great deal OF
CONSERVATION in the community, and all
Law low until toward evening, when the
neighbors got together and devised some
means to put an end to him. On o close
examination Of the box 1t was discovered
they had put defective plank In 1t, it be-
ing windshaken from one end to the other,
and thus, when the captive began to surge,
he soon started this plank and was then
able to break out.
The hole in the ground was now Sc
curely stopped, and every one present de-
ternined to make it their business to hunt
him up and destroy him. They felt it
necessary for their safety. Strong bands
we'll armed went together and secured the
woods, beat the thickets and searched
closely everywhere until they began to dis
pair of success. But, when they least
looked for it. fortune smiled upon their
efforts. Some mile and half OF two miles
from the den lives Mr. Isaac Nelly, and q
Mr.. Irvine, close neighbors. Yesterday
morning Mr.. Nelly walked over to Mr..
Irvine's carrying his gun, an Enfield rifle.
Finding Mr.. Irvine in his field, nearly at
the top of the hill, at work, he called to
him, and Mr. Irvine and he seated them
selves on the fence, with their guns for
no man now went without one) near them.
They had talked some time when they
became aware Of peculiar musky odol
pervading the atmosphere. They had felt
1t at first, but it did not excite their atten-
ton until it became sickening in its power.
Mr.. Nelly looked around unconsciously to
see what could produce 1t, and there, with
in sixty yards OF them, end Just above, lay
the serpent. the object of their dread
Their first impulse was to run, but after
they had involuntarily jumped from the
fence they thought better Of it, and, like
! fha- inn r.
fire on it. They laid their guns carefully
on the fence, the snake never moving, ana
taking deliberate aim, fired at his head
At the cracking Of the guns an awful slash
ing and crashing was heard, and believing
the awful creature was upon them, they
threw away their guns and fed for dear
life, nor did they stop until they reached
the house.
The country was quickly alarmed, ana
after good deal Of careful accommodating,
the spot was approached. to find the ser
pent gone, but leaving behind him such a
great trail of blood they knew he was bad
! y wounded Without difficulty they follow
ed his trail and did not proceed more than
two hundred yards down beside the fence
before they espied him, perfectly limp and
dead But 1t took several shots from dis
lance to convince them Of this before they
dared approach
The struggle wnere the monster 5-as
shot must have been terrific, for large bush
es We're bent to the earth, and the ground
was torn up, where ne had dashed il with
his tail. Great credit is due to the in
trepedity Of the gS,1tlemep who shot him,
for few would have dared it.
Mr. Irvine quickly brought q pairfo
mules to drag him OF. but when the mules
o. - he h--r,o L.
came so frightened nothing could hold
them, and they broke and tore away like
mad BY this time great many people had
collected, and they tied chain around his
neck with running moose, and dragged
him through the field to the big road.
They now found q couple of strong horses
gentle enough, and they with these de-
termined to carry him to Nolensvilie, it be-
ing the nearest point on the pike. Hearing
OF these circumstances, /, in company with
Mr.. Ben. johnson, Of this place, started
for the scene Of action. When near Mr.
Bittock's, we met with Esquire Greene 60
ing to the same point We had not gone
far before we hove in sight, and here we
met with q very serious accident, for no
sooner had our horses caught sight of the
huge body of the serpent than they began
to plunge at such a fearful rate as to throw
all three of US, Mr.. Johnson and myself
sustaining no injury, but Esquire Greene
received severe dislocation OF the ankle,
that will probably lame him for life.
However, we soon reached Nolensville,
and the question arose, What will we do
with it? We were anxious to take it to
Nashville just as it lay, but the carcass
would, we knew, become very offensive
from the great heat of. the weather So at
last it was agreed to skin him, and after
stufhng and drying take him down to the
city for inspection. / took good survey
of him and found his length not so great as
We had imagined, for he was Just twenty
nine feet eight inches from tip to tip. His
greatest circumference was thirty and q
half inches, and he was just seventeen
inches around the neck, or rather Just be-
hind the head. About ten feet Of his tail
had O spinous ridge like that of an alliga-
tor. His head was the most formidable
part about him, and was truly terrible to
behold, even when dead. 1t was
fully twenty inches across, and was
armed with the most formidable set
of sharp, small teeth, with four
huge tusks. It had hole in it just
under the right eye, from the minnie ball,
and dent in the neck from the glancing
ball of Mr.. Irvine. Although he seemed,
at q short distance, to be of a uniform dark
color. on close inspection, I discovered
that he was spotted like rattlesnake, in
diamond spots, and his belly was bright
bluish-black color, We cut him across in
the middle, and skinned him both ways,
thus preserving the head whole. 1t was
then well salted and lined, and the ends
were well sewed together; and then, by in
sorting Mr.. Simpsons bellows, we inflated
the monster to its full size