Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1874-10-01
A SNAKE STORY.

DR.. Eli johnson, of Murrayville, Coke
county, Tenn, furnishes the Morristown Ga
zette, with the following remarkable snake
story
As you wish correspondents to send you
communications about any subject Of interest
that happens in their neighborhood, I think
physicians in particular owe an additional
duty to the public and the press to report cases,
and forward communications of various kinds,
such as would interest and instruct both their
professional and non-professional readers. l
therefore report the following case that has
Just occurred here, at the county site OF Coke
county:
A Mrs. Kennedy, woman Of about forty,
the wife of an Irish laborer living on French
Broad street, has for several years suffered from
i'll health. Her symptoms and complaints
were singular. She was affected with almost
constant pains, so that she could seldom or
never rest at night. She stated that she felt
something running up and down in the abdo'
men, that she frequently experienced the creep
ing sensation which is called irritability. She
had been in the hospital here, and had been
treated successfully for cancer in the bowels,
worms, contracted dydatids and other COM
plants but found no relief. AS her uneasi.
ness and pain continued, so were the attempts
to relieve her, but without success. Not long
since DR.. Perriam Gyles, whose office and
drug store is on the corner Of Purchase and
Broad streets, was called into requisition and
took charge of the case.
About week ago she became subject to in
controllable uneasiness, and begged DR.. Gyles
to perform an operation for her relief This
he was reluctant to do, thinking it would
hazard her life, without sufficiently certain
prospect of bringing relief to her to compen.
safe for the hazard. She declared that life
was burden that she must die as she was,
and that speedily; that she was willing to die
death would be relief; and that she might
as we'll die in efforts for relief as in any way.
At last Dr. Gyles yielded to her importuni-
ties; and having first been exonerated by
the woman and her husband, whatever might
be the result, he consented to perform the op.
Grafton. On Friday afternoon last, assisted
by Dr. James Davis of this place, and Sur.
geon VIM. Allen, of Sweetwater, he proceeded
to perform the operation. He first made an
incision about ten inches long, along the me.
dial line of the abdomen. He found tumor
projecting largely, about 26 inches in diane.
ter and of irregular form. He opened it and
found two rattesnakes, one rs inches, the 9TH
er 80! inches in length. One of the snakes
had FIVE rattles and the other four rattles and
a button. They had yellow and black spots
on them, with white bellies. They were quite
lively, and would rattle and strike with ven.
geance when disturbed. They were killed
and their skins and rattles are in the posses
sion of Col. John Stevens, at the corner o.
French Broad and McNab streets, of this
town. They would not have been killed, bu
they were so vicious that fears were entertain
ed they would bite somebody. The tumol
being removed, Mrs. Kennedy was instantly
relieved, and is now doing we'll. The doctors
call the snakes crotalus horridus. Col. Ste
vens prizes their skins and rattles as great Gu
riosities. Too much praise cannot be given
to the eminent medical men for the skill and
calmness they manifested throughout the ope
ration Mrs. Kennedy says she swallowed two
small soft white eggs that she found several
years ago, as she was walking out in field
near the Warm Springs, N. G. Having just
come over from Ireland, she was not acquain
ted with the bird eggs of America, and swal-
lowed these eggs, supposing them to be par
fridge eggs.