The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1875-07-08
Lost Boy Found in a Rattlesnakcs'
Den.

Ill blooming OrONC, flkc County, lives
the family of Il man named Charles Dun.
ming, consisting of himself, his wife and
three children, aged six, four and two and
half years. On Monday of last week
the children went out to play in the fields
After being absent some time the two old
est returned weeping to the house and said
they had lost their little brother in the
woods. Mrs. Dunning, thinking she could
find the child without difficulty, went out
into the woods and looked for some dis
lance around, calling him by name Being
unable to discover any trace of him she
became alarmed and fastened back to the
village and spread the news of the child's
loss. Blooming Grove is composed main
ly of the dwellings of the employees of
Jacob klicnham's tannery, and when the
news of the little boys loss became general
ness was stopped at the tanncry and forty
men started to scour the woods in search
OF the child. All the rest of the day they
trampcd through the woods without find
ing any trace of the missing little one, and
all night pine torches flashed through the
forest aislcs, frightening from their pcrches
myriads OF night birds, which answered
with their shrill cries the shouts of the
men calling to the child. During the
night catamount was shot, but the morn
Ing uaWncd upon an unsuccessful party of
sau-hcartcd Villagers. After a short rest
the hunt was again commenced, and all
day Tuesday and all Tuesday night was
prosecuted diligently, but with no better
result The opinion now was general
that the child had been killed and eaten
by wald beasts, which still haunt the Pike
County Wilderness
The search was continued, however, at
the urgent appeal Of the mother of the
boy. Toward noon on Wednesday one of
the party started away in a direction which
had not been investi gated as yet Passing
about hundred yards through laurel
swamp two miles from the village, he
came out in III open space about thirty
feet square. The opening was walled in
on every side by thick growth of laurel
and was we'll filled with large rocks
marked with crevices and large seams, re-
scmbling an abandoned quarry. The in
slant the man stepped into the place, he
was startled by the sound of rattlesnakc,
giving him warning to pause. Looking
down, he saw the snake coilcd up about
four feet away, in readiness to spring at
the first provocation. The backwoodsman
had seen such things before, and, picking
up club, dispatched the snake at one
blow. He was not prepared for the de-
vclopments that followed, however Glanc-
ing about him, he made the unpleasant
discovery that he had intruded in place
'pre-empted by a colony of rattlesnakes in
short, he was in den of deadly reptiles.
From crevices and crcases in the rocks
and on the ground he saw numbers of
them lying i'll various positions, bathing
fhpir slim 1rnnnrfinnS II, hn
The man made up his mind that the place
had no particular charm for him, and was
about to beat a hasty retreat, when his
eyes fell on Il scene that transfiXed him
with horror.
On a low, flat rock, not more than six
feet from where the man STOOD lay the APP
parently lifeless form of the little boy they
had been looking for SO long. Stretched
by his side, not more than three inches
away from him, was a huge rattlcsnakc,
while near his feet TIVE more lay coiled up,
all evidently undisturbcd by the presence
of the child. While the man did not sup
pose for an instant that the boy was alive,
he determined to rescue the body from so
horrible Il sepulcher, and with well-di-
rectcd blows from his club killed the
three snakes that held possession, of the
child. Every blow was responded Ito by
the blood-curdling din of .rattlcs from the
snakes that lay near tho: rock While he
was examining the ground between him
and the child to see if any Of the reptiles
lay on that side, he was startled to see the
supposed dead infant rise with an effort to
a sitting position, stare wildly about with
a crazcd, haggard look, and then sink back
upon the rock. The next instant the stout
hearted woodman had sprung upon the
rock, and Selling the child bore him away
quickly from the loathsome den, and in a
few minutes placed him in the arms of his
distracted mother, amid the general re-,
joiciHgg Of the whole village. The rchild
was unconscious, and is yet lying in crit
ical condition, being delirious with fever
brought on by the unparalleled hardship
and privation he suffered in his three days
wandering alone in the forest before which
the stout-hearted hunter would have
quailed.-l'o't ferris ~. ~ Union. .. :.