The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1876-06-29
"A MONSTER OF THE DESERT.
Specimens of the Saurian Species I'm Coll
orado-A Most Wonderful Snake
Story.

OF the NelCS of week or since befor,
mel IN which the usual ridiclile is made
OF the, marine monster known as The
sea-serpent, in connection with Brob
dingnagian specimen of the species saiC
to haFe>been seen comparatively recent
ly nfthe Indian Ocean, have but tC
marvel7at the incredulity of my race
You are not willing to acknowledge the
possibility OF the vast Cavsrns of the
deep containing denizens which; after
all; are not constructed on much larger
plan than the familiai, whale, while the
very plains that surround your city are
the home of monsters of by-gone ages.
Within short hundred leagues of Den
yer may now be found a reptile, COM
pared to which the famous African SER
pent that once kept Rome's legions at
bay could not hold candle. With my
own eges, only 46 hours ago, did 1 be-
hold this terrible creature; the like of
which ] coiild not have kohceited to ex-
ist in the heavens above, nor in the
earth beneath, nor in the waters tnder
the earth.
Last evening, just at dark, was
travelling korseback-wise along a stretch
of country, about 200 miles east of here,
which, for long distance, merits the
appellation the old Biographies gave
this entire region, of the Great Ameri-
can Desert. As far as the eve could
reach, not a living thing, or object
created by the hand of man, could be
seen. The solitude was as. entire as if
cattle on a thousand hills were not
grazing within less than fifty miles, and
the iron horse did not draw his heavy
freight only just beyond the line of
vision. On every side the horizon only
bounded the view, and not even where
the sky kissed the plain, did sught but
the scanty prairie grass, already burned
to brown under the rays of the fast
sun, lift itself, dotted here
and there, by innumerable cacti, from
mother earth. And the silence. Save
the quickly recovering thud of my
horses hoofs as he loped over the
prairie, not sound was to be heard,
and the stiffness was so profound that
| almost expected to hear the kissing
of the sun, which was on the point of
setting, as it quenched its fire, accord
ing to ancient science, in the Pacific
Ocean. -.. ..-....
But the silence and solitude were not
for long. As 1 was about to seek a
place to build a fire and bivouac for the
night, suddenly long trailing form
started from the earth in the very path
of the setting sun, and queer rumbling
cry was borne to my ears upon the
western wind. 1 at first thought it was
the initial train of some opposition to
the Banana Line Railway, and tried to
distort the noise | had heard into the
whistle of a locomotive, but my horse
taught me better. Hardly had the
sound died upon the air when an in
tense trembling seized his every limb,
and, with expanded nostrils and dilated
eye, he began looking on all sides as if
to find way of escape. And now the
same strange cry was repeated, and my
terrified sight perceived that what 1 had
taken to be a railway train was an
enormous reptile, half serpent, half
quadruped, that was now running; now
creeping along the earth, with incredi-
BILE rapidity. Although my limbs al
most refused to perform their office for
terror, l had turned mechanically to
leap on my horse; Notwithstanding that
[ knew that the pace the monster was
coming was far faster than that of a
horse at full gallop, but the
beast had broken away from where |
had tied him, and was quickly devour-
ING the earth with rapid feet. Not,
however, away from the coming dan
gerl Although destruction stared me
IN the face, l almost lost consciousness
Of my peril in viewing the strange scene
hat followed. As soon as the terrible
hing perceived that the horse was able
% run at a rate that compelled an in
degree of speed to catch up
with him, he suddenly stopped in his
career and for moment remained silent
md motionless, and the only sound to
be heard was that made by the retreat
NO horse, which was growing fainter
and fainter. Immediately, ere it had
become quite lost to the ear, the cause
If the brute's flight began to utter a
,onorous roaring that one moment
sounded like some british mother call
ng her young, and another weird imi-
alton of the cooling of dove. Hardly
lad the sound been uttered, when the
horse, which was now almost lost to
sight in the rapidly growing darkness,
Presently he turned around
md began with Fastening steps to re-
urn. The noise still continued, and
even to my human hearing seemed to
nave a pleading inviting note in it.
The Brodingnagian beast, too, had as
,umed the shape at once of a cat ready
% play with her kittens, and of a SER
oent when trying to charm its prey into
is folds.
And now let me describe the monster,
more terrible than which never creature
lived since those long past periods, when
all of natures animated formations
we're equally great and grotesque, huge
and horrible. Like other saurians, it
had the body of lizard, uplifted on, as
near as could Judge, eight feet, but its
power, as already noted,
to exist chiefly in its tail, which
behind the body at least a
feet. The trunk of the mon
ster must have been thirty feet long by
about half that figure in width, and at
least from eight to ten feet through.
The feet seemed little more than pad
dies with which to push this huge body
along, land apparently had little support
inc power, the creatures belly touching
the ground except when its rapid mo-
ton forced it forward in the air. And the
head: 1t seemed as large as an Ordina-
ry omnibus, while it was fattened at
the top as of having undergone in youth
the experience of the papOOses of the
Flathead Indians, and lowered high up
over the body on a neck greater in di-
ameter than a barrel, and fully ten feet
ia length. The eyes, which, like those
of the dog in Hans Christian Ander-
sens story, were as large as saucers,
and appeared larger than mill-wheels,
were about yard and half apart, and
cleaned like lanterns on either side Of
a carriage. Thus far the mouth was only
partly open, to omit the sound above
noted, so that in the comparative dark
ness | could not see it distinctly, but the
to witness it to more ad-
vantage soon came. The color of this
eleDhant was q dark DUR