The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1878-07-31
philadelphia Times.l
The Biggest One Yet.

The Ohio editors visited the BIOLOGICAL G Ar
den yesterday morning. The brown bears the
moment they saw them plunged into the water
and never came out till the editors left, The
chimpanzees appeared pleased, and frisksd
about and extended their hands in token of
hearty welcome. The editors didn't like their
familiarity and withdrew to the snakes. There
was one man in the party who eyed the boa
constric.or and other large reptllas that are
wont to arouse the wonder of spectators with
such Indifference that he attracted the attention
OF all who saw him. He looked like deacon
and some thought his manner toward the
snakes was on account of convictions that dis
approved of visiting such place on Sunday.
But amoag the other editors whisper went
round that he!was the M an who had ths recent
experience with large snake in Ohio. Some
had not heard of the affAi and after they got
out in the shade and seated near the sea-lions,
by dint of a good deal of urging he was pre-
vailed or to relate the story as follows:
About month ago, feeling the need of re-
taxation and knowing had an able substitute
In my partner and business maoager, took
brief vacation from my editorial duties and
went down to visit my brother on his farm on
the Sciota. The farm house stands on a sop-
ing piece of land; below them flows the Sciota
river, clear and cold, and above them the
ground ascends to gentle knoll. 1t is very
rocky in that region and rattlesnakes, black
snakes, OF the racer species, and copperheads
are said to be thicker there than 10 any other
part of Ohio. had never seen any myself and
so went there thinking little or nothing about
them. My brothers wife is great woman for
raising chickens. At the Ohio state fair last
year her chickens took the first and second
prize for choice of breed and for large sizs.
When got down to the farm l found Mrs.
" IN great distres. All her large chickens
had disappeared but two or three, and nobody
could tell what had become of them. Var
mlnts were not plenty about there, so the
blame could not lay on foxes. Neither could it
be put on persons, for everybody about there
were honest farmers and belonged to the
church. One day was up on the hillside,
seated IN the shade, as we are now, reading.
PRESENTLY happened to look up, and saw, not
twenty yards from me, one of Mrs. IS large
shanghai ROSTERS 1t was almost as large as a
turkey, aud l remember, as L watched him
struttlnS around, wondered whether it wasn't
his grea size that had kept him from going
with the rest. L resumed my reading again,
but in less than minute heard the 1utter of
wings and looked up. The rooster was nowhere
to be seeo. The ground was clear for an area
OF half mile got up and noticed a short
distance away, near where had last seen the
rooster, what l took to be feathers in the hol-
low OF black stump. l went to the spot
They were feathers The stump, as 1 came
closer seemed to recede short way into the
SIOuuu, duu Tue I6dLHefS WIN 1t.
Here the editor paused aud swept the per-
spiration from his brow with red handker-
chief, while the crowd with horror depicted on
their faces as plainly as these words are printed
on paper, drew their seats up closer aud p ushed
their heads nearer.
'Gentlemen," said the editor, carefully plac-
Ing his handkerchief in his breast pocket, 'if 1
i've TO be nine hundred years old shall never
forget the cold sensation that seemed to Green
through my blood when L saw that stump had
Vnv nxaA rrl.s =.
neck. 1t was racer, and 1 saw the tail of the
rooster sticking out of its yawning mouth. L
got down to the house and my legs seemed like
TIMBER pipe stems as l went. Half an hour
later my brother, myself and three or four of
the neighbors returned to the scene with ropes
and log chain. We knew it would only bs a
waste of powder and lead to try to shoot the
snake, so we got about him and rolled stones
down the hill till he drew his head into the
ground. Then we quickly laid the log chain
around the hole in sort of a draw loop. 70
the other end of the chain we attached the rope.
Then we got down the hill with the end of the
rope and waited. We didn't have long to wait
La less than thirty minutes he came out. We
waited till his neck protruded for about half a
foot and then We jerked the rope. The next
moment we had him fast. Three of us pulled
the rope while the other two got handspikes.
Yard after yard we drew out till we had him
tail and all. His body seemed a foot in diane
ter and his length" Here the crowd with one
rator was obliged to move back little for more
room. his length was thirteen feet and six
or eight-let me see; L made note of it," and
he fa -nbled for his notebook, but the crowd
said never mind; tdey'd take his word for it,
I've left it in my other coat pocket he said.
But never mind. 1t was either thirteen feet
six or thirteen feet eight inches my impression
Is that 1t was thirteen feet eight, but want to
be correct, and we'll give veracity the benefit of
the doubt and say thirteen six. We killed him
with han6-gpikes and afterwards cut him open.
In his body we found the rooster he had last
swallowed, and every one of the other chickens
that so mysterlously disappeared. There were
nioe all told, and every one living"
"Llving! calculated the crowd in chorus.
Living" said the editor, calmly. "Before 1
returned from my vacation had the satisfac-
tion OF seeing three as fine broods of chickens
as ever expect to see anywhere Matched by
three OF these same hens that had been so long
imprisoned in the snakes body
The party said no more, hut sat in deep 81
lence for about one minute, when somebody
suggested that they be going, and they arose
and repaired thoughttully to the place where
they keep the polar bears.