Wheeling register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1878-1935, 1879-05-30
CONNECTICUT SERPENTS.
The BLACK SNAKES PLENTlER, BIG
GER, AND FIERCER THAN EVER.
Hair-raising Stories Told by Honest Farm
ers-CIiming Trees for Robins
Eggs-The Nocturnal Bird
that the Black
Snake Fears.

New BosroN. Conn, MAY 23.-UnCle
Josh Peters. when ne came in from 4
DAYS planting last evening, remarked
that he actually believed he had killed
more snakes than he had planted hills
of corn. I've been born and brought
up i'm this ere town, he said, "A he
stood with his hoe over his shoulder
talking % some of his nCighbors, 'and !
seen heap of snakes i'm my time, but |
never seen so many big black snakes,
regular fighters, as l have tins season.
IL beats ALL
"How many have you seen to-day,
Uncle JOSH
"Weu. now, Icouldn't begin TO count
back and reckon ON 'cm up, but there
must have been forty or fifty. Some on
'rm were little fellows, but there were
three black fellows as big as my wrist,
and l should think pretty nigh six foot
long, and they was fighters.
Did they fight YOU
"pidnt give 'em q chance. II | had,
they'd a gone for my throat. They
don't bite, but they choke fellur to
death. amt much skeCrcl OF snakes
If can see EN-, but | don't want To-
come ON a bunch of black ones all OF Il
sudden. / don't know what 10 make
ont. Where 10 they all come from?
From an parts Of the State come re-
ports that confirm Uncle JOsh.s exper-
fence. Connecticut seems to be over
rum with large and fierce black snakes.
There have been found 4 good many
flat heads and Copper-ColOred adderS,
and ON the Meridian Hill and in the
Northwestern part Of the state there are
discovered almost every season a few
rattlcsuakeS; but there Is no record OF so
many of the swift and ugly black rep
tile, having been seen and El,led IN any
previous season.
The frost had hardly got ont of the
ground when two young men oil Bridge
port, strp,Uug I'M the ravlucS near rum
bull, discovered q nest OF black snakes.
They were then Just coming out OF their
turpor. ami were still sluggish. The
young men killed ioyty-eight without
much trouble. \ farmer named Peck
ham. who lives i'm that settlement IN
tine town of Lebanon known Is nick
Hin. BEGAN 10 clean out his we'll lew
claws ago. lie came up i'm hurry. lie
nII seen half a dozen SerpentS heads
projecting from the stones that walled
tlcwclI. How the reptiles got there he
could not guess; for the well Is IN ms
door ward. and some distance from any
woods. Alter DAYS battle he drove
out and killed fourteen. Every one was
"a black snake.
james TYLER, of North AShIord,a town
near New Boston i'm the northeast cor
urr of the State, came upon six OF these
snakes summing themselves IN ms lot.
He hal neither stick nor stone, and
urrciritltrly rrtreated Cutting 1.-THE
walnut Spruut, ne returned and dealt
them blow which broke the backs Of
three of them. The others raised their
. heads. and with open mouths, the fork
. itougueS darting like lightning flashes,
sprang toward Mr. Tyler. He jumped
/ back, and with the walnut stick levelled
two more. The last was so close that
Mr.. TYLER could not use his stick. He
. had the presence of mind to jump on It,
and was fortunate enough to crush its
I back with his heels. None of these
snakes measured less than four feet in
I length.
4 Meridian farmer reports that he
saw, one day last week, black snake
I fully five feet long climbing an apple
I treeln his orchard. As the snakes head
reached the lower branches the farmer
/ heard the cries OF a robin. He then
/ knew what the snake was after. There
was a nest in the tree, and there Is moth