Connecticut western news., 1879-02-26

went in backward. It is e'ieved that the last time he was chased, some four yesrs ago, he sought refuge in this tree and never came out again. The boIes and other re- ms aims have been preserved and will be sent to the Society of Natural Science, together with history of the case.
 Mondays Sun contained the following:-
 FALLS VILLAGE, Conn.,. Feb. 22.-The 22d of February IS day that never passes un- noticed by the people of Falls Village and of s copG tell lie hlls them with wonder and even astonlsbment. The secret of thls feeling on their part probably liesin the fact that the present generation of inhabitants is an ucatlon in the art of telling snake stories aided by capabilities transmitted from fa- ther to son through successive generations. Tbls art reached it's eliminating point some 1Sa, twelve years ago, when the champion o long.dlstance snake story teller came for ward and distanced the puny efforts of all competitors. He IS still living. but his sub- sequent efforts show that he touched the zenith of his power only long enough to this country. and was translated into ev- cry language that has literature, but 1t will bear another repetition.
 The champion was going to visit his sWeethsart Tn one of the southernmost of the Canaans and had got as far as cross-road that runs from 8 point near the buryIng-ground to the road from South Canaan to Falls Village. This road skirts tue edge of a large swamp: It was dusk. op Saturday evening. When midway be- tween the two roads he was startled by rushing sound like that produced by tor nado sweeplng over forest. He glar ced around and saw the small trees by the roadside swaying, and out of the bush glld- hAoAk hCA VI of fnr head of the serpent had disappeared in the underbrush on the opposite side of the road before its distant tail was dragged into view- This sudden appearance and the att he dashed into an uncontrollable canter. and the driver had all he could attend to without pay ing further heed to the snake. Lest he should make some error in calcula- tltR tho srze of the serpent, he did not tell hls experience till be had seen by daylight the track the monster had made in the sand. This be dld when he returned from the visit to hIs lady love aud he gave 1t as his solemn judgment that the track was as large as would have been made by dragg- lpg a ten-lnch saw log across the way. The story was repeated for tue benefit of l the neiRhbors, and before 1t was Q week old no less than three other persons had seen snake of Rigantlc proportions-lt but It was 8 creature of extraordinary length and diameter. When the story ap- peared in the newspapers all tEese observ- | CTS had seen the monster, some of them had followed 1t with guns and spikes, and aE engineer on the Housatonlc road had reversed his englne to avOld getrlng his 1 train entangled in the serpent's folds; aud each of these observers. including the cu- elneer, was published as @ candid and coll sc,enlious person who would scorn to stretch the truth. About SIX years ago the story was revived, wlth some additions. | though not improvements, aud again It | went the rounds nf the press.
 Last night the New York newspapers ar- the long distance champ,on. It went on to aver. Tn modest way, that as two l wOodmen in the swamp were saw'ng a ,og. the saw struck something hard. The story continued. that these two honest
 woodmen split open the log and lad bare some twenty-tW feet of snake. It added that the tail of the snake occupied that
 part of the hollow of the log winch would have been among the lofty branches mad
 the the form fn 1f of despatch daied Poaghkee D. sle. The people of Falls Village aud the several CanaaLs read this story wthOCt comment. Several of them assembled al at the village DarrOOm 10 exchange opiii' lOnN aud speculate.
 "Rear,n' and plnngin' tail forrard into a buttOnwoOd tree. and penetraLln' so fal that he stuck thar till he starved to deth By Gum, To like to gut sight at that Pu- k00pHt0 0XCla1uloU bu0 Ou0 WI WdS first struck with the improbabillty Of thai part of the story.
 The Sun repolter could find no one who
 knew anything about the skeleton until he came to the railroad repair shops whore g
 man was found who promised to prove [ bOpaUza of information.
 ''Snake3 oh yes; He was found in tht swamp iu the holler of q buttoHwood tret
 by Kelley and Smith-tall forrard-meas uIed twenty-two feet-prob'ly backed il thar when he was chased-bones six inches through aud hard as stone-=seRt to the mu scum of nat'ral hlst'ry."
 'Good who told ou about itf when die they fl d nlm '"
 Last Saturoay. Read it in the Sun." aI The reporter will be permitted to depart from this town to-uiorTOw, now that ft has solemnly pledged himself to return by tway of Poughkeepsie, make diliGent searct
 for "that Pc okeepsie teller" and send pho toRraphs of hun to the pIomipent--anG
 1t should be sald not wholly crushed
 sc ake story tellers n the several Canaan
 and adjacent hamlets.
 The joke of the above is that the 'Po'-
 keepsie fell.r" had been imbibing too ire,
 ly of Poughkeepsie fire-water, and imagin-
 ed thst his boot was buttopwood tree witt
 the remains of very large snake in it.