The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1879-08-07
Adventure Of An American Miner In
Australia.

a ten-foot hill at McAllister's store,
and had driven tunnel right through
into the hill, following a ledge that
yielded some rich washing. The drive
was very narrow, being only large
enough to give admission to one man.
I descended the shaft one morning and
entered the tunnel.
Just as was about to drive in my
pick monstrous snake rose up in
front of me; he had descended the shaft
during the night, and worked his way
into the end of the drive. BY the light
of my candle I saw it was black
snake, one of the most venomous of
Australian reptiles.
I saw he was about to strike, and 80
l drew back, but in the act struck my
head against the roof of the drive, hit
ting myself such severe blow that for
a moment lost my senses, and falling,
l overturned the light and felt myself
in total darkness. Something seemed
to whiz over me as half stupid.y tried
to raise myself to a sitting posture.
almost shrieked with terror, but the
instinct of self-preservation kept me
silent.
I lay for some time listening, and
feeling certain that had not been Bit
ten, became possessed of an irresisti-
BILE longing to get out of the hole. l
crawled to the mouth of the drift and
there, at the bottom of the shaft, l saw
his snakeship squirming and twisting
himself about. He had struck for me,
but on my falling back had missed me
and went over me; then probably being
somewhat frightened himself, he had
sought the mouth of the drift to make
his escape. But he could net climb the
shaft, although he was making every
effort to do 50.
l at once saw that I could not get
out of the hole without bringing on a
conflict between the snake and myself.
l shouted up to Bill to be ready to hoist
when gave him the signal, explain
ing as well as l could the dangerous
predicament was in below. To my
shouting l received no reply, and con-
cluded that Bill had left the mouth of
the shaft, probably to exchange morn-
ing salutations with the men in the ad-
joining claim, or to indulge in friend
ly pipe with them, not supposing l
would require his assistance so quickly.
saw that the only course open to
me was to disable the snake if possible,
and then to make my escape from the
shaft in the best way that could.
Having made this resolve I emerged
from the drift, pick in hand, and made
a strike for the snake before he had
time to spring.
That was fortunate stroke. The
pick entered his back and broke his
spine. He was powerless to reach me.
l seized the rope and in few minutes
got out of the hole.
My first impulse was to throw myself
on my knees and offer'a prayer OF
thanks for my marvellous escape. Then
I called Bill. He descended the shaft
and succeeded in passing o switch be-
meath the belly of the snake at the point
where the spine was broken; then he
tied the two ends of the switch together,
and we hoisted the reptile to the sur
face. He measured nine feet four
inches.
He had given me such q terrible
scare that I resolved to be revenged
upon him, and was for cutting off his
head at once, but party of miners
who had gathered around US begged
that he might be laid across an ant-hill.
l told them they might dispose of him
as they pleased. They carried him to
an adjoining ant-hill and laid him
across it; the spine being broken, he.
of course, could not escape.
Then ensued fight. The ants at.
tackled him in force, and he slaug htered
them by thousands, bat they hurled
legion after legion upon him, and in
less than two hours all that remained
of The snake was a beautifully polished
skeleton, which lay across the anthill
cleaning in the sunshine.