The Newberry herald. [volume] (Newberry, S.C.) 1865-1884, 1880-01-21
JOE E0REV"TE.S'G


tuaiiy seemed to astonish the
snake, and caused him to hesitate
about opening hostiIities against
such cool customer. That Sit
uatlon was maintained for. five,
minutes. All that time the rat,
tiesnake's warning notes were.
sounding and it lay coiled with its
neck curved ready to strike, and
It's eyes fairly blazing with ma.
iignant ferocity. At last it struck
at the rat-and missed. The rat
seemed to think nothing more of
the occurrence, than that. the worm
wanted TO change its position and
was somwhat in & hurry about it,
There was no apparent alarm, but
only an access of curiosity in the
mind OF the irisky rodent about
the qulVerlng, whizzing tail, to
satisfy concerning which he walk
deliberately up to it and smelled
1t. AS be did so the snake struck
again, and that time caught his
victims left hind leg. A horrible
thing the rattiesnake was in that
moment Of pouncing upon his vic
tim. The fat, broad head was
opened iuto an enormous mouth
in the widely distended jaws the
large hooked, venomous fangs
were erected; the eyes gIowed with
fury, Quicker than sight could
follow the motion, the deadly blow
was inflicted. One Instant the
snake was motionless, the nexti it's
fangs were fastened in the leg Of.
the struggling, squeaking, and
now thoroughly alarmed rat, and
the next it had returned to it's for
mer attitude, still threatening but
simply following with watcAful
eyes the movements Of it's victim,
without essaying any further at
tack. The frightened rat lost+in-
stantIy the use If the leg that had
been struck. On its other three ,
legs it sprans about as if in wild
terror, then dragged itself around
the cage more and more slowly:
at length it crawled among the.
coils OF the snake and there expir-
Cd. Thirteen minutes. elapsed
from the time it was bitten ungil
it was dead.
Almost Immediately the snake
proceeded TO the swallowing pro-
cess. There was no preparatory
moistening, coiling upon and press
ing Of the body. The snake sim.
ply seized the rats head in his
mouth, and commenced opera
tjons. His upper jaw is built in,
two sections, right and left, and
be can move them separately,
backward or forward. Hooking
the: teeth Of one section into the
rats hide, be would slide the
other section forward a little and
take a fresh hold with his teeth.
Then the first that made fast
would let 60, come TO the front,
and rig new purchase. Ia that
way, by alternate advances of the
right and left sections OF his up
per jaw he slowly pushed his dim
ner down. Bat it took him twen-
ty minutes TO do it.. '..- .--.
Several other rats we're fed to
the rattIesnakes with little varia-'
tlon Of incident, except that their
individual characteristics we're va-
riousiy displayed. None was as
unconscious OF danger and i'm
pudentIy sociable as the first, and
none was as plucky as tue seventh,
which upon receiving the fatal
bite, sprang at the snake to make
fight. The poison was too active
in the courageous little fellows
veins, however. Even as he
reached the reptiles neck his
limbs stifened, his jaws became
set, and be rolled over on his back
weakly kicking and gasping for
some minutes, and then died. The
quickest death was that OF the
fourth rat, which was bitten in the
head, ieIl Immediately, and was
seemingly dead in less than a mir
ute.
DR.. Dorner: who knows al
most as much about snakes as II
had made them, explains that as
soon as ratcIesnake has eaten in
captivity, the quantity and ac-
livity ofits poison increases, quick
iy causing the interval between the
bite and its fatal result, upon small
animals at least, to Occome very
short indeed. But if fed too often
the reptiles venom loses in activi-