Democratic messenger. [volume] (Snow Hill, Md.) 1869-1973, 1882-06-17

We had reached the edge of the reeds
and were moving slowly along, whel
Quimbo saw a motion of tall grass abeu
four rods ahead, which seemed to b'
made by something working at thu
roots. We got our guns in readiness
all cooked and at the shoulder-anC
then moved cautiously along.
"We'll have TO take 'em on the wing,
said Uncle Abner; $50 be ready"
We had come very nearly opposite t.
the spot where the motion of the reed
had been observed, when our host whis
pered for us to ''stand by" /" and then III
gave an alarm.
In an instant dozen ducks sprane
into the air, while we could see tina
more were running off through the
reeds. We all fired together, and more
than half the birds dropped. The boa
was pushed into the brake, and after
some fifteen minutes spent in pushing
and tugging over the mud, we succeed
ed in securing five of the ducks. They
were fat and plump, and gave promise
of a savory pie.
Having gained the clear water once
more, and loaded up again, we pulled
on, as carefully as before, mp the bayou
We were liable to start up more game
at any moment, so we were prepared.
Half way up the shore we got another
shot, and this time succeeded in secur.
ing seven beauties. The rest of the
distance upon that side was pulled
without seeing any more game, and our
host gave the two darkeys orders tc
paddle on to the next opening.
The passage from this bayou to the
next one was between large trees which
seemed to have their very roots in the
water, which was in most places SC
deep that we could not see bottom.
We finally reached smother broad
opening in the bayou, and within five
minutes afterward we started up a
flock of over fifty ducks. We were not
prepared for them, but yet nine of them
were brought down and picked up, they
having fallen in open water.
We had started to pull across this
bayou when our attention was attracted
by strong commotion in the water not
far distant.
"Thuy'r alligators, fghtin'," said
Carl, who had watched the movement
some moments. "Some hungry var
mint on EN- s fell afoul of smaller
one."
"Guess there's more'n one afoul on
EN-" suggested Uncle Abner.
And so it would seem, for the com.
motion in the water was now wild and
terrific. Two huge, black, serrated tails
lashed the surface into foam, and occa-
sionally third would make its appear
ance with struggling movements. We
stopped our boat, and sat watching the
fierce battle.
Suddenly the monster disappeared.
and came up few minutes afterward at
some distance from the place we had
first seen them, and little nearer to
our boat than before. We could now
see very plainly that two huge alligators
had attacked third nearly as large as
themselves.
"Do the miserable things eat each
other?" asked Hobson, who was not
thoroughly posted up in the natural
history of southern reptiles.
'Sartin they does" answered Carl.
They'll eat anything; and their own
young'uns more'n anything else. s"
"Eat their own young?"
eyes" responded the old trapper.
"And thar never wor wiser law o.
natur'. Eff they didn't eat 'em the coun-
try would be overrun with 'em in a
leetle while. Why, sometimes the alli-
gator lays three or four hundred eggs
at brood. They generally hatch
every one on 'em-an' eff the old 'uns
didn't begin to eat 'em as soon as they
about than we'd know what to do with. "
''It's curious fact, " remarked Uncle
Abner, "that the female alligator will
use such curious means to protect her
eggs and Matching young. No animal
could be more wary than she is in de-
posting her eggs, or use more ingenuity
in concealing them. And then at the
proper time she comes to their assist
ance. At the end of about thirty days
she knows that they are beginning to
hatch, and she goes up to the place
where she laid her eggs in the sand, and
digs them out with her paws. Some OF
the young ones run straight off for the
water, and others climb up on their
mothers back, and are taken to the
water so. But the moment the water
is reached all ties of family are at al
end, and the male and female both com.
mence at once to eat their offspring
whenever they can get hold of them.
The young ones seem to have sort oi
instructive knowledge of their danger,
for they dive for the mud at once, where
they crawl in and hide; but not many
of them escape. They have to come
forth for food, and are very apt to be-
come food themselves"
Some further remarks were made upon
tn Q habits of the abominable things
WIN en- our attention was wholly taker
up by the fierceness of the battle which
was raging. The attacked alligator
seemed to have proved too strong fol
his assailants to conquer at once. They
had been swapping their great jaws Al
each other, but now commenced battle
with their huge tails. The monsters
leaped and thrashed until the water fol
some distance about them was one dense
mass of foam. Suddenly, while the
conflict was raging the most fiercely
the attacked alligator sank from sight
and on the next instant the other two
followed him.
We sat still in our boat watching fol
the monster reptiles to come up again
l had just opened my lips to speak
when an exclamation from QuimbC
startled us all. We had time to see
break upon the surface of the water
close under our gunwale, and on tn,