Centre Democrat. [volume] (Bellefonte, Pa.) 1848-1989, 1882-05-25
A Champion Snake Story.

|
|
| Tie Great Snake Dan that Erists Near
Warren, Pa.
| Philadelphia Times.
The outlines of Cobham's Rocks can
be seen miles away. In itself it is "A
lonesome place. A great, gloomy pile
of ponderous rocks, rising grim and
bold above waving branches OF oak
and hazel bushes above stretches the
sky, blue as the sky of June below,
hundreds of feet almost, straight
down, grand sweep OF water lies
cradled between steep mountain sides.
Far away down the valley the river Is
dark with the shadows OF the great
hills and far beyond in hazy waves OF
| grandeur the outlines OF the Alleghenlcs
| lose themselves in "A broad belt OF Grim.
son sunset. stand on the very top Of
the giant rocks and look down. To the
| left, near the Allegheny River, and
fronting an island OF trees and bushes,
with glimpses ofsummer arbors between
stands the old McWilliams homestead,
brown with the storms OF almost forgot.
ten years. To the right, in little val.
ley running straight back from the
river, nestle the clustered buildings Of
another branch ofthe McWilliams iami.
! ly. Beyond and over the brow of a
small knoll the oldtime glory OF the
Lacy homestead stands as an imposing
barrier against the encroachments OF
the spik .and-span eastern side of the
town of Warren, mile below. Every
where is peace and beauty. Nature
was in her most pleasing mood when
| that picture of water and mountain and
| forest was made and crowned with a
monument of stone.
Since the days when the first settlers
| chased the Indians from the broad and
fertile valley and played lone game
| against panthers and bears aud wolves,
| the great rocks have had few visitors.
| Although the top OF the great pile is a
! key note to one OF the finest pictures in
! the Quaker State, yet no photograph
| has ever shown the hardiboOd to plant
a camera on the extreme summit. The
| place bears a bad reputation. For miles
around the rocks are synonymous with
almost everything that is weird, ghost
| ly and uncertain. Years ago some hu.
man bones were found at the entrance
TO one Of the unexplored crevices in the
| rocks, and il has only been a short time
since that other bones, partly human
| and partly animal. were found IN the
same place.
| To lend an additional adherence to
the gloomy pile in the midst OF the
/ the people, nature infested the
rocks with rattlesnakes. Hundreds
/ upon hundreds of the reptiles swarm
/ i -. / 4 l. .
bre monument, multiplying year by
year. until the number u almost be.
| yond conjecture. An effort was once
/ made TO destroy the snakes by burning
( the leaves and brush across the noun
tain. A man who stood on the top Of
! the rocks to watch the effects as the
| flames swept toward the summit, said
| Yesterday that even nov, years after
/ the occurrence, the scene TecgTs to
| him i'm his dreams and will waken him
| from the soundest sleep with thrills Of
| horror.
As the fire was borne upward hun.
/ dreds Of snakes, driven from the bush
ga and shallow holes by the smoke,
rushed over the ground to q hole which
seemed TO lead directly into the center
/ of the largest rock on the pile. The
snakes, nearly frantic from fright,
| dashed into the hole one after the 9th.
er with remarkable rapidity, the big
ones forcing the others aside and mo.
nopoliziug the means OF escape. As the
| fire drew nearer the rush Of snakes be
came greater. 1t was a perfect STAN.
pede OF reptiles. The utmost confusion
| took possession of the escaping things /;
| big snakes hissed defiance at the ap.
preaching flames, but did not stop a
moment; little snakes darted under
small stones and pieces Of fallen logs,
only to be driven out again by the heat.
One monstrous serpent, in trying to
crawl through the hole in the rocks,
stuck fast, half of his body hanging out.
side. The other snakes squirmed about
the struggling victim of his own size in
frightful way. striking the defenseless
tail and writhing together nearly foot
deep as the fire crowded them against
the wall Of stone. The fire swept Up to
the summit with rush, and as 1t came
upon the living mass it seemed as
though thousand snakes leaped high
in the air and struck feTcely at the
bursts Of flame, only to fall, writhing
and helpless. into the FIRE. The sight
Of the air full of snakes and fire proved
too much for the lone Epectator and