The Pickens sentinel. [volume] (Pickens, S.C.) 1871-1903, 1883-11-01
A RATTLESNAKE. STORY.
THE FATAL ODOR WHICH IL THROWN
OUT BY RATTLESSAKBS.
How the Presence OF Rnttiespake nonrly
Cost Two Lives. e

1t has always been said by old hunters
and woodsmen that under certain condi-
tions rattlesnake exudes an odor which
is not only unbearably offensive to the
sense OF SMELL but that il o person.
should be subjected to its presence for
any length Of time In a close room the
result would be fatal to him. This has
generally been looked upon as ono OF
tho many superstitions that prevail
among the residents of the backwoods,
but case is reported from the Pocono
region, in Pennsylvania, which, if true,
and it seems to be well substantiated,
would indicate that the belief is founded
on fact. Tho story is that two men
from New Jersey-B. T. Altemus and
Samuel s. Roy--whilc spending q few
days in that vicinity, looking over somo
timber land with n view to purchasing
tract, concluded, for the novelty of the
thing: to spend one night in the woods.
1t was one of the recent very cold nights.
The intention of tho men was to sleep
in the open air by n campfire, but tho
driven to enter an old cabin OH the head
waters of the Little Bushkill creek,
which is used by the hunters in fall and
winter. They started fire in the fire.
place, and, stretching themselves in
front of it, went to sleep. Some time in
the night Roy awoke. There was feel
ing of great oppression OH his chest and
he was breathing with difficulty. There
was peculiarly sickening smell in the
cabin.
Altcmus was breathing heavily and his
breath came ut long intervals. Roy
had difficulty in awakening him, but fin
ally arose him, and both struggled to
thelr leet. The fire had ceased blazing,
put the room was very hot, q bed of red
hot coal remaining on tho hearth.
When the men arose to their feet they
were seized with dizziness and sickness
at the stomach. They succeeded in get
ting to tho door, which they had much
difficulty in opening, but finally stag
gercd into the open air and fell to the
ground. After violent spell of vomit-
ing and half an hour in the open air tho
strange feeling passed off, but left them
weak and nervous. They remained out
doors until broad daylight. Upon en-
tering the cabin in the morning, what
was their horror to SEQ stretched Oh tho
hearth not ten feet from where they had
been sleeping five large rattlesnakes,
which crawled away at the approach of
the men and disappeared in chinks in
the chimney and cracks and holes in the
floor The peculiar odor was still ap-
parent in the cabin. but the pure air
that had entered at the open door had
dissipated it to a great degree. The
| men associated their strange sickness in
some way with the snakes, and ut first
thought they must have been bitten.
They did not stay at tho cabin to rout
out and kill the snakes, but lost no time
in reaching the nearest settlement,
where they were enlightened as to the
theory of the woodmen's rattlesnako
skin poison. These snakes frequent de-
ertcd cabins in the fall, and it is not an
uncommon thing to SEQ them crawling
from their hiding places even in winter
after a fire has been built in tho cabiD
long enough to warm them up.