The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1884-09-25

SAbId pine kNOb on tne 0rD anu went II
the door and looked out shall nevei
forget that look. for it was the last time
1 ever stood there and saw stars above
Skinner Hollow. closed the door anC
/ went to bed and soon fell asleep.
slept on the side of the bed nearest The
| hearth, my wife slept on the farther
side, and the baby Law between us. Fol
some reason l didn't sleep long, anC
when 1 walked up couldn't go t.
sleep again. Finally 1 got out of bee
and threw another knot on the fire
| Leo was stretched out on the floor, will
| his nose between his Paws, He eyed
me sleepily as 1 walked around The
room, and gave me loving look as
| stopped down and phtted his head
went back to bed and fell into an I'M
easy sleep. All at once ] awakened
with start. IL must have been past
midnight l seemed TO be fully awake
the moment ] opened my eyes, and
such a sight as they rested on God
grant they may never see again. Twas
lying on my left side, facing my wife
who was lying on her right side The
baby lay on its back between us. As
opened my eyes a dark object glided
down from off the baby, and Just then
the knot burst into flames and flooded
the room with light. A IattIesnake,
fully five feet long, had slipped down
from between my wife and myself,
where it had been stretched out D e.
sumably to get warm, and startled, nc
doubt, by some movement | had made
in waking had thrown itself into a coil
on the bed at the baby's feet and just
opposite my knee.
Somebody asks if life is worth liv
n i'll - Sc, IL
but if life had many such moments as
that l should say emphatically that
death is preferable. For a moment !
lost my head. l did not move. fortu.
nately, but | seemed to dri t entirely ont
of all consciousness. For a moment
only this lasted. Then my senses came
back to me and / felt that from the re-
action l would probably tremble from
head to foot. How l ever managed to
keep my body rigid l don't know, but
by an awful effort l did. [ knew that
to stir was death, perhaps for myself,
perhaps for my boy, perhaps-my God
the thought was agony-for my wife
Outside l could hear the caves dripping
from the rain, and 1 could detect the
sound of water running to waste over the
tiume. Tomorrow, 1 thought, IN have
plenty of water again. Tomorrow!
Would ever see tomorrow again? And
if did would Inject it aloneP In spite
of all could do a shudder ran through
my body.
The snake felt it and raised it's head
[ could see it eyes glisten and dance in
the freight, and the bright rays glanced
over the undulating coils. | could see
that the snake was irritated, and
knew that it was liable to spring at anv
mr. ~
of us was within easy distance 1t
seemed to me that 1 could see the be-
ginning Of the muscular contraction
which would precede the spring.
''All this, of course, passed in a frac-
ton of the time L have occupied in tell
ing it. My wife and the boy had slept
on. prayed that they might not
move, for if they did l felt the snake
would throw itself forward. l moved
my hand slightly. The snakes head
again arose, and for the first time it
sounded its rattle. Instantly my wife
opened her eyes, and some way they
rested on the snake. l could sec that
every vestige of color had left her face.
but she did not move muscle. Then
her eyes slowly left the snake and came
up to mine.
Looking back over the nearly thirty
years which have elapsed since then |
can see the look in her eyes yet We
had sometimes talked about meeting
death together. Now it lay between us
and in more horrible form than we had
ever dreamed Of. Yet the look of per-
feet confidence in me, which my wife's
eyes almost spoke, was something a
man does not see more than once in Il
lifetime. That look seemed to say, for
baby's sake, and like flash l became
as cool as L am at this moment. |
could not speak, but my wife under
stood that she must keep perfectly quiet
and jump. When the time came,
slowly and with infinite care [ raised
my head till l could look down the bed
TO the floor. My wife's eyes followed
mine, and we both saw the doc.
The hideOus head of the snake swayed
to and fro, and l knew what was to
be done must be done quickly. |
looked at my wife and she realized my
pain. Her eyes filled with tears but
gave consent. With a prayer for help
l mOistOned my lips and gave one short,
sharp whistle. The snake, | think,
didn't know what to make OF it, but
the dog. Leo, id. AS quick as thought
almost he sprang to his feet and bound
ed on the he'd. To this day [ have
never been able to understand why the
snake did not strike when the dog
moved, but il did not. AS the dogs
body rose in the air, my wife caught
hold of the baby's garments and rolled
out of bed. l rolled out on my side,
grasped my rifle which stood at the
head of the bed, and turned. The dog
and snake were rolling together on the
bed. L caught sight on the snakes
head and fired, and the reptile was
past doing any harm. The dog stag
gered off the bed to the floor, shivered,
moaned once or twice, looked from my
wife to myself with more love than /
ever saw before or since in any animals
eyes and died.
''At daybreak the next morning we
buried the dog and started for the vii
lage. / sold my mill and house to Il
man who was visiting my cousin, and
before sunset we were on our way to
Massachusetts. built another mill in
the East and we prospered and grew
rich. Other children came to make
our home happy, and there are grand
children now. We have enjoyed life
and enjoy it now. But tell you, young
man. that if poverty stood on one
hand and even glimpse of Skinner
Hollow on the other, we would take
poverty cheerfully and think we had
made n good bargain.
She Went OF in the Rain.