The spirit of democracy. [volume] (Woodsfield, Ohio) 1844-1994, 1884-12-09


TO fnd snakes, and go long as they kept
heir distance or gave US chance to
shoot them when they got too near We
didn't mind them.
"As l told you. I fixed up things
around the house during slack time. One
Of the bits Of furniture l knocked to-
gether was bedstead. II Was more /
ike broad lounge than bedstead. for
it bad neither head nor footboard One
end vas raised little like couch. and
that VAS the head. We had some bear
skins and blankets TO cover as. 1t vas
q big improvement on the fpos where /
we had been ,sleepiog, and after . hard
days work handling logs used TO think
1t about as comfortable spot as kuex
"WellJ 1t got along into the fall ana
we began. 10 have chilly nigAksss
equinoctisl gave US q big rain and for ~
fortnight l had all the water could use
Then it got dry again. One Afternoon
after several days OF threateaing wea.h-
er, It began to rain. Honf after hear
the rain came down Till about 8 o'clo2s
in the evening when it suddenly cleared
of and turned cold. 1t was late 10 0c-
tober aud We kept fire burning on the
hearth nights. more for the baby's sake
than our own. Our bed Was parallel
with the fire place and STOOD ont near the
middle of the room. We bad an English
shepherd dog named Leo, which We took
with rs from Massachusetts. He Was .
black. and white beauty and my wife,
who had raised him, tho1ght about as
much of him as she did of the baby or
meat least used to tell her so. The
dog was fond Of me and I made . great
pet Of him. He was noble fellow. and
all he wanted was for me to whistle just
once and he'd come. We let him sleep
in the room at the foot Of the bed.
Sometimes in the morning I'd wake up
before my wife and I'd whistle just once
10 the dog. Up he'd come over ths foot
OF the bed and wake Katie by licking her
face.
That night We we're just going to bed
when it turned cold. I threW an extra
pine knot on the FIRE and vent TO the
door aud looked out. shall never for
! get that look, for it was the last time l
ever stood there and saw stars above
Skinner Hollow closed the door and
went to bed and soon fell asleep slept
on the side OF the bed nesrestthe hearth.
my wife slept on the further side and the
baby lav between us. For some reason
l didn't sleep long and wheuI walked up
l couldn't 60 to sleep again. Finally |
got out Of bed and threw another knot
ON the Gre. Leo was stretched ont on
the floor With his nose between bis paws.
file eyed me sleepily as walked around
the room and gave me loving look as
l stopped down and pat,ed his head. I
went back to bed and fell into an uneasy
sleep. All at once I wakencd. With .
start. 1t must have been past midnight
! seemed to be fully awake the m0QentI
i opened my ewes, and such . sight ~
they rested on God grant / may nevsr
see again. ] was lying on my left eide
facing my wife, who ives lying on her
right side. The baby lay on its back
between US. As ! opened my eyes o
dark object glided down from of the
baby, and just then the knot burst into
flames and flooded the room with light.
A rattlesnske fully FIVE feet long had
slipped down from between my wife and
myself, where it had been stretched out
presumably tn get warm, and startled,no
doubt, by some movement l had made
in waking had thrown itself into coil
at the baby's feet and just opposite my
knees.
"Somebody asks il life is worth liv-
ing. / think it is as general thing, but
il life had many such moments as that ]
should say emphatically that death was
preferable For q moment lost my
head. ! did not move. fortunately, but
seemed TO drift entirely out Of all con.
sciousness For moment only this
lasted. Then my senses came back to
me. and felt that from the reaction ]
would probably tremble from head to
foot. How l ever managed to keep my
hodv rigid don't know, but by an aw-
full effort / did. knew that to stir was
death, perhaps for mvself. perhaps for
my boy, perhars-my God, the thought
was agony-for nv wife. Outside I
could hear the rain dripping from the
caves, and could detect the sound Of:
wfter runr ing to waste over the fnme.
Tomorrow, / thought, I'll have plenty
Of water again Tomorrow! Would
ever see tomorrow againr And IL I
did would / not meet it alone7 In spite
Of all could do shudder ran through
my body.
The snake felt It and raised its head
I could see its ewes glisten and dance in
the freight. and the bright ravs glanced
over the undulating coils ! could see
that the snake was irritAted, and I knew
ths. it was liable to spring at any mo-
ment. Who wouldit strike Either OF
US was within easy distance II seemed
10 me that could see the beginning Of
the muscular contraction which would
precede the spring. A q
.AIl this, OF eorrse, passed ia . frac-
ton Of the time have occupied in tell
ing il. Ny wife and boy slept on. /
prayed that they might not move. Tor il
they did felt The snake would throw
itself forward I movedsng head slight
ly. Toe snakes head again arose, and
for the irst time it sounded its rattle
INSTANTLY my wife opened bet ewes. and
some way they rested on the snake. l
could see that every vestigs of color
had left her ace.,hut she did not move
a muscle Then her eyes slowly left the
snake and came to mine.
Looking back over the nearly thirty
wears 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
ovor raamod nf Yot tho lob os aor-