Connecticut western news., 1884-08-27

5AnS oeoAy pAOAaASous
 '"True," said the old man, starting, 'Tm just coming to that. I lost myself thinking of those old days. There was snakes then, and we had killed them. Rattlers used to come out on the lodges of rocks and lay in the hot sun. One or two had come around the mill, and had shot one in our door yard. But we thought nothing of that. People living in the woods or in wild places get used to things that would fill them with hor- TOT in a settled country. We expected to find snakes, and as long as they kept their distance or gave us a chance to shoot them when they got too near we didn't mind them.
 "As told you, fixed up things around the house during slack time. One of the bits of furniture I knocked together was bedstead. It was more like broad lounge than a bedstead, for it had neither head nor footboard. One end was raised little like couch, and that was the head. We had some bear skins and blankets to sleep on, and more blankets to cover us. It was big i'm provement on the floor where we had been sleeping, and after a hard days work handling logs I used to think 1t about as comfortable spot as I knew.
 "Well, it got along into the fall and we began to have chilly nights. The equinoctial gave us a big rain, and for a fortnight I had all the water I could use. Then it got dry again. One afternoon, after several days of threatening wealth CT, it began to rain. Hour after hour the rain came down till about 9 o'clock in the evening, when 1t suddenly cleared of and turned cold. Itwas late in Octo. Der and we kept a fire burning on the heayth nights, more for the bsby's sake than for our own. Our bed was parallel with the fireplace and stood out near the middle of the room. We had an English shepherd dog named Leo, which we took with us from Massachusetts. He was & black and white beauty, and my wife, who had raised him, thought about as much of him as she did of the baby or meat least, fused to tell her So. The dog was fond of me and made a 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 to the dog. Up he'd come over the foot of the bed and wake Katie by licking her face.
 "'That night we were just going to bed when it turned cold. I threw an extra pine knot on the fire and went to the door and looked out. I shall never forget that look, for it was the last time I ever stood there and saw stars above Skinner Hollow. closed the door and went to bed and soon fell asleep. I slept on the side of the bed nearest the hearth, my wife slept on the further side and the baby lay between us. For some req son I didn't sleep long, and when I walked up I couldn't get to sleep again. Finally I got out of bed and threw an- other knot on the fire. Leo was stretched out on the floor with his nose between his paws. He eyed me sleepily as walked around the room and gave me a loving look as stopped down and patted his head. 1 went back to bed and fell into an uneasy sleep. All at once wakened with start. It must have been past midnight I seemed to be fully awake the moment I opened my eyes, and such sight as they rested on God grant they may never see again. I was lying on my left side facing my wife, who was lying on her right side. The baby lay on it's back between us. As opened my eyes dark object glid- ed down from of the baby, and just then the knot burst into flames and flooded the room with light. A rattle snake, fully five feet long, had slipped down from between my wife and myself, where it had been stretched out presum- ably to get warm, and, startled no doubt by some movement had made in walk ing, had thrown itself into coil on the bed at the baby's feet and just opposite my knees.
 Somebody asks if life is worth liv- ing. I think it is as general thing, but if life had many such moments as that should say emphatically that death was preferable. For a moment I lost my head. I did not move, fortunately, but seemed to drift entirely out of all consciousness. For moment only this lasted. Then my senses came back to me, and I felt that from the reaction I would probably tremble from head to foot. How ever managed to keep my body rigid don't know, but by an aw- ful effort I 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 I could hear the rain dripping from the caves, and could detect the sound or water running to waste over the Hume. Tomorrow, thought, I'll have plenty of water again. Tomorrow Would I ever see tomorrow again And if did would I not meet it alone? In spite of all I could do shudder ran through my body.
 "The snake felt it and raised it's head. I could see it's eyes glisten and dance in the freight, and the bright rays glanced over the undulating coils. I could see that the snake was irritated, and knew that 1t was liable to spring at any mo- ment. Who would it strike? Either of us was within easy distance. It seemed to me that l could see the beginning of the muscular contraction which would