Rock Island daily Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1886-1893, 1886-11-27

"You are not believe that thief is snake
| She pushed her coarse black hair behind
| her ears and scowled at Us from beneath her
| WHY eyebrows Then she belted the loose
calico wrapper which she wore with her out
| stretched fingers, and ierked her head toward
| the smooth circumference of her waist thus
displayed
That snake is big through like | am.
His head is little, like my two fists and
he is long-eh, bien! he is long like ship
@You know that Tchoupitoulas road? Yes
l am live there Two miles from there,
where the river bends in and comes near my
wigwam. am hang my banan in that 1.-Two
oak tree. where the wind can keep him fresh,
and when l am come up from the river, be
fore veSter night, with water for boil in the
pot, that snake is come down out of the live
oak. He Is black, and he is crawl. and crawl,
and crawl
she imly1tei the Serpent's slow, gliding mo
ton with her skinny hand and arm.
And then, when l am stiff with 'fraid, he
iumTs-"
Her hand dumped" and clutched bunch
Of wild ginger,
And snap goes my banan-stem, and he is
gone. Eli, hien, gentrymansl He is gone
off in the swamp with my hanan. That Is one
i buy me some more hanan. That snake is
gone III lie swamp. hang my hanan IN the
live oak, AMI shat other nIEhf-the last night
be Is here again, and this morning am no
banan"
She waved her hand with a tragic gesture
above the meagcilv spread pavement, as
though saving, Here Is proof of my words
+ha-a +. no b.rar,a brr.
"''.-'' ir.t' !t-i!.-'..ei HuNtaFe' orhcu-
t!-S- ne 'lf+" MS head haok upon his
>HpUa''FfS III. sent thirteen perfect rings Of
.iil'N'' one d! -.'f ail'thrf' from between ms
"I'- we "ili 90 "o' There TINS evening and
-.',,'H mat snake what DO yoil s','
psi' Nlii'Ae can AaNe il" Pe9,iNt Use ior
'0',-'."'S 'ei penis are h'' rug ,'r"us
''.- are "ii''I ta@F are. MAY mas TO
reason lot N'i'5 10 Us AMI / l+ile'e her
-19.t. lie tFe>'euI a'i@ lHe orient circus
anu -HtfaE"Fle Is lth4S down thefe In tnc
',-'isi o. q -tra'f'r ii. ing u9 I'f run across
lhs gun ." 'eAtfai -AineFi'a- Inc chances
-.e tud, me 5tiP mas t,eai'7i from IT. ana
Jhat Is the cas-, ana we XII! Il, II VIII make
an item Tor you; Ell, my boy
Thus 1t was that at 5 O'clock that afternoon
bananas were pefched among the branches
"i Ihe hveoak tiee "hich SheL'reh IN
io"-H "di hu0 III Which mary i'e"' An'
o,thdha9 were hanging from the lowest hLhL
~ t'le 1Fee' apout SIX lee' ABOVE the swamp
grass ana l was wing lmEe'haVely over
them Ill nest OF Spanish mos which Ell
tectualiy cushioned the branch on which l
rested, and at the same time shielded me
from observation from below. Gustave oc-
eupiea similar position on the opposite SIDE
OF the massive trunk, ana with repeating
rifle beside us and keen-edged knives with
curVlng biades-such knives as the field hands
use Tor cutting sugar cane-We awaited the
approachSf twilight and the serpent
Inc upper part OF the tree had been thor
oughly explored III the bright sunlight of the
afternoon, and we were confident that moth
ing larger thah 1rte toad iufked IN It's green
nos,
ine nut was built on hummork OF solid
ground rising outol the cypress swamp, above
tne surface OF which all around Us We're thrust
varinus scarlet flowers. as well rs tho rae,oed
trunks of the cypress. Imagination peopIed
the sIiny ooze with all manner of foul things.
shaped after the general image of the water
rloccasins, which moved about in plain sight
until twilight Hill them
WIS wipiu., the mist from nv eve glasses
with a soft linen handkerchief when something
touched nc on the shoulder and made me
s,art so violently that the glasses slipped from
any hands and fell into clump of wild roses
growing about the roots of the tree
"Nevcr mind them Kissed Gustave in an
intense whisper, "looE toward the riv4r.o
But without the glasses / was almost blind
and could not see more than ten feet before
me- heard the crashing Of twigs, however,
as though some large body was moving to
ward US, along the road over which we bad
come, and then GiiStaVe swung himself into
my nest.
1t is coming" he whispered, land from
the commotion among the eottonwoods it
must be as big around as horse. You fire
ut the heai I will aim at the spine, and If
the riii,-. - rot stop it give it the knife at
close
W 1rackling continue, and pres