Huntsville gazette., 1886-09-18


up the bank of the lake and wriggled
across the sand and among the party Of
discoverers. Many of these ill-shaped,
repulsive creatures had never been
seen by human eye before. but revolt
ing and unnatural as they were as they
made clumsy efforts to move outside OF
their element, they were nevertheless
attempting to escape from that dread
full monster in the lake which even
they feared.
The head of the great reptile had
been darted out of the water with
ightning-like quickness and was sway
ing and turning on slender and
Shiny neck thirty feet long. The head
appeared to be much larger than a
barrel and it constantly changed its
shape though it somewhat resembled
both that of rattlesnake and a saw
age bull dog. 1t moved back and forth
with great rapidity as if about to strike
at some unseen object in the water.
The mouth was open and disclosed
row after row of crooked and de-
formed fangs and two and sometimes
three knotty and distorted forked
tongues were thrust out in all direc-
tions. The third one was divided in
several forks and each had what
seemed to be hook on the end. One
of the creatures eyes appeared to be
red and the other glistening and
changing green. The green one pro-
tuded much farther than the other and
seemed almost ready to break away.
From its distended nostrils, which
were just below its eyes, yellowish
vapOr shot out when the breath was
expelled which, instead of risin g
seemed to settle and spread over the
water. No ears were visible. In color
the head was for the most part black.
There were some scales and punches Ct
hair and the skin was broken in many
places and pieces of flesh bitten out,
perhaps in some terrible combat witk
another monster. A Shiny, greasy
scum spread over the water and hun
dreds of dead fish floated about, evi-
IDENTIFY killed by the presence of the
poisonous, upas-like reptile.
All of this was observed by the ex
ploring party from the shore in about
two minutes while the serpent was
surveying the scene. All at once it
threw its head twenty feet higher and
uttered deadly, rasping, ghoul-like
cry, half human, half fiendish, which
made the waters of the lake quiyer and
chilled through and through the
hearers on the beach. At the
same instant the water was
sgitated over mile from the
shore and suddenly its tail
raised above the surface at that dis
tance and second later the whole
body appeared with snake-like mo-
and it started for the land. 1t was
now nearly all visible and more than
mile in length. Its body varied
greatly in size and color and was
shaped in the same horrible, unnatural
form as the head There were a score
or more of legs and hundreds of long,
flexible arms, each ending in a sucker
like devil fish. These death-deal-
ing arms reached about and writhed
about in q disgusting manner. Some
parts of the body seemed to float in
the water and other walked on it with
the aid of the legs and suckers. This
w dS al ODStl ttt III d low StCOliuS IL
was rapidly approaching the land.
Just as the monstrosity began to come
up on the shore like a great, hideous,
sickening vampire of the sea, the party
of discoverers turned and fled. A dozen
slippery, grasping sucker-arrayed arms
reached far before the head and the
last of the party just escaped. 1t ut
tered strange, hollow cry of baifled
rage and seized upon the team which
it crushed in clasp of death. The
wild, fierce cry of the horses and
wagon as they disappeared within the
jaws of the reptile will never be
forgotten.
The party did not stop running till
it reached Estelline. The. demijohn
was brought back in safety, though
empty. No one has been out to see the
creature, but Mayor Lally is in con-
slant telephone connection with it and
has secured it's consent to give one Of
its unparalleled performances daily
during the next four weeks. A horse
and wagon will groan as they disap-
pear at each exhibition. Now is the
time to visit EsteIline's unsurpassed
summer resort. EStelline Cd. ID Bell.