The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1888-07-16
SNAKES IN CONNECTICUT.
A Week Of Great Excitement for the
Hunters Of that commonwealth.

my. SUM-
Connecticut snake hunters have had a
week of hard work, excitement, some peril
and success. Two Hartford gentlemen
climbed lofty Talcott Mountain the other
day and fell in with two full grown rattlers,
which they killed. They saw another one,
which got away. After they had returned
to Hartford there was run ON the saloons
for several days by people who believe that
whisky is an antidote to rattlesnake bites.
Rattlers are more numerous in this State
than they have been before within fifty years.
Frank Parker and Norman Edwards of Ches-
ter. on the Connecticut river, killed big
one in Deep Hollow that lacked only an
inchiof being four feet long. 1t had nine
rattles. But Daniel Purple, war veteran
of Moodus, tells the most remarkable story,
judged by the rules Of long measure. He
says that he went out to worship nature last
Sunday, and had climbed the tall hill be-
tween West Moodus and Leesville, when
tremendous snake, nearly as long :s a tele-
phone pole and as timber as rubber hose,
jumped out Of a thicket and pitched into
him. Ii was black snake, and its undulat-
ing folds, as 1t l0ped over the dry pasture,
glistened like paIafne varnish on a new city
lamp post. Mr. Purple killed the serpent
dlttT utSptIdt6 cOuUlcL, IN WHICH the
gauge Of battle inclined first to the man and
then to the snake, and he measured it. 1t
was eleven feet and eight inches long. Mr..
Purple has not drank anything stronger
than cider within several years.
A black snake tnat was slain In GrOton
was En0 young thing. 1t was killed near
Simeon Chapman's ice-house, and New
London telegraph reporter crossed the riy-
er in the ferryb0at and measured it with the
Office plea rule. He made seven feet and five
inches Of snake, but the man who killed 1t
maintained that it was eight feet long, with
an odd inch or two to carry.
From Killingworth comes the story Of G.
III. Evarts's adventure with a snake that
climbed large trees. Mr.. EVarts was walk
ing In the woods when his dog barked. He
knew by the peculiar quaver In the animals
voice that II was snakes it scented, or al
ready had put up" so he hastened. He
found his intelligent animal at the base
Of big tree and in the attitude of pointing.
and Mr. Evarts's trained eye quickly dis
cerned round, smooth hole, as big as two
inch auger could bore, in the tree bark about
ten feet from the ground. While the man
was still curiously gazing at the polished
hole and wondering what on earth his dog
could be pointing at, a six-foot black snake,
two inches thick, which had been cOiled
about the tree trunk above the hole, glided
down the trunk and let himself into the
opening in the tree, 'as slick" as Mr.. Ey-
arts said afterward, "as yer could run grease
into candle mold" He wanted that snake,
so he whitfield a two-ineh plug, drove 1t into
the hole, told his dog to watch the plug,
went home. got his axe, and then felled the
tree. Mr.. Evarts pulled out the plug, took
the dog by the collar and strolled off into the
swamp nonchalantly, pretending that he had
given up snake hunting for the day, and was
going home. The ruse was successful. The
black snake was running over with curiosi-
ty to find out what had happened, and as
soon as Evarts had noisily gone four or five
rods from the tree, 1t cautiously put its head
out OF the hole and viewed the political situ-
tion. The outlook was not promising for the
future. and another joint Of snake slid out
Finally the entire serpent emerged. and
made OIL into the swamp at a precipitous
pace. AT that moment Mr.. Eyarts let 90 his
trained dtg, which killed the reptile I'M
quarter Of minute
George Scovill, of Chestnut Hill Station.
Windham County, fancies that he is the only
man living who has killed two snakes at
single rifle shot. George completed his
planting few days ago, and to celebrate the
accomplishment took his new Winchester
rifle and sailed into the pastures to hunt
woodchucks. His intention was to sit down
In the grass, fifteen rods away from bur
row, and read novelette, until the ground
in returning from predatory excursion in
distant clover fields, when Mr.. Seovill would
stealthily lift his head above the wind-swung
daisies, sight his piecei and put a 32-caliber
bullet directly under the woodchuck's chin,
or into the little round protuberance between
the ears at the back of its head. He had
often performed the feat at twenty rods, and
returned with three or four woodchucks
after single afternoons sport; but he was
destined TO do liner work on this occasion,
and on snakes He had not gone far into
the pasture before his attention was arrested
by rustling noise that sounded aIgry, and
the next moment the irate head Of an i'm
mense black snake was thrust out Of the
tangle OF neighboring blackberry clump
not ten feet away, The wicked black eyes
OF the serpent winked yiciously at Mr.. SEQ
vile, Its head wagged to and fro, its red
tongue shot out as swiftly as the flying
needle of an actively worked sewing
machine, and for an instant the hunter ex-
perienced the peculiar sensation of self-sur-
render that snakes are able TO excite in all
other creatures. But Mr.. Sc0vllle was not
slow to recover his self-possession. He in
stantly lifted his rifle, and, though the
object he sought to hit was small one, was
very steady for moment; he trusted to the
intuition of natural marksmanship and
pulled the trigger for snap shot The bull
let went true, the snakes head suddenly
went down, and the hunter heard the sound
OF a great threshing among the bushes. He
traordinary thing that presented itself was
two restless black tails that aimlessly twined
and untwined themselves about the black
briar stems. and next he saw two snakes
neduS, one completely severed from the body
and the other hanging by only small strip
OF black hide. Both heads had been perfor-
ated by Mr.. ScovilPs Winchester bullet
The biggest snake was not less than six feet
in length, and the other was few inches
shorter Both were ugly-looking reptiles.
and Mr.. Scovill will not soon forget the
deadly fascination they exerted when the
dual head, which appeared to be that of one
serpent only, was thrust out at him.
Willis Clark, OF Bozrahyille, also had an
experience day or two ago. He found the
entrance to a cavern under heap of CORFU
gated and gloomy looking rocks at the fool
of a cleared hill in a distant and lonely pas
ture. He suspected snakes; SO he got and
peeled long and willowy alder and plunped
the workable end into the dark cavern. The
pole slid in, twisting and turning To suit the
OF the entrances and when ii had
entered as far as its length would permit.
and Mr.. Clark had begun to churn the stick
10 the hole, the blacks began 10 come ont.
Twenty issued on the day that Mr.. Clark
was at the hole, and he killed them all with
q cluD. III MS stick had been straight Mr..
CLARK thinks that he could have got one hun
1red snakes. The undulatiOns in the alder
alloWeu many serpeDts to escape the prod
1lng tnat compelled others to decamp.
a lew days ago Norwich Joker let four
Dig Dlack snakes out Of cigar-box on the
loor oi west side saloon. The patrons of
lne ne place went out hurriedly. Since then |
.ne 4 trade In the place has shrunk more than |
'ixty per cent.