Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1889-07-25

of Texas one noon to boil cup of cof'
fee and get a bite to eat. and while
Private Mallory was getting the coffee
ready, three or four Of the men stretch.
cd out for an hours sleep. There
were seven of Us United States dra.
goons, searching for come horses which
had broken away. and big George,
as we called him. who was a sergeant
was in command.
was very wide awake, having
caught sight of snake moving off az
We came up, and as the sergeant lay
on his face sheltered from the sun, !
looked him over and admired his pro-
portions. He was man who stood
exactly ak feet in his stockings, weigh.
ed 2lS pounds. and it was no trick at
all for him to take two Of the strong
eat men in the regiment and hold
them at arms length or dance them
about like puppets.
It might have been ten minutes af.
ter he lay down that..I caught sight Of
q tarautula on his breast-the largest
and most horrible looking specimen /
ever saw. and / lived for seven years
among them. The sergeant had on
the regulation cavalry jacket, and il
was buttoned all the way up. He
lay on the broad of his back, arms
down beside him, and ! had no sooner
caught sight of the big spider than /
saw that the mans eyes. which could
see under his red handkerchief, were
open. He saw the tarantuls perhaps
before I did. l turned my head 10
the right, and MaloneY, who stood
upright at the FIRE, was looking at the
sergeant with face as white as snow.
| turned to the left. and the two 9th.
err men who had not sought sleep
were also gazing in horror.
Not one Of rs dared move. Should
we do so the spider might spring away
in alarm, but the chances were that
he would bite before doing so. ! was
only foot away from the sergeant's
feet on q line with his face, and
could look into his eyes and read his
thoughts. He was game man. He
had been tested over and over, but
never in such a manner. How would
he stand the ordeal? The spider had
a curiosity regarding the brass but
tons on his jacket. He lowered over
the fifth one from the top for three
or four minutes. l read in the ser.
geant's eyes surprise, repugnance and
calculation. / carefully watched the
muscles of his face. He might as
well have been dead for all the move.
ment ! could detect.
Now the spider moved up button
now back two. Those shining me.
tails are a new sight to him. As he
moves down ! read relief in the ser.
geant's eyes. As he moves up I read
anxiety. Not finger moves. His
chest beats as regularly as the beats
OF a clock.
Now the spider moves up to the
second button from the top and shakes
himself nervously. He is right under
the sergeants clean shaved chin and
not over foot from his eyes. Now
fear comes to the mans eyes and !
see beads of perspiration start out on
his big red hands. He has been
hemmed in by Indians. chased by
hungry wolves. lost on the trackless
plains without losing his erve. 1t
is going now. The spider shakes itself
and the look of fear gives place to
one Of terror. We know and the ser.
geant knows that the insect is anger.
ed and that it's next move will be up
ward.
The coffee is boiling over into the
FIRE, and two or three of the horses
are looking at US in an interrogative
way, as if puzzled at our attitudes.
fairly ache to shout-to spring up
to do something; but dare not move
q finger.
Flash The great spider jumps
into the centre Of the handkerchieI
spread over the sergeant's face and
glides here and there in wonderment
The sergeant's eyes express hope. The
horrible thing may leap from his facs
to the earth. Mo- It crawls slowly
down to the lower edge Of the hand
kerchief, and the sergeant's eyes speak
horror and desperation, and his hand.
are wet as if plunged into bucket Of
wster. Now the spider crawls off the