Fisherman & farmer. [volume] (Edenton, N.C.) 1887-19??, 1889-04-26

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amity, but Mendoza. with shrug of his
shoulders, and contortion of his dark
face, turned on his heel and walked
away.
That night he and Jose held long
conversation, which was carried on in a
low tone of voice, but although they
looked fire iuently toward the Colonel
and exchanged significant shrugs, he did
not dream that they were plotting
treachery.
The next morning the Colonel and Jose
started, as usual, for a short expedition
in the forest.
1t was feast day with the Indians,
and they were making merry in the
camp.
Jose carried a small Ratchet for mark
ing the trees, and over his shoulder was
slung haversack, containing lunch.
The Colonel walked in advance, armed
only with a small rifle.
By noon they were ten miles from the
camp, and further down the bayou than
they had ever been before
When they stopped for luncheon near
a small spring, Jose informed his patron
that they were only few miles distant
from the extensive coffee and indigo
plantation of General Antonio De Silva,
who controlled leagues Of forest land IN
the vicinity, and from whom the Ameri-
can mahogany merchants had purchased
the logging right.
After lunch the Colonel lighted his
pipe, and leaned his back against a
great tree trunk to enjoy an after dinner
smoke.
Near by was a clump Of low bushes,
bearing yellowish berry, and be asked
Jose if they were good to eat.
Jose examined them, and Immediately
declared that they were excellent.
81 have often eaten them down to-
ward the coast, senOr," he said, "but |
have never seen any before so far in the
interior.
He tasted the berries, pronounced
them delicious, but somewhat different
in flavor from them growing near the
the coast, and picked some for the Col
onel, of which the latter ate literally,
without any suspicion of evil effects,
finding them, as Jose had declared, of
most delicious iavor, and IN Seste some
thing like the raspberry.
He did notice that Jose ate only
couple, nor did he see the ldok of Gun
ming eXultation on the Indians face.
Ten minutes after eating the first
berry, the Colonel felt strangely exhiler-
ated, and burst out into a rollickly col
lege song with the boisterous hilarlty of
one intoxicated with absinthe.
His whole nervous system. even to his
fnger-tips, tingled with pleasing excite
ment. He had a vague recollection of
making a resolve to check his ludricous
outOurst; Of seeing Jose glide away into
the forest with his rife over his shoulder,
and look of malignant hatred on his
swarthy face; of struggling to his feet
and calling to the Indian to come back;
and then lie rolled upon the ground and
all became blank.
Not until the following day did con-
sciousness begin to slowly assert itself
He then awOke. with horrible sensation
Of helplessness.
The lower half Of his body was
numbed and paralyzed by a terrible
gradually constructing power from all
directions.
His limbs appeared dead, and all the
blood forced out of them into the upper
part of his body. His eyes seemed start
ing from their sockets; there was a sing
ing In his ears, and he breathed with
great difficulty.
His throat was hot and dry, and he
was consumed with raging thirst.
He was lying face downward, and hay
ing determined to throw off the stupor,
he raised his hands to his head.
Instantly he was dragged ba Inward
several feet along the ground.
Horrifed a. bewildered, he made a
frantic effort. Used himself on his ell
bows and looked about him.
He was half engu!fed in the throat of
a monster boa
The reptile had begun to swallow him
without first crushing him within its
coils, as is usually the case.
When the serpent moved, an indescrib-
ably sickening odor arose, and almost
stupefed the imprisoned man.
Maddened at the loathsome prospect,
the Colonel gave Mortified scream of
agony, and clutching franticaly at the
ground, struggled to release himself from
the deadly embrace Of the serpent's
throat.
But the teeth of his devourer were
fastened in his buckskin coat, and held
him like pair of hungry nippers, while
the horrible suction pump below was
worked with renewed energy.
The Colonel ceased his struggles, and
looked about anXiously for Jose.
"What has become of him? Was he,
too, being de7oured, or was he already
Destroyed"
While he was puzzling over these
speculations, he suddenly remembered
that just before consciousness left him,
the Indian had disappeared in the forest,
and then, like flash, he recollected the
fellows conference with Mendoza, and