The Forest Republican. [volume] (Tionesta, Pa.) 1869-1952, 1889-05-08

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, lose 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 he asked
Jose If they were good to eat.
Jose examined them, aud Immediately
declared that they were excellent.
81 have often eaten them down to
ward the coast, senor," he said, "but l
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 flavor, and in taste some
thing like the raspberry.
He did notice that Jose ate only
couple, nor did he see the look of Gun
ming exultation on the Indians face.
Ten minutes after eating the first
berry, the Colonel felt strangely exhiler-
a.ed, and burst out into rollickly col
lege song with the boisterous hilarity of
one intoxicated with absiuthe.
His whole nervous system, even to his
finger-tips, tingled with pleasing excite
meut. lie had a vague recollection of
making a resolve to check his ludricous
outburst; of seeing Jose glide away into
the forest with his rifle 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 he rolled upon the ground and
all became blank.
Not until the following day did con-
sciousness begin to slowly assert itself.
He then awo&e, with horrible sensation
of helplessness.
The lower half of his body was
numbed and paralyzed by 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 cQklmed with a raging thirst.
HeWas lying face downward, and hav-
ing determined to throw off the stupor,
he raised his hands to his head.
Instantly he was dragged ba 2kward
several feet along the ground.
Horrifed and bewildered, he made
frantic effort, raised himself on his ell.
bows and looked about him.
lie was half engulfed in the throat Of
a monster boa-constrictor.
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.
Maddeued at ;he loathsome prospect,
the Colonel gave n Mortified scream of
agony, and clutching frantically 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 a 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 devoured, 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
he realized that he had been left to
perish.
At the terrible thought, he made an
other effort to escape.
The movement disturbed the boa, aud
again 1t dragged him backward two or
three feet, and again the constructing
suction from below began.
SO long rs he kept perfectly quiet the
serpent seemed content to let matters
take their course, aud to remain in a
semi-comatose condition.
Hours passed, that the horror of his
position seemed to lengthen into days.
lie put down his left hand, to feel the
taut rim of the boa constructors Jaws.
They were three inches higher up his
body than when he first regained con
sciousness.
The excitement through which he had
passed had exhausted his emotions, but
this dire discovery awakened them.
He tried to form some plan of putting
an end to his existence, but his brain was
no longer equal to the concentration of a
definite idea. He was beyond all power
of action.
Once he fanced that he heard the cry
of some animal or human being near by,
but he was too far gone to pay much at
tention.
At last all seemed to be over with him.
1t was as though the darkness of night
had gradually closed over him, the roar
ing noise in his cars continued for awhile
and then all was silent
He had sunk into the unconsciousness
Of complete exhaustion.
] - remembered no more,n said the
/ Colonel, 'until l came to my senses
again, and found myself lying On luXu,
rlous bed, in cool, pleasant room"
"Ihe first face that / saw as l opened
my eyes, was that of the lady who after,