The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1891-07-08
RATTLESNAKE JIM.
How He Got His Name-A Story OF a
Thrilling Adventure in California.


Jim.
Why" he cried, ''didn't you ever
hear how I got that nameP l thought
everybody knew about that"
He evidently felt chagrined. has
tened to explain that was stranger
In the State, and had just come up to
this mountain valley on fishing expe-
dition. This at once Modified him,
and after whisky straight and no
water" at my expense, he explained
the origin of his name as follows:
bob McGill and | were down on
the Middle Feather one summer, pros
pecting and hunting. We killed lit
tie game, caught plenty of fish, had
lots of hard climbing, but did not find
claim that was worth cent.
THE river canon is very deep, and
the sides are almost solid rock. 1t is
the hottest place in all California.
"One day we came to queer spot
and stopped to examine it. 1t looked
like big stone cup turned upside
down in stone saucer. The rock was
lava and full of cracks and fissures. In
three sides the cup was pretty steep,
but on the fourth was a little narrow
place to walk up. We crossed the
stone saucer and climbed the knob or
cup.
''Jest as we got to the top, Bob says,
Look thar and pinted right down on
the other side. Three big rattlesnakes
| were coiled up in the sun. I always
did hate rattler, so l poked my gun
over the edge of the rock and let drive.
Right thar 1 made mistake. We
ought to have skipped out and let
them snakes sleep. The moment |
| fired, two of them, for / only killed
one, twisted and ratified, and coiled up
ready to fight. If they had been the
only ones we would have laughed, but
you see the old rock basin was plum
full of the pizen critters. We were
| right in the middle of a rattlesnakes'
den. Those two made their rattles
| fairly whiz, till every snake in the place
was crawling out of the cracks in the
rock. If you hear me tell it, we were
| in fix We could not run, and thar
were too many snakes to fight. 1t
were lucky for us that the little trail
was the only place whar they could
reach the top of the rock.
| 1--WE kept still a minute, thinking
maybe they would go back, but it was
no use. They were spilin' for fight,
and seemed to know they had US in
box. They could see us right above
'em, and that riled 'em madder than
yeller jackets.
.'They didn't wait more than min
ute or two till they started up that lit
tie trail. just how many of the blamed
snakes thar were / have no idea. l
reckoned about thousand, but Bob
| always stuck to it thar were round
million.
| Our guns were double barreled
breech-loaders. and most of our car
| tridges were filled with buckshot. The
snakes were so thick that we killed
from one to half a dozen at each
fire. We managed for time to keep
the little trail clear, but they kept a
coming faster and faster. We killed
'em by the bushel, and if we could
have made the pizen things into lie and
sold it at 5 cents gallon, we could
have made pile of money.
| ''We were nightly scared for fear
they would find way up through the
big rock, itself, and kept watch all the
time. If our cartridges hold out
long enough we could stand 'em off,
but we had to shoot lively, and they
would soon run short. The whole
rocky bottom was plum full of them
wriggling, rattling, squirming snakes.
We didn't have a drop of anti-snake
bite with US. Had drank it all up long
before. What was worse, it was a
good five miles up the mountain to the
nearest place whar any could be got.
1--WE were shaky in our. knees, for
the smell of them snakes made US
sick. Reckon you think we were
scared. Bob was no slouch at fight
ing anything in the woods; and, stran-
ger, never turned back from the big.
gest grizzly in the mountains; but
right then we would have been mighty
glad to have got away.
Our cartridges were running low.
We made up our minds that we would
have to take chances of running right
across that lot of pizen rattlers. It
was desperate case, but we had big
thick boots on, and might get through.
bob gave a groan when the last
shot went We've got to chance it
| now,' said he.
I'VE grabbed our guns so as to use
the rock little bit, aud looked down
among the snakes. tell you. stranger
it were like going right down into hell.
The snakes wriggled and twisted, coiled
up and ratified till the air fairly whiz-
zed.
Thar is many thing in the woods
that sounds like the rattle of snake.
Sometimes it's a leaf. it may be little
stick, or some dry seeds in small pod.
You jump for a minute, and then
laugh to think how easy you got sold.
But when you hear a genuine rattle
from snake that is mad you will
never mistake it. 1t will come Eearer
waking dead man than a shock of
bottled lighting. Thar is not beast
nor bird but will get out of the way
as quick as a man.
'Just as we shut our teeth and gripped
our guns for a start, Bob caught me
| Then he run to the top of the rock and
yelled, Come here. Give me hist, )
says he, as reached him. L think l
can reach that oak limb
The limb of a big oak came down
could just reach by my holding him up
limb and climbed up little. and that
brought it down so could get hold
on it.
I'VE were none too quick. for the
blamed snakes were crawling. up
mighty lively, and l had to kick one
of 'em away from me as swung off
on the limb. We climbed that limb
and got down the tree in less than no
time, and struck off up the mountain.
We never stopped till we reached the
Mountain Spring Home, whar we got
a drink of old rye, for fear we might
have been bit.
Il reckon them guns and blankets
are down thar yet, for we never went
back for 'em. 1t was mighty close
call for us. stranger; and that was how
they come to call me Rattlesnake Jim. u