Waterbury evening Democrat., 1891-05-15
UMcoMFoRTABLE cosRAs.
Aifiing Them on Sunday a Work of Ne- a cessity in India.

cessity in India.
 It was hot Sunday morning in India, without cloud in the brazen skies. We had just come home from early morning services and had taken our seats at the breakfast table. At the open door of our dining room our Telugu school teacher appeared, saying: ''Sir, big cobra has been chasing a frog through the whole length of our front veranda. He struck at it again and again as it sprang past the open doors of our sitting room, but the frog, utter ing piercing shrieks (as a frog can when pursued by serpent), sprang each time quick enough to elude it's jaws, and to- gether they rushed off the end of the veranda and the frog sprang under a box that is standing there, too near down upon the hard floor for the big cobra to get under, and so escaped
 'Well," said I, ''where is the cobra now?"
 ''That is just what don't know," said he, flor while was looking to see what had become of the frog-hoN he had got away-the cobra disappeared among the flower pots, and I can not see where he has gone." ''E5c must have hole there close by tho vcranda somewhere" said I. "Will you please go and watch until I come, and soo il you can get sight of him again, for hc must be killed if he lives as 1iclr the house as that.'
 don't go-a-shooting on Sun Cay, but went for my pistol then, for I c0nsid cred it decidedly work of necessity and mercy to put an end to tl>e GcuGCr of ourselves or our people being tlt'c@ by that deadly cobra. Soon appc .i ii.} with revolver, which I kept t3r t'a.,-. cling through the jungles at 7..s...., ] went to hunting for the cobra hn;e.
 Two large native fiower-pots Siool about six feet from tho end cf the yer anda, with each beautiful r~5c grow. ing in it, of which my wife was very fond, and beside which she almost daily stood picking off dead leaves CT water ing and tending the roses. soon dis, covered a hole in tho ground about as large as my wrist, partially concealed by the grass that was grow 3ng right be- tween the two fowcr-pots, which were far enough apart for q person 10 stand between them. The hClc went down perpendicularly, growing larger as il went deeper. It took but a moment tc tIl(l GIlION JIG re- flection of the bright sun right e,o,,n in to the hole. It revealed |; | Iori1ontal chamber only foot or so tcer, and the glistening scales of q cobra cciicl I'D ct rest.
 Taking a piece of broken wagon tir2 in my left hand to stop up .!:c hole with, and placing tic end O. it slant ingly in the hole, I fired down into it. Not a motion was seen. l hal missed Turning the tire up Cj%owisc, I fred again. What a squirrlinG, there was! The cobra had been wounded. He struck up viciously at tl:c i"0r, which was turned down fiat Hs som IS lad fired to keep him from G!rt ,,l-c out at tls. l turned the iron odTaW's2 ard fired again and again. Whrn ! l?a1 c'1!0n led the sixth barrel I let 7,il &."i!.a li; head out and caught it against :hc side with the iron tire. l h7l l'rt"g1't with me pair of large heG|e shear. Tiith these I caught hold ci n-, IT, ~vE:u2 neck, and with stout l-:;!i T':7' ' -, hands pulled him out ull Elvr h;,1! 9 fiirt out into the comp2G:l,i.
 What a scattering thoro v. ~f '.cn. women and children! ' r. alt.'r.t:>'l hai7 been so taken up by t Q sra t',4i had not noticed whGt big -:o,,d had gathered around. How ,l}cy s2~ '2mad and ran! for they did not l.loy i..-. the grip of the shears 7lad disl0c.t4.i the fellows neck, and, seeing Q Iull-si%ctl cobra flying out toward them, they seemed to think he was springing at them.
 As I had srasped the head of the cobra with the shears l had given the wagon tire to the teacher, asking him to insert the end again instantly that I drew the cobra out, for where one cobra is you will usually find second. I came back and threw the rays of the sun in again. Yes, there were bright cobra's scales and another cobra wrig- gling. Loading my pistol again, I re- peated the firing, hoping that he would strike his head out, so that could catch his head also.
 Squirm and strike as he did his head did not come out of the hole till I had fired many times; but it finally calm, and I secured him also. On drawing him out and examining him closely we found fourteen pistol ball holes through his body, and still there was fight in him. Any three of the wounds would have proved fatal in time, but he died making splendid fight. We laid the cobras out on the veranda and meas ured them. One of them measured five feet eleven inches and the other six feet and two inches, than which one rarely finds cobra larger. Their hide showed that they had evidently been living there right among the flower pots that were tended daily and within six feet of our veranda and within twelve feet of my study door for weeks or months. Though the cobra is the deadliest serpent known, and thousands of persons die of their bite yearly in India, no one in our mission has ever been harmed by one. Christian Intelligencer.
 A Very Good Definition.
 A little New York boy, Tommy Knickerbocber, whose father is promi- nent club man, was studying his lesson