Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1891-05-15
RATTLESNA AXE JIM.
How He Got His Name-A Story of a
Thrilling Adventure in California.

Thrilling Adventure in California.
The oddity of his name struck me Af-
ter supper | ventured to inquire how he
came to be called RattIesnake Jim.
why" he cried, 'didn't you ever hear
how | got that name? ! thought every
body knew about tn IT,
He evidently felt chagrined | hasten
ed to explain that was a stranger in the
state, and had just come up to this little
mountain valley on fishing excursion.
This at once Modified him, and he ex-
planned the origin of his name as follows
Bob McGil and | were down on the
Middle Feather one summer, prospecting
and hunting We killed little game,
caught plenty of fish, had lots of hard
climbing, but did not find claim thai
was worth a cent.
The river cano1 is very deep, and the
sides are almost solid rock. 1t is the hot
test place in California.
''One day we came to queer spot and
stopped to examine it. 1t looked like =
big stone cup turned upside down in ii
stone saucer. The rock was lava and full
of cracks and tissues. In three sides the
cup was pretty steep, Jut on the fourth
was little narrow place to walk up. We
crossed the st, ne saucer and climbed the
knob or cup.
''Jest as we got to the top, Bob says,
look thar, and p'inted right down on the
other side. Three big rattlesnakes were
cOiled up in the sun. | always did hate a
RATHER, so poked my gun over the edge of
the rock and let drive. Right thar / made
a mistake. We ought to have skipped cut
and left them snakes asleep. The moment
| oF FC- | Onl,y kilIa1
twisted and ratified, and coiled up ready
to fight If they had been the only ones
we would have laughed, but you see that
old rock basin was plum full of the plzen
critters. We was right in the middle of a
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 was
lucky for us that the little trail was the
only place whar they could reach the top
of the rock.
We kept still a minute, thinking maybe
they would go back, but it was no use.
They were sp lin for fight, and seemed
to know they had us in box. They could
see us right above 'enl, ynd that riled 'em
madder than yaler jackets.
They didn't wait more than a minute
or two ill they started up that little trail.
Just how many of the shakes there were
have no idea. | reckoned about thous-
aud, bus Bob always stuck to it thar were
a round million.
Our guns were double barreled breech-
leaders. and most of cur cartridges were
filed with buckshot The snakes were so
thick that we killed from one to half d
dozen at each fire. We managed FOR a
time to keep the little trail clear but they
kept a coming faster and faster. We
killed 'em by the 5ushel, and if we could
have made the pizen things into lie and
sold it at 5 cents a gallon, we could have
mode a pile of money.
I'VE were nightly scared for fear they
would find way up through the big rock
itself, and kept watch all the time. If
our cartridges held out long enough we
could stand e M off. but we had to shoot
lively, and they would soon run US short.
The whole rocky bottom was plum full of
them wriggling, rafting, sIuirming
snakes.
We were shaky in our knees, for the
smell of them snakes made us sick. Reck
on you think we ware scared. Bob was
no slouch at fighting anything in the
woods; and stranger, / never turn back
from the biggest 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. 1t was a desperate
case, but we had big, thick boots on, and
might pet 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 them
as clubs Then we walked down the rock
a little bit, and looked down among the
snakes riggIed and twisted, coiled up and
and ratified till the air fairly whizzed.
"Thar is many a thing in the woods
that sounds like the rattle of a snake.
Sometimes it's weed, sometimes it's a
leaf, it may be little stick, or some dry
seeds in dry pod. You jump for min,
ute, and tben 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. Thar is not beast nor
bird but what will get oat of the way as
quick as a man.
Just as we shut our teeth and grasped
our gun for start, Bob caught me by the
arm and cried. Wait a bit Then be ran to
the top of the rock and yelled, Come
here. Give me hist, says he. as reached
him 4 think | can reach that oak
| limb
The limb of a high oak came down
over the top of the rock, and this Bob
could jest reach by my holding him up as
| high as could. He grabbed the limb and
clined up little, and that brought it
| down so could get hold on IL
I'VE were none too quick, for the snakes
were crawling up mighty lively, and 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 NJ
! time and struck off to the mountain We
never stopped until we reached the
Mountain Spring HomA, where we got a
drink of old rye for fear we might of beer
bit
81 reckon them guns and blankets ars
down there yet, for we never went bach
| for 'em. Ii were a mighty close call for
| Us, stranger; and that was how theJ
| come to call me Rattlesnake Jim -