The Roanoke times. [volume] (Roanoke, Va.) 1890-1895, 1891-07-21
THE TERRIBLE COBRA.
Indias venomous Serpent That Is So
Dreaded by tho Natives.


morning services and had taken our
seats at tho breakfast table. At tho
open door of our dining-room our Tclu-
gu school-tcachcr appeared. saving:
Sir, big cobra has just been chasing
frog through the whole length of our
front yerandn- lie struck ut it again
and again as it sprnng past the open
doors of your sitting-room. but the frog,
uttcring piercing shriclxs (as frog can
when pursued by scrpcnt) sprang
each time quick enough to eludc its
jaws, and together they rushed off the
end OF the veranda and the frog sprang
under 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, ''for while was look
ing to see what had become of tho frog
how he hnd got away-thc cobra dis
appeared among the 1ower-pots, and 1
cannot sec where he has gone" "IIe
must have a hole there close by the
vcranda somewhere" said l. Twill
you please go and watch until I come,
and sec if You can get sight of him again,
for he must be killed if he lives as nenr
the house as that"
don't go n-shooting on Sunday, but
went for my pistol then, for consid-
cred it decidedly n work of necessity
and mercy to put an end to tho danger
OF ourselves or our people being bitten
by that deadly cobra. Soon appearing
with revolver, which 1 kept for trav-
cling through the junglcs mt night.
wont tn q,,,-< 1,n l..
Two largo native flower-pots stood
about six feet from the end Of the We
randn, with each IL beautiful rose grow
ing i'll it, of which my wife was very
fond, and beside which she almost daily
stood picking off dead leaves or water
Ing and tending the roses soon dis
covered hole in the ground about rs
large as my wrist, partially concealed
by the grass that was growing right be-
tween the two 1ower-pots, which were
far enough apart for person to stand
between them. The hole went down
perpendicularly, growing larger rs it
went deeper. 1t took but moment to
bring hHnd-mirror and throw q re-
Election of the bright sun right down
into the hole. 1t revealed horizontal
chamber only foot or SO deep, and the
glistcning scales of cobra coiled I'D ut
rest
Taking piece of broken wagon-tiro
in my left hand to stop up the hole with
and placing the end Of it slantingly In
the hole, fired down into it. Not a
motion was seen. had missed. Turn
ing the tire up edgewisc I fired agnin-
What a squirming there was! The
cobra had been wounded lie struck
up viciously at the iron, which was
turned down fiat as soon Us had fired
to keep him from darting out at u.s. I
turned the iron edgewise and fred again
and again When had unloaded the
sixth barrel I let him strike his head
out and caught 1t against the side with
the iron tire. had brought with me q
pair of large hedge-shears With these
caught hold of his protruding neck
and with stout pull with both hands
pulled him out and gave him q firt out
into the compound. What scattering
there was of men, women, and children!
My attention had been so taken up by
the snake that had not noticed what
big crowd had gathered around How
they screamed md ran! for they did not
know that the grip Of tho shears had
dislocated the fellows neck, and seeing
full-sized cobra flying out toward
them they seemed TO think no was
springing at them.
AS l had grasped the head Of the CO.
bra with the shears I had given the
wagon-tire 80 the teacher, asking him
to insert tho end again instantly that
drew the cobra out, for where one CO.
bra is you will usually find second.
came back and threw the rays Of the
sun in again. Yes, there were bright
cobra's scales and another cobra wrig-
Cling. Loading my pistol again 1 re-
pcated the firing, hoping that he would
strike his head out, so that I could
catch his head also. Squirm and strike
as he did his head did not come out Of
the hole until had fired many times;
but 1t finally came and secured him
also. On drawing him out and exam
lining 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 O splendid
fight We laid tho cobras out on the
vcranda and measured 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 OF months Though the CO.
bra 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.
A Handy Carriage.