The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-05-20
A SNAKE STORY.
The Relation that Exists Between
Foxes and Blscksnakes.
From the Neto York Sun.

RO4cS du0 DlbCk5ndk6S.
From the Neio York Sun.
HUNTINGDON, Pa, May Hiram Ross,
the famous hunter aud trapper OF the Bear
Meadows, who died recently, was an inter
esting and remarkable character. He was
a real backwoodsman in the old-fashioned
sense, q quaint, untutored naturalist, a
regular "old SETTLER" His log cabin, built
among the rockiest and most inaccessible
fastness Of Stone Mountain, where Hunt
ingdon, Center and Mitfin counties come
together, was treasury of odd souvenirs
and hunters relics. A big jar full of rat
tlesnakes' rattles stood on the rude
mantel over the wide fireplace (:
bearskins covered the floor, deer
antlers were on the walls and a thousand
queer traps and knicknacks, mementoes of
the chase, besides boxes and cages contain
ing living pets, Uttered the interior. There
ne lived in peace and quiet, enjoying an
ideal hunters life, with few wants and in
nocent tastes fishing at will in the Stand
ing Stone creek, which fairly swarmed
with trout, and hunting in the surrounding
wilderness dear, bear, wild cats, rabbits,
turkeys and other game.
Not long ago Hiram trapped two live
foxes, male and a female, fully grown,
and confined them as pets in an iron cage OF
his own construction. The pair soon be-
came reconciled to their captivity aud &C
quired a strong mutual affection for each
other and a marked fondness for Hiram.
The latter kept them well supplied with
birds from the neighboring woods, and with
fruits, nuts, aud occasional rations of meat
They seemed to be perfectly satisfied, but
Hiram nevertheless constantly sought out
new delicacies for them. Early in April
last while on ramble on the noun
tain. Hiram surprised a big blaoksnake
cuTled up on top of fiat boulder, baking
in the sunshine. The thought struck him
that maybe his pets might relish a taste OF
live blacksnake. He had often speculated
on the relation supposed to exist between
foxes and snakes, and here was chance TO
experiment, 80, picking up forked stick,
he approached the boulder, and, with a
dexterious turn of the right hand, pinned
the blacksnake down by placing the forked
stick over it close behind the head, while
with his left hand he seized the reptile by
the back before it could recover from
its surprise, and deity poked 1t into
his game pouch, buokling down the
cover tightly to secure his prisoner.
When at home he dropped the writhing
snake into the foxes cage and waited to see
what they would do. Instantly their bright
| eyes sparkled with delight, and their volu-
minous brushes vibrated aloft with
great animation. The male fox, al
though he had shown an astonishing
| nying himself many dainty morsels In her
| favor at feeding time. forgot himself and
| sprang like a flash at tho snake, Selling it
close behind the head. At almost the same
instant the female spraug likewise, with the
same intent, but she was a moment too late
and she missed her mark. Instead Of
| striking the snake she gave her mate a sharp
bite on the left side Of the jaw, inflicting a
painful wound, from which the blood
| spurted profuseiy, and starting family
| war.
With howl of pain the male dropped
| the snake and turned to punish his srring
| spouse. The spouse, however, was plucky,
and showed her spirited resentment by snap
| ping at him furiously. The fur flew in little
| tufts, and vicious squeals and discordant
| yells rent the air. Over and over they
rolled, exactly as dogs do in deadly combat,
while the blacksnake despite its broken
| back, fastened to take advantage of the
opportunity Of escape by wriggling out be-
| tween the bars of the cage. Old Hiram,
meantime, looked on in childish glee and
Rugged his fat sides with laughter. In a
| few minutes, however, it seemed to occur to
both the foxes that they were wasting time,
for they suspended hostilities and looked
eagerly about IN search of the snake. 1t had
succeeded in getting all of its body out OF
the cage except the tip of its tail.
The male spied it, and, seizing the retreat
ing tail in his mouth, whipped the reptile
back into the cage again. The next mo-
ment the female had snapped upJn the
head, and then both foxes began to pull for
dear life in opposite directions. The body
of the snake stretched out marvelously, but
it had to give way to the strain somewhere
| and it parted about one>third way from the
tail. The male fox turned TO one corner of
the cage with his smaller portion, while the
female, dreading lest she might be cheated
by her partner out Of her share, proceeded
with frantic haste to dispatch the remain
| ing two-thirds before he could finish his
She succeeded, and in a very short time the
entire snake, head, tail, and scales, every
bit of skin and every shred Of flesh, had
to his satisfaction the relations between
blacksnakes and foxes.