The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1892-11-10


"wa'al, he got ter the station 20 mile from
the ranch, an bein' e8 thar war way fur
him ter git out right of, they not 'spectin' him
tibet day he concluded ter foot il. The sun
war bilin' an the desert war hotter'n the seven
hinges.
"Wa'al. he got mighty near used up by the
time he got in sight o. the ranch. So he laid
daown in the shade o some rocks ter cool off an
rest. While he war lynn thar a RATHER nippsd
him on the leg. He jumped mp skeered nearly
ter death an made Off ter the ranch, gittin' thar
in the nick O. time. They dosed him with
whisky an hs come out all right, but kinder
cracked like He vowed tibet thar war lot o.
the venom left in him an tibet he couldn't ever
git shet of it.
"Arter his uncle died an all his property
war turned over ter Jon than, he went mOpin'
aroun' actin queer. His spite agin ratters he'd
riz so doggoned high ez ter make him half wild
on the subec'. He killed off all the sarpints
on his uncle's place, buntin' 'em out o. their
holes when he couldn't git at EN- no other way.
The more o the rattlers he killed the wilder
he got. He'd go roun' the kentry in rocky
places, whar thar war gobs an ssthers on 'ern,
an he'd clean 'em out with shot-guns. bumbs.
traps, er any other 'tasnal way he could think
on.
"That air is as much o. the story ez heerd
from Simpson, but made bold ter Ak Jon'tha
when he come back tibet evenin' how many
ratters he'd laid out tibet day. He looked at
me in a Gurus kinder way, an said he didn't
keer ter discuss the subjec'. But stuck ter
him-told him tibet knoved . place war the
snakes war 80 thick you'd think the groun' war
walkin' off when ye seed EN- crawlin'. He
he'd ben mighty quiet an cool ontil he heerd
this, but now his ears begin ter stick up an
his eyes to bulge out so ye could aknocked
'em off with stick"
"' Whar is tibet air placs2' he axed.
Phi TEX ye ter it ter.morrer,' says ], Ell
yer wanter go long
"'All right says he, an his eyes glistened
kind strange-like.
"Wa'al, we started fur RattIesnake Gulch
next day. Jon'than he'd hull gunny-b bag full
o. some kinder stuff tibet he war mighty keer-
full Oh. When / went closter it he said, Look
out, thar, it's DANGEROUS so / didn't fool with
it any, ye kin beteher life. When we got up
inter the kenyon l introjooced Hank burden
T. my new friend, Hank stuck out tibet slim
hand O his'n, but the ke-'starminator eyed
him ighty spicious-like an durn skeery, an
when he tux a-holt O his hand he dropped it
mighty suddint.
g. It's jes' like touchin' o rattlesnake,' he
whispered ter me, his eyes bIazin' fire. He
looked ez eff he could a-wiped out the man.
snake then an thar.
we went on up the gulch, Hank eyein' us
mighty distrustful-like from his cabin door, an
purity soon We come to the place overlookin'
the ledge. 1t war alive with rattlers JONI
than opened his bag an tux out some queer
shaped things, keerfully packed in little boxes,
with sawdust all 'roun 'em. They wsrn't
much bigger'n yer fist, but when he throwed
one on 'em down among them air snakes, thar
war tremeDjus 'splosion an gineral scattera-
tion O. snakemea When We looked daown
thar we saw space bout half ez big ez this
ERE keer, only round.like, tibet he'd been sweep
ota ~ hr,ff loff
o. bout so ssrpints strewin' the ground. The
snake colony war TUX by s'priss tibet time, sure
fur sarsin. Them tibet was still live-an' thar
was plenty o. them-was wild. They dashed
their tails an set up the horribest rattlin tibet
l ever heerd.
"Wa'sl, Jon'than three win four or five o.
them air eombustifyin' things o. his'n an he
raised Cain with them air rattlers. Them tibet
was not knocked ter Kingdom Come je5'
crawled inter their holes. But my pardner in
the KILN, Lord, how his eyes blazed when he
seed 'em chawed up by the bumbshellsi
$50 An the seed o. the woman shell bruise the
sarpints head' he said solemn-like. each time
he threw shell. y war tarrible bruisin',
an no mistake.
when we he'd cleaned off the ledge an
went erway, We passed by Hanks cabin, an
the critter come out an axed US wot the firm
war all erbout He had heerd the shells
a-'splodin' an wondered wot it meant.
We didn't say much, cause told Jon'than
we'd better not make him mad, tellin' him
we'd ben a-killin' off his pets. The man-snaks
looked awful look at Jon'than, seemin' ter
suspec' suthin', an Jon'than he chung ter me
jes like child ter its nanny, bein' powerful
'fraid on him. We hurried erway an went
daown ter the hotel.
Fur some reason or other Hank came
daown ter town hisself tibet evenin' We was
sittin afore Old Redliek's fireplace, Jon'than
kinder haiEdozin', when Hank opened the
door an crawled quietly in, as he allus did. l
never seed him lookin' so blamed snakey afore
His eyes glittered an his neck stretched up an
daown. He war comm towards Jon'than from
behind. Jon'thsn he begin ter shiver, 'thout
ssemin' ter know any cause fur shiverin, an
his eyes opened with q queer, dazed look in
'em. When he seed the man-snake, which
war still movin' ez quiet ez mouse, he begin
ter shiver wusser'n ever, an then ter scream
"'Take it away! Take it away Kill it'll
"This made Hank madden N hops an
reckon he showed his teeth, fur Jon'than KEEP
on scrsamin' fur some leetle time an fn'ly run
out O. the room. Then Hank laughed, an all
the rest on Us laughed, but 'twar kinder CHASTITY
laughin'.
at war sev'ral days afors Jon'than 'ud go
near Rattesnake Gulch agin, he war 30 'fraid
o. Hank; but he war so 'tarnal bent on snake
KILN tibet he did go agin, though it 'ud a-ben
He wouldn't go onless went eriong. an ez he
he'd paid me so well las time, / didn't buck
agin goin'.
"Wa'al, we went up ter pint nearer the
ledge this time, an kinder side on it, KILN
half a dozen rattlers with our sticks afore we
got thar. Mebbe ye think Pm lynn, Cap, but I
swa'r eff thet air ledge warn't kiversd thieksr'n
ever with sarpints, spite on US KILN thousands
on 'em a few days afore. Jes' as Mr. Jon'than
war onwrappin' the fust bum bsheli, who should
60 a-scootin' long the trail afore US but Hank
burden. He didn't see US. an we KEEP outer
sight. lie went right erlong. an soon he war
in the midst o them snakes. He'd it a-ben any
body else they'd ben erbout 5000 'Q's' thar
n lessn no time, but they didn't curl up ter
strike at him. They jes' lay ez quiet ever.
"He stood in the middle O the ledge an begin
a-lettin' out some on tibet air purrin an hissia
snake langwidge o his'n, an they ali seemed ez
happy ez so many children at play. Hank
pick ed up big Teller. nigh onter five foot long,
an held his hand on his neck while the dis.
gustin' critter wound hisseif aroun' his arm.
Bimeby the snake-man turned aroun' SOS
could see his face an / swa'r Of it hedn't tux
on the 'spressiou o. a rattler's to T.
"Wa'al, Jon than war most broken up by the
sight, but he managed ter keep inside his skin
until tibet man Hank got three o. them air rep
tyles up in his arms, an they war cuddlin'
their heads up ter his face. Then Jou'than's
eyes shot fire an he raised his hand ter throw
enc o. them air bumbshells at Hank head,
but grabbed holt on him an KEEP him from
don' it,