San Saba County news. [volume] (San Saba, Tex.) 1874-19??, 1892-11-04

/ but il an instant il went out like the
others had done But that short
period of time was enough.
Looking down on us from a hole in
the wall. with one-half Of his glisten-
ing and spotted body out was a
serpent OF the constructor species
large. terrible, and loathsome The
iorked tongue darted in and out with
in few feet OF our heads and the
/ little eyes shone like diamonds in
their malignant glee.
saw that the snake was banded
with a gold band. which cncircled the
neck Just back OF the head. thus fix
/ ing the question OF ownership. for
the old nuwah had banded every
living thing in his palace; why not
/ the Shiny guard OF the treasure?
! When Casey saw the serpent he
gave one mccarthy shrek and stag
/ gered down the wall leaving me- l
stood thore with weakened limbs and
cold sweat on my forehead l felt
as 1t were. the hot fetid breath of the
reptile on my cheeks and when l
recoiled as an act Of self-preservation.
l thought / was falling down into
some bottomless pit.
Not sound had followed Casey's
shrek felt for another match. in
I tending in a moment OF forced cour-
ago to send n bullet through the men
acing head. but found nothing OF the
kind l crept down the wall to a
corner stopped and picked up some
thing at my feet only to drop it for
it was a lizard. which stung me ere I
let it go.
All at once the voice OF Casey rang
out calling on God to help him
The sounds fro every drop OF
blood in my veins and l started over
10 where he was TO quiet him when I
recoiled. for ! heard the breaking OF
bones and knew that the serpent had
the poor fellow in the fatal coils,
Desperation at last brought action
10 my nerves and senses. ! resolved
TO face the terror to take the initf-
tive and thus armed I crept down
the wall with one hand thrown cut
and in the other one OF the short but
razor-edged and bediamonded knives
which had picked up at my feet
Where was the slayer OF poor
Casey?
Seeing nothing in that gloom. I
crept on and on until all Mt once my
hand came in contact with something
horribly smooth. 1t was the body OF
the boa!
My hand could not span the girth
of that terrible form but ] believed
from the sudden wriggliug that l had
touched il near the head. In fact
when | moved my hand again it came
in contact with the gold necklace. and
then. with the fury OF demon despair
and revenge l hacked away with the
Indian knife.
l felt that blade go through flesh
and bone with the keenness Of Il kris.
With my blood at fever heat and my
nostrils filled with the sufTocating
odor which emanated from the ser
pent. did not stop for a second. but
cut away for life.
felt that everything depended on
what | was at and worked that knife
with all my might feeling tho folds
give way and the gold band at last
fell to the floor with "A ring.
knew from the contortions of the
huge body that the head was of. and
staggering back with a gasp I fell
against the wall.
When ] came back 10 life l felt
some air on my cheek. and then
streak OF light which came from
certain spot showed me the interior
OF the place looked about me an
instant and then shut my eyes
in one corner lay the crushed body
OF Casey. and across the floor reach
ing from wall 10 wall. stretched the
spotted length Of the terror of the
nuwab's treasure-house. the severed
head three feet from the trunk
My first thought was escape The
light came from the hole in the wall
and drew myself up TO it squeezed
my body through and dropped on tbs
other side.
There l found n door leading
knew not whittier but ! did not stop
10 ask ! threaded the corridor
passed up 10 the sunlight in the NJ
wab's palace. and fell headlong. IN
conscious on the street. My escape
from the palace was miraculous aud
for three months the surgeon had a
mad patient but after the plundering
of the palace by the enraged soldiers
in return for the massacre Of Gavin
pore. / came back 10 reason, and
again took my place in the ranks.
i l. -,
duced to speak OF the adventure in
the subterranean chamber The very
horror of it seemed 10 CONCEAL my
blood when / required To il and those
who afterward went down 10 the
chambers found no jewels at all but
on the floor OF the scene OF our foolish
raid they discovered the bones of
Casey and near by the long skeleton
of the uuwab's sentry.
1t was supposed that those left in
charge OF the palace had removed tn
treasures as other treasures were re-
moved in a mysterious manner during
the rebellion. and that the rich Jewels
and regalia Of the old Guwab went to
adorn the palace OF some young
raJah-
1 am quite sure that if all the
treasure had been poured out at my
feet would have taken nothing but
the knife which saved me from the
serpent In my haste to escape from
that demon chamber l carried of
nothing but the terror OF 1t a terror
which will never leave me and which
comes back with terrible distinctness
every anniversary of that night in the
nuwabs treasure-house- - National
Tribune
Foolish ConvIcts.
No little excitement was created in
one OF the London metropolitan police
courts the other DAY by the disgrace
full behavior of man who. on being
sentenced TO three months imprison-
ment for swindling looked at the
judges for a moment and then
shouted at the top OF his voice: You
are a set Of donkeysr' Then and
there he was condemned to an addi- |
tional two years imprisonment for