Democratic messenger., 1893-12-16
STUNG BY SERPENTS.
Horrible Fate of a Bridegroom
and a Bride on Their We'd
ding Night

confirms the story briefly told in the
press dispatches ot the death in
Cherokee county of August Schrader
and h> wife. on their welding night.
by serpenrs poison.
Mr.. Higgins was one ot n party of
hunters, consisting. besides himself, ot
ex-P"stmastcr \. VI. Mclfhcrsun. ex-
sheriff James &. Babb. W. +. Sapp
and W. T.. Siicc, all of Galcna, Kan.
They were in camp ON Shoal Creek.
not far from the Indian Territory line,
and within gunshot Of the cabin occu-
pied bv Schralcr and his bride. and
early in the morning they pariicipa-
ted in the festivities AT the old man
Schradcr's house in honor Of the
marriage OF his son.
The cabin WAS less than one hun
drcd wards from the fathers. and had
been newly built on the laticr's farm
Especially for the Young couple. Ii
had only one room and was built ot
rough logs. With II rough-pinc lumber
hoor and roof. \ perpendicular wall
of rock, forming part of II bluff. was
utilized for one wall of the structure.
Against this fire place of the
old-fashioncd kind was built, the
the chimney extending up its side and
towering above the edge of the bluff
In this fire place the fire was built
which warmed the house ready for
the reception of Young Schralcr and
his bride after the festivities at the
parental home. They retired to their
new home at midnight, and the few
guests who had gathered To celebrate
the event departed.
Hardly had the camping Iarty
retired To their tent when they were
aroused by calls for help from old
man Schra,cr. They responded. and
guided by cries, hastcned to the cabin
of the young couple, where they found
the two writhing in agony and the
old man and his wife standing over
them and crying pitcously. About the
iloor and on the low bed were seven
teen snakes Of various species, princi-
pally copperhea,ls and rattlcsnakcs.
Some of them had been killed and
others chilled To inscnsibility. The
hunters ran back to their tent for some
whiskcy. which they tried to admins,
ter TO the dying couple, but the remedy
was too late. and the victims died
before morning.
Upon investigation il appeared that
the fireplace had been built in close
proximity to a sort of cavern in the
bluff in which the snakes had hiber-
mated. The fire had warmed the rep
tiles into lite. and they were driven
out into the cabin by the intense heat.
Young Schrader was able. before he
died. to explain that he and his bride
had been aroused from their slumbers
by the moaning Of a house dog sleep
,ng at their feet. and which. too. was
bitten 10 death. Following this, Schra-
der heard a rattling and Kissing sound,
and. lraping out of bed 10 ascertain
the cause, his bare icet lighted upon
the cold writhing body of serpent
Next he felt himself stung, and by
the light of the dying cmbcrs in the
fireplace he saw number of reptiles
crawling about the floor nr coiled in
the attitude of striking. lie was stung
again AMI again. His cries aroused
his wife, and she. too. jumped from
her bed. only To- meet II like fate. Then
they ran for the door aud cried for
help. and in short time old man
Schrader appeared. In the mean time
the open door had admitted the cold.
and the reptiles became torpid and
were easily despatched.
On Saturday. two DAYS after the
tragedy, the young couple were buried
in the Indian burying ground on the
banks Of Spring Rivcr.in the Quapaw
reservation, seven miles south of Shoal
Creek, with all the solemni,y of an
Indian burial. This MAS because the
bride was hali-brced Indian girl.
Mr.. Higgins and his companions assist
cd at the funeral, and Mr. McPherson
read the Lutheran burial service, at
the request of the Schrader family.
The next day dynamite shot was
put in the cavern by miner from the
lead mines at Galena. The explosion
tore out several yards Of the bluff and
exposed the scrpcnts' den, in which
l09 snakes of all varieties, from the
harmless black snake to the copper
head and rattlcsnakc, were found
They were torpid from cold. and were
slnnrhierch