The Forrest City times., 1894-05-25
A FULL DAY.
A Hunters Tele of the Most Elk
 citing Day of His Life.
Peculiar Encounter with a Rattler, Too Much Brandy and Supposed Band of Indians Strange Power of
 the Ima glnatiOn.

Iwant to try to show, by this paper. how a hunter can have an interesting and exciting day without killing game. or even getting shot-that is, if he is in rattlesnake country.
 It was some years before the war, when game of every kind could be found near almost all of our military posts in New Mexico, and at this par ticular time 1 could, from the front door of my quarters of the old post up against the bluffs at Fort Union. see at one time nearly any and every day sev- cral hundred antelope on the plain be- tween the post and Turkey mountain, five or six miles to the east There were no locomotives, cars, telegraph wires nor poles then to frighten them away or make them wild.
 Turkey mountain runs north and south, or nearly so and seems to have been pushed up from below by some gigantic force, five or six hundred feet (at the highest point above the general level of the plain on all sides of it It is about twelve or fifteen miles long and perhaps six miles across from base to base. It is very rocky and uneven, and is or was thickly wooded general ly with pipe) from the northern end to within two or three miles of the south ern end, where the trees disappear or never grew. and at which point there is a plainly marked crater of an extinct volcano. My route from the post was direct to this crater and. of course, to the extreme southern end of the noun tain.
 For many miles saw no antelope or any other living thing in the shape of man or beast. This was so remarkable for that section of country at that time. I felt certain some unusual thing had frightened the antelope away.
 In the afternoon, when we'll abreast of the northern end of Turkey noun tain. but some miles to the east of it, and about fifteen miles from the post. l saw quite large herd of antelope quietly grazing, and. as the cover and wind were all in my favor, my hopes were high for game.
 approached to within sixty yards of the herd. and was well covered by lit tie hill or ridge, and felt almost certain that in five minutes I would have an antelope to take back to the post.
 I dismounted quickly, laid my rifle on the ground, unfastened the lariat from its place just behind the saddle, took the picket pin in my hand tine other end of the lariat was around the horses neck), and then found stone to drive it into the ground After about the third stroke with the stone l felt sharp sting on the back of my left hand. and at the same moment heard the rattle of snake, and saw within a few inches of my hand the last half of a large and horrid looking rattlesnake just about to disappear in hole In the ground. His tail was in the air for a second. and his rattles seemed to wave as a flag in triumph, as much as to say: "Ah, I have get you this time. had made it a rule to kill, either by shoot ing or with stones or sticks. every rat tlesnake ] saw. But this time l thought the "boot was on the other leg"
 I immediately examined my hand, and sure enough there were two punc- lures. just the distance apart to core spond to the fangs of snake. l was of course frightened almost out of my wits. and my case looked very serious indeed. was twelve or fifteen miles from the doctor at the post, and knew that a very rapid ride would cause the blood to circulate faster and send the poison through the veins all the quick