Waterbury evening Democrat., 1895-07-29
KILLING A PYTHON.
ICopyright, 1895. I

land of Warshu, of the coast of Java, to- gether with botanist named Henry Will son, our object being to search for plant for the cure of cancer. Besides being a botanist Mir. Wilson was also physician and was generally addressed by thu title of doctor. We were sent out by a medical syndicate in London, with orders to make thorough search of that and other islands, and were well supplied with clothing, food l. firearms and tools for the erection of hut. It was beautiful island on which we took up our home, being about four miles long by two in breadth and unin- habited. We explored it thoroughly before being set ashore for good and found no dangerous animals or reptiles. We built Q hut, cleared the ground around it, and after couple of weeks were ready to start out on our search. We left the hut one morning for the north end of the island, and at midday ate our lunch under the branches of 8 wide spreading tree. When we lighted OUT pipes, the doctor strolled 1 one way and another, and it was perhaps ' half an hour before heard from him in 0 ! way to give me chill of alarm. had , been listening to the peculiar notes of a 1 bird and was peerlng about to discover the | singer when I heard a shout of terror | from the doctor. Turning on my heel, I | discovered him hasteniKg toward me. He | was hatless had thrown away his rifle and | collection of plants, and my first thought ] was that he was pursued by some native 1 or body of natives landed from a canoe. | At first did not see anything which ! could have caused this terrible alarm, but in few seconds heard crushing among 8 thicket of shrubs from which he was running as If some heavy weight was be- | ing forced through them, and presently ] there issued q most extraordinary monster | It came forward at a quick pace, its head | held ten feet high, its jaws wide open, and | from the midst of which there issued 0 [ forked tongue which darted in and out 1 with lightninglike rapidity. Its body was very long and almost as thick as tele- 1 graph pole. It was covered over with l bright, shining scales that seemed to have | different colors and was propelled along | the ground in folds of various sizes, with
 length of tail of several yards behind. Its | eyes were very bright and fierce. Its ap- pearance certainly accounted for my com l panion's alarm.
 J "FlyP' he cried in accents of intense | terror as he rushed toward me. "Fly, or | you are lostp'
 He then gave hurried glance behind 1 him, and seeing tho formidable monster in
 full chase he just had power to reach the
 spot to where I had advanced and sunk
 down ovcrpowered with terror and fainted | at my feet.
 While the doctor had come out with his
 rifle, had brought along my American | navy revolver. had the weapon in my l hand at the first alarm, and as the doctor | pitched forward at my feet stepped over | his body and prepared to defend it. I had | never seen a great snake, but believed
 this to be an enormous python. In the few | seconds given mo I wondered that we had not encountered him before but concluded l lx-i,, 1 rank grasses on that side of the island. | The great serpent was only few yards be- 1 hind T. ,'>ctor, but mado halt of a min | utc at | of me. Then, as if sure of | two vi; :, instead of one he came on ! again, L.. ,.rs flashing, his jaws expanded | as if he Mntcndcd to swallow nle at a
 mouthful, and the enormous folds of his
 huge body passing like wheels over tho | ground and crushing the thick plants that
 came in their way like grass.
 must acknowledge that in my heart 1 | felt strange sinking sensation, but I re- | membercd that our only chance of escape ! lay in giving the monster a mortal wound, I and the immncnce of the danger seemed l to afford me the resolution required. He
 was close behind and in direct line with | the tree under which we had dined, and l was about 20 feet from it. Directly his
 head darted around and in front of the 1 tree making good mark, pulled down | for his eye, hoping by penetrating his
 brain to settle him at once, but as he l moved his head at that moment the bullet
 entered his mouth and passed out of his l neck in the rcar.
 As soon as the huge creature found him. l self hurt he wound his enormous body
 round the trunk, and with his desperate
 exertions swaycd the great tree backward | and forward as 1 would have done one of l it's smallest branches Fearful that ht
 would recover himself before I could save i my sensclcss companion 1 discharged all
 my bullets into his body, which took effect
 in various places His excrtions then be-
 came terrible that hastily snatched up
 tho doctor in my arms, and with fright
 that seemed to give mo supernatural
 strength ran as fast as I could the short
 est way to our hut. Fortunately before l
 had gone half a mile my companion came ! to his senses and was able to continue his l flight on foot.
 | We got home at last, half dead with fla
 tigue and fright, and the first thing we did
 was to barricade all entrances. We left l loopholcs to rcconnoitcr, and there we sat
 for hours after our arrival awaiting the
 monsters approach in fear and trembling.
 We did not go to sleep that night. We did
 not, either of us, go out the next day. The
 next night one watched while the other
 slept. The second day my courage had so ! lar returned l wanted to go ana LOOK after
 the constant subject of our conversation, + but the doctor dissuaded me. He had
 stumbled over the serpent as it lay cOiled
 up among the plants and grass and it was
 a miracle he had escaped being killed by it
 at once. He had never seen python, but
 he was sure this was one, and he was very
 doubtful if my pistol balls had put an end
 to its life. On the third day, however,
 both of us ventured out, and meeting with
 no alarm we gradually and quietly ap-
 preached the spot where the serpent was
 last seen. The monster had disappeared.
 We followed his trail through the bushes
 and down to the beach and thero found
 him dead on the sands. He had doubtless
 made his way by water from some other
 island, and if not fatally wounded would I have taken to the sea again.
 | MARTIN HARKER.