The morning times., 1896-08-09

4 sIr you want ter hear bout snakes yOu't
better talk to Ellen Jane, cause she's thu
| CHAMPION"
Tten Ellen Jane, seating herself on tin
bed and swinging her bare feet about, al
the chairs in the house being occupied by
ICY, "theg uideaDd the reporter, she began
Il am Mrs. Ellen Jane White. I've been
married; see'-pointing her ,ger to a
certificate which hung on onI of the walls
of the clbin.
Yes" added the elder woman,
Keep stiil, Grapny!""Cyr demonstrated
Mothers a snake-hunter, too, you know "
he said TO the visitors, land she wants to tell
bout her hunts"
Granny" who is the mother OF "Cy' and
Ellen Jane, departed into the adjoining
room, and Ellen Jane continued:
I'm ben KILN snakes ever sence wal
big enough to knock 'em over. / was borr
here and ben here ever sence. Now I'm
thirty-eight years old and 'spcct to be
here till l die. AS long as / am here I'm
goin' snake huntin' every season. .
when was little GIRL she contin-
ued, II used to go out in the mount in Der
ryin' with 'Cy,' who is older than me-ain't
you, 'Cy?'"
"Cy' was holding his stubby beard in his
hand and looking curiously at the pencil
and the paper. He nodded assent
HOW TO KILL SNAKES.
81 saw how 'Cy' killed 'em." Ellen Jane
went on, "and just thought I'd kill a
few myself and go in the bisncss. So !
started out on my own hook. You don't
know how f., h,,pt rattlarS 10 v,,,,or Sbo
asked OF the stranger, and before a reply
could be made she Continued; ~ always
kill 'em at their dens. They make their
dens IN the cracks between and under the
rocks. They come out about the first Of
April if the weather is warm and take a
look around, but they never leave their
bed for good until bout the middle Of
May.
THE first sunshiDy day in April l al
ways take my stick tpointing to the corner
of the room where stood a heavy oaken
staff about seven feet long, two inches thick
at The large end, with a knob something
like that of golf stick, and becoming
thinner near the HANDLED and go out on
the hunt. Sometimes You can hear 'em in
side the rock and sometimes you can only
find 'em by knowing how to look for ZEN,
Snakes are queer things-not like peo-
pie" she said. II have seen about zoo
in one den at time. We usually find
about two dozen in family. The biggest
kill of the varmints 1 ever made at one
time and at one place, when laid 'em
out, was 209. That was bout three miles
from here, and it kept me busy gittin' my
stick on their heads. / was hunting for
'em and found 'em. They was all layin'
up in balls. When I heard the rattle /
peeped round the rock, and what 1 saw
made my eyeballs crack.
AN OLD RATHER.
1.-The ball of snakes was as big as a peck
measure. | had my stick and l began to
strike, and they began to let up Noise
l laid up lick after lick until had cleaned
out the whole mess. First lick l Know l
killed as many as twenty. Some tried to
run away, but L jest tapped 'em on the
head, while others was jumpin' at me, and
when l got through with :nem air rattlers
had enough for that day.
Another tinIew hen l was huntin' Hound
a den with hundred in ii, winch killed.
In the lot was one snake from whose tail
took eighteen rattles and a button That
meant that he was eighteen years old The
next was bout twenty-five. / was out
berryip' one day and started to setdown Oh
a rock. AS did so heard rattle and
/ dropped nay bucket, grabbed my stick
and soon saw a big brown RATHER coled
up all ready to spring. / put his light out
and then set down and rested muselr.
You see ives all snake hunters. Pappy
was Tore he died; mother was fore she was
too old to e O out, and 'Cy' and ME will keep
it up as long as we live"
"And there was Grant" sadly inter
rupted ICY"
Yes, he was as good as any of u.s." &C.
Ellen Jane. Grant was our dog,
but he's dead now. He like the rest OF us
would kill snakes. He saw .Cy'
and me and he took up the hsniss. One day
/ was comin' down the path" pointing up
the mountain, land saw Grant make a
dive at something in the path.
., POISONED THE DOG.
He had the RATHER 10y the back and shook
him in two. The rattler, though, bit him on
andbegan to cry and then he fell over
knowed what was the matter, Cause it al
ways makes You sick when u snake bites
you. took Grunt up and went home with
him.
did the dog die?" asked the visitor.
mo, indeed, child, he didn't die. We
creased his foot"
''WiI grease cure snake bite?"
NO. bur It madeline dog iint his foot and
be licked all the poison out. But he wouldn't
stop huntin' snakes. and one day a big snake
bit him on the head where he couldn' reach
the spot with his tongue, and that's what
killed Grant,
The old man sighed. 1--WE amt got no
dog no more" he said.
81 have never been bitten in my life, i" said
Ellen Jane, in answer to a question.
"Cy," who had been sitting quietly by,
listening to Ellen James graphic story, here
iDterposed:
LET me talk now. I am fifty-slx years
old. Like Ellen Jane, I'm ben livin' here
all my life. and I'm a snake-bunter like
Ellen Jane though she's killed one more
his season than have. seed pap when
was child. and / s'pect to keep it up
i'll kill all kin. The biggest pull ever
made in nest was 311. IT sert'ney did
10 me good to lay lay them varmints out.
That was good season. ] killed ,005
that season. 1 ben lucky and never ben bit
n my life. though comenear being kotched
several times"
SNAKES HOLD FUNERALS.
Drawing small vial from his breast
pocket, he said" always carry this with
ne when I go huntin'. This is tarpen-
inc. Whisky's good, too, but 1 can't
AIRY that with me. 1 have some some
lines. / always bring the tarpentime back.
'ut don't allus bring the whisky and
10 laughed