The Portland daily press., 1897-12-31
TAAoE's BIG SNAKE.
About coo Feet Long and in Other Ways a
Very Creditable Fresh Water Serpent.
(From the San Francisco CALI


The following is related by well
known citizen OF San Francisco, manager
of the Park Band. It is presented unac-
companied by affidavits, and may be &C.
oepted as truth by anybody who chooses
to believe it:
THE story of sea serpent comes from
80 many sources and from people of-u
doubted veracity that it cannot be doubt
ed that there is living in the Atlantic
Ocean alserpent of monstrous size, but 1t
remains for California, with its remains
ofsgigantic monsters scattered all over its
surface and where animal life attained
Its greatest perfection, to have serpent
now living within its borders much larger
than any described by so many witnesses.
sit was my fortune to be one of tho
earliest settlers on the west. shore OF Lake
Tahoe-from June, 1861 to 1869. located
a.meadow and was engaged in cutting
wild hay for the market on the Placer
Vile road. In the fall of 1866 in the
month of November, [ took my gun, and,
accompanied by very intelligent setter
dog, started out for hunt for grouse
along the shore and in the creek bottoms
emptying into the lake.
"My attention was called to very curl
GUS state of things happening around me.
First, a flock of quail and other birds
were flying out of the canon, uttering
cries of alarm; next came some rabbits
and coyotes, and soon three deer came
running at full speed; last of all, an old
bear with one cub came along. All
passed close to me, not seeming to notice
me, and all running at their BEST
"a II this did not occupy much time,
and began to wonder what was up. My
dog kept looking up the canon, and was
evidently alarmed, and [ began to feel
shaky myself. All at once the dog set up
a howl and started for home, eight miles
away, running as fast as dog could run,
and going under the cabin stayed there
two days and nights, and no amount of
coaxing could get him to come out
sooner, and never after would tho dog go
in the direction of the lake. began TO
feel5that some unknown danger was. near,
and looking about me, saw spruce tree
with very thick limbs, standing near
very large pine. / climbed up about
sixty feet from the ground and began to
look up the canon. had not long to
wait. | heard sound as if the dead
limbs of tree willows, and alders that
grew in the canon were being broken and
crushed. Soon the monster appeared,
slowly making his way in the direction
where was hidden in the tree top, and
passed on to the lake within fifty Feet Of
where l was, and as his snakeship got by,
anN partly recovered from my fright
I cegan to look him over and to estimate
his immense size. After his head had
passed my tree about seventy feet, he
halted and reared his head in the air
H.. Eel
thatssthe large pine hid me from his sight,
and l dared to breathe again as he low
cred his head to the ground and kmoyed
on.
ellis monstrous head was about four
teen feet wide and the large eyes seemed
to.be about eight inches in diameter and
shining Jet black and seemed to project
more than half the size from the head.
The neck was about ten feet and the body
In the largest portion must have been
twenty feet in diameter. l had chance
to measure his length. for when he halted
his tail reached fallen tree, and I after
ward measured the distance from the tree
where | was hidden to the fallen tree, and
1T measured 90 feet, and, as seventy or
eighty feet had passed me. it made his
length about 600 feet The skin was
black on the back, turning to q reddish
yellow on the side and belly, and must
have been very hard and tough, rs small
trees two and three inches in diameter
were crushed and broken without any
effect en- his tough hide. Even boulders
of 500 or 600 pounds weight lying on the
surface of tn ground were pushed out of
the way. His snakeship slowly made his
way to the lake, glided in, and swan
toward the foot.
''This serpent has been seen by several
of the old settlers at the lake since that
time, but it was generally agreed thai
it would be useless to tell the world the
Story, knowing that it would not be be.
lieved. l will give a few names of the
early settlers that have seen his snakeship
at different times since | first saw him.
William Pomin, now living in San Fran
cisco; John Mckinney, Ben Mccoy, and
Bill MoMasters, all at that time living
on Sugar Pine Point; Homer Burton,
now living IN Sacramento; Capt. How
land of the old steamer Governor Blais-
dell; Tony and Burk, fishermen living
near Fridays station; Reuben Saxton
now at The lake, and several Others could
be named.
II know many will doubt this. story,
but sooner or later his snakeship will be
seen by SO many that all doubt will be
removed.
81 was induced to write this descrip'
ton by reading an article in the Call Of
last Sunday, stating that there was
living mastodon in Alaska and that it
had been seen by the natives Believing
that have seen more wonderful sight.
and as time the mystery is sure to be veri-
fed, venture to give this to the public.
81. G., COGGINn