The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-01-02

the day and lie in the shade Of the great
tropical trees. And one of these men told
the other of a wonderful country that he
had seen on the other side OF the noun
tains. There were great princes who build
ed beautiful houses all along the shore of
a great sea that people had told him ex
tended to the very end OF the world. And
all along the coast were alligators that
We're twice as large and wise as those on
the gulf side
Then the men went away
From that time the young alligators
were more dissatisfied than ever, for they
reasoned that if there were other alliga-
tors who lived on the other side of the
mountains, they must have left the warm
lands of the gulf and crossed the noun
tains to get to the country in which they
then lived. So one day great many Of
them had a meeting away in the darkest
shade OF the tropical forest and in the
deepest part OF the Coatzacoalcos river.
Here they talked the situation over. One
of the most eloquent of them all said that
it was his opinion that the only reason
that the old people would not 30 into the
mountains was because their superstitions
made them afraid. But for his part he
had made up is .lind to go and see what
was on the other side of the mountains,
and to learn all about those other won
derful alligators who lived there. He said:
Does not that miserable little creature,
man, wander all over the mountains at
will? And does he not come back and tell
wonderful stories OF strange lands? And
must we, who are his gods, stay here in
this little cramped land when our aspi-
ratious are as wide as the world itself?
Shall we be content to know less than the
Insignificant creature whose gods we
are?"
And all the other alligators said NO
with one voice.
There and then they vowed to go up
into the mountains to find the wonderful
land along the wonderful sea that reached
to the end of the world.
A few days after this several hundred
alligators got together secretly 10 at
tempt the journey over the mountains
Early in the morning, just as the sun
was rising over the southern hills, they
began the march up tho river, for they
had determined to. follow the water all
the way. In all their experience they had
never met a land where the river did not
flow; so II never entered their heads that
there could be an end of the river, But to-
ward evening they began to be strangely
cod, so that some % the more tmid-
hearted began TO be sorry that they had
left their homes. But there were none of
them who dare suggest the idea of re-
turning SO late I'm the afternoon they all
crawled out upon the bank and lay down
in the warm SUM- which had not yet de-
scended below the hills. And they were
50 tired that they soon fell asleep.
And they slept until the sun went down.
AS they lay there the spirit that set
the waters running down the hills came
down from his place in the mountain tops
and found them sleeping. And he was
angry that they had come into the waters
into which he had forbidden any of the
great coast monsters to enter. So he cali
ed a host OF his servants, who were busy
letting out the water for the little rills
that frisked down the mountain sides and
he bade them dig great holes In the earth.