The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-08-07
THE INTELLIGENT TURTLE.
THINGS HAPPENED WHEN SNAKES
KNOCKED ON II SHELL.

First n Smart Bincksnakc Came and wassur-
p~rised-Next n Rattler Received nm Evea
Greater S~hock-Lastly the Turtle showed
That II Could Appreciate IL Good Home.
CHESTER, N. Y, Aug. B.-"One day. whom
was out Observing nature and natures waye."
said Tom Galloway of Warwick. whose vera.
cious chroniclings have won him fame aud
many invitations to have something, Il OBJ
served a big hlacksnako dart out from the
bushes and glide like n swifts shadow toward
the pond, near the edge OF which l sat on a log.
Now / said to myself, that snake Is Inc
tent on showing something or other how much
smarter he is than the something Is or ever
dared to be. | wonder what It can be-
II looked ahead about thirty feet, which
seemed TO he the spot for which the snake was
pointed. aud then l observed something else.
and l had TO smile. 1t was n big swapping
turtle, The turtle was lying ON the bank, uui-
escent In the sun. Its head and its tail and its
legs we're housed In its shell.
II wonder how so smart n thing as n black
snake l said To myself, can for q momcno
think Of having fun with a great big inanimatO
chunk Of bone like that
For that was all the snapper was. practis
cally. as 1t lay there entirely drawn into itself.
But l was there to observe. and l did. The
blacksnakc glidcd up to the snapper. paused,
and looked 1t over a fow seconds, and then
tapped with his head on the snapper's shell,
like you might go mp and knock at some ones
door, No knock at the door was ever answered
rs suddenly as that tap Of the blacksnake was.
The snapper was on its feet In less thnn q seos
ond. Its head shot out in front and it's tail shot
out behind. The snake had jumped back and
lay on the ground u yard away looking pleased
with himself because he had been 50 smart.
The snapperS big neck was u fair mark for the
snake. us / couldn't help but observe.
II tiat piacksntke ever Eets ms Go4
to the snapper, confidentinlly. you'll never re-
turn to the embrace Of your native waters. and
The snapper didn't rayany attention to what
s5nappsF glare ,f for glnGS, Then presently hS
straight fol, the snnpner's neck, Swift as no
was, when the snake got there there, was no
side the ,snappcr's shell. The neck was CUP
again. though, before the snake, flashed
closed o on. the snake like !" wise. ri never for
get the look Of ag9niZed amazenent on the
and looked Sark Over "i his shoulder and saw
what had happened TO- him. The snapper
s endash its T fTs p Ei%aRan %t the d Iraks; T his h SSi
and gave in. That was the end of him. The
snapper dug a hole and buried him, then drew
Itself into itself. again as II nothing had hap
pened TO disturb 1t. and once more lay quiescent
""FWeii. 1 swan TO man. said l to myself, IL
that snapper hasn't gone and set itself up
again. oono,n,o, :, s,o, md ohsoryo , wh,o
longer. BY and by what should ! observe COM
ing out from among Il lot of stones a rod or SO
beyond the snapper hut a good-sized rattle.
snake, He came deliberately on, straight
toward the SPOT, where the snapper Law, aud
siimbed Pc riE s2t ON 5ne 1Re H saaP n%xSs fBs asE, eoi RSi
himself up, and croached, there. with bis ugly
fixed on the spot where the snapper's head and
neck would be il the snapper shot them out.
And II the snapper does shoot EN-, out.
| said to myself, that snakes tnlIS VIII DB sunk
into 'em Just bchind the ears so quick and deep
felt sorry for the snapper. for / knew it'd
haSc to be g9inT back into in, the h, water water by q, and BY
out from its shell. SO / Was on the POINT Of res:
eeHHiag i from It's peril by putting a pistol R 3sa
point of the snuppCr'S nose come slowly
and cautiously our, and presently its head.
T Tha snake At T saw 9 It. t5 as b 5aF Il Is wasn't 9ns ey ons
far enough for his purpose yet. and he Just
waited. glaring and quiyering, could see tLs
Az, f6s 5;naDEESTr; pulled Il fssd Sagik iPtS e;
had better observe longer before took q
hand in it. and | have always been glad I aid;
head up and his eyes liked, 30 as not to miss
BY and by observed that the snake was get:
ting sleepy, Every little while he NEEDED % keIG Y liz
head up any longer and he Just curled It down
in his coil n ara went I" sleep: DECLARE to good
ness, i cOulu ALMOST neu tlHU snukt -hIlDTeI
- began to get sleepy myself. and I'd have
dropped of to sleep. TOO. il something hadn't
the fnapner!s nose coming cautiously out q
the shell again. Pretty soon the head was out
so s2a laT eraf rolled J SSp'1 them SsG 'P SaeE 9an nhhG th sye outl hoe
must have been satisfactory, for the head kept
81 en- omi4g out until it was out neck and az;
until Il h2d risen on all tours. with 20 more
the pond, slow and cautious and care
full. as il i was "a trained elephant in
all done SO, slick and smooth, that the
sieepinG rGttler on the SHapnSr'S bac. never
good while TO get TO the pond. but it got there
at last. with the rattle still snoozinE away like
po %r4p as # 'i It Had b i@S a sreascd. and i"SE ia i'S
back. high and dry above he water as It swan
tier further and further from shore, and when
i had got about twenty feet out into the pond
the water washed the RATHER from tho snap:
ner,s back. and the rattlcr woke up the most
ever was. He threshed and, sGuirmcd IL the
water. but before he got his bearings or knew
quick and sudden, that j felt that something
must have yaqkcd him down from below, 4
l%i%et to ' 'RS sa i M's 5 dand. ' and d a n'f few we sI rs5rrfs
ntterward m snnpper, APPEARED there, too.
Y ynIe m aS5 SIHwpc i b h%d SfT9Et S t w5 sse n5 G9ttIeF
glarlng At its dead foe z while, the snapDeE
Shut itself up in its shell again, i hadn't
time to stay there any longer TO observe
to the farmhouse where | WAS staying and
observe It AT my leisure, I tgppcd the snapper
shot its head and tail. l grabbed the tail and
lugged the SURPRISED snapper home will, me.
folks didn't TAX" to the. reptile much at first.
but after | had fed il and con Xed il. up "A day or
SO it grew contentcd and real sociablc and the
folks wouldn't have sent it away for IA small
farm. The snapper hadn't been three, dAyS
there before IL had cOaXcd an old hens brood
Of chickens on its back and was giving
them a ride on tho goose pond, greatly TO their
delight and 10 the terror Of the old hen, who
ran bristling and clucking all around the pond
until the snapper brought her chicks N a. last
to their angry mother. The hen pitched into
the snapper with beak and claws. 6ut the snap