Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-09-27
SWALLOWED BY A BOA.

New York Mail and Express: Soldiers
dence of having practiced with the long
bow as we'll as the krag-Jorgensen dur
ing their enforced stay in the islands.
This story, from the pen of a mustered
out volunteer, now in San Francisco. dis
plays a proficiency with the weapon of
a picturesque liar that is positively
startling. The veracious soldier tells of
a voracious snake, and here is his SIM
Pile tale
Yes, I saw some hard fighting. but the
only time | was really scared was by a
snake. They say that those huge boas
that the natives keep in their houses to
catch rats are harmless. l know better.
! had been with my mpa under fire
all day, and as night came on / lost my
way in the swamp and was separated
from my completely. Pros
trated with the heat, often unconscious
for a time, l had lost my gun and every
thing, and lay down to wait for morn
ing near a deserted shack, where some
native had once had a home, and was
soon fast asleep had lost one shoe i n
the swamp, and my bare foot had been
severely cut and scratched in my race
for life, and as l went to sleep it panied
me so as to affect my dreams. l dream
j ID thai / was still in the swamp. and
that my left foot and leg We're SO heavy
that ! was being slowly pulled dow into
the mud by them and that the swamp
was boiling hot. l awakened to find the
pain in my foot intolerable, though dull-
ed by the feeling we experience when we
say a limb is asleep. ! felt that / could
not move my leg. l sat up and looked
at it, and put my hand under my knee
n rave it a pull. In the dim light my
leg seemed to extend off into the jungle
indefinitely. hen l felt a twinge of pain
and a sense of something gripping me
about the shin.
wide awake and excited now, l saw
that I was being swallowed by a huge
boa. My swollen, bleeding foot had at
tracted him, and he had already swal-
lowed it, and was swallowing my leg
inch by inch, by those slow utoma
pulsations with which these horrible rep
tiles get themselves outside their prey.
Il ran my hand over the creatures
head and eyes, l felt his great lower jaw
beneath my calf, l struck the head with
my fist. l screamed and yelled for help, l
struggled to a vertical position, bending
the snakes body upward, and even fell
over upon him., but all had no effect. The
swallowing went on. Every minute !
would feel a prickling sensation an inch
higher up on my leg, and a sense of sue
ton, and was aware that l was an inch
deeper down in the monsters anatomy.
Then | lay quiet a thinking
for my life. Each gulp of the snake sent
a sickening chill over my body, but my
head vas clear. l thought with some
satisfaction that the boa couldn't swal-
low but one leg since he had not started
upon both. Yet l knew he would never
willingly disgorge the part of me he al
,~ ly .~~a~ro at,rl a. 7 &c.,
early in the morning. my chance of life
was small. ! had no knife nor gun, but
l was able to reach a good bamboo club
and l began to beat the great serpent on
the body, and over the head, too, as hard
as l could. But my blows hurt my leg
inside the snake more than they seemed
! to hurt him.
AT m rate the swallowing went on,
and the snakes nose had reached nv
kneecap. ! had nothing in my pockets
but my pipe and tobacco and matchbox.
Should ! smoke and wait the urn OF