The record-union., 1899-07-25
A SNAKE FIGHT.
The Black Reptiles Victory Was
Followed by o Feast.

It was in Australia, and in the fall
of the year. My friend and I were
returning from a tour which had car
ried US far into the bush as the for
ests of gum trees and scrub are there
called We were walking through a
clearing, when the unmistakable rat
tie of a snake arrested us, and in a
few minutes we saw the beginning Of
a fierce encounter between two dead
ly enemies-a blacksnake and a rattle.
These two branches Of the snake fam
lily are hereditary and implacable foes,
though what was the origin of the
feud Darwin saith not. Between them
there can be neither fellowship, amity,
compromise nor even armed neutrality.
War to the death is their unalterable
law from generation to generation.
The blacksnake is much smaller than
the rattle, but he is a terribly formtd-
able foe, and, as science is superior
to mere size or strength. he generally
comes out of the fray victorious He
seems to "scent the battle (or rather
the rattle) from afar," and gives him
self no rest until he gains point OF
/ vantage from which he can make a
I. sudden swoop upon the noisy foe. On
this occasion we did not see the black
snake until he 1eaped on the rattle's
throat, nor could we afterward make
out how he had got so near without
being seen. That power Of silent,
stealthy, rapid movement gives the
black fellow an immense advantage
over the rattling enemy. 1t is that, in
deed, on which his hope Of victory
mainly depends. Let the blacky by a
sudden leap grasp the throat of the
unwary rattle, and the chances are
he will never let go again until death
them do part;'' but If that first chance
be lost, and the two meet in fair fight,
after fair warning, the fangs Of the
rattle are pretty sure to gain him the
victory.
In this instance no such misfortune
was the blacky's. He made his spring
and got his grip of the throat, and
there he held on like grim DEATH"
With fury that was sometimes awful
the rattle wriggled and shook and
i'rolled and writhed. He leaped into the
air, twisted and tossed himself about,
banged his assailant down on the
ground, rolled on him and over him,
but all in vain. Blacky simply stuck.
Nothing could move him, nothing
tempt him or compel him to relax his
hold for a single moment. To have
done so would have been almost ccr-
tain death to himself; but, through all
the rearings, leapings, tossings, writh-
ings and hissings of his victim, on he
held with relentless tenacity that
was equal only to his love Of his own
life and his hate of his foes.
Thus for more than an hour and a
half the life and death game was kept
up without minutes intermission,
and without any sign Of weakening on
either side. Then we perceived that
the rattle's strength seemed to be CIV
ing way, and all of sudden he coiled
himself up and lay still, as if to die
Whether it was from sheer exhaustion
or only a ruse to deceive his enemy,
faint or feint, we were not sure We
thought it was the former, but blacky
evidently thought otherwise. He un-
derstood his enemy better than we did,
and did not mean to be tricked Down
he lay by the side of the PROSTATE vic
tim, but with his teeth firmly set in
the now torn and crumpled throat.
Then, after quiet interval. the one
sided truce having come to an end, or
the ruse having failed, the rattle rose
again and resumed the unequal strug-
gle with the energy Of desperation