The daily morning journal and courier., 1899-08-14

olaeksnake. Indded this authority or e oiacksnakes does more than defend the
 Hlonster-he points out its virtues. He says the blacksnake is the mortal ene- my or the rattler and the copperhead, ana declares that if 1t were not for the
 lact that in ninety nine cases out of a
 hundred the blacksnake is the victor in
 Hght with rattlesnake or a copper
 head the mountains of southern Penn
 sylVania would be so infested with these
 deadly reptiles that it would not be safe
 TOT any one to go there during the sum-
 iner. have met many one," he says
 or his favorite blacksnake, lin my
 tramps through the mountains, and
 am sorry to say l have killed a great
 many, and some monsters, too. Some
 times they would show fight, but oftep-
 CT pull out rate of speed that was
 marvellous. I have not killed one for
 many year, and will never kill anoth-
 CT one. for have learned their good
 qualities and now hold them In hgh es- teem."
 That the blacksnake can be very vii
 elous in spite of his many good quail
 ties is shown by the experience of the
 little two year old daughter of Richard
 Branning, of Deep Hilower Columbia
 county. MT. Framing has pet rattle snake. This "pet" has a history. Ear ly in the spring, while MT. Branning was blasting away a cliff with dyna- mite, he uncovered a nest of rattlers. All of the snakes except three or four were. killed, and all that saved their lives escaped except one. This one was
 so badly wounded that it could not get away. It was big fellow, of re- markedly amiable disposition, and with a keen sense of gratitude While re- covering from It's wounds the snake coiled Itself into Mir. Branning's good | graces, and constituted itself the spec l ial guardian of his little daughter. The ! latter frequently fondled it, and it al- l ways manifested marked fondness for | the child One day last week a large | backsnake attacked the little girl en- I folding her in It's deadly embrace. AS it was drawing it's coils more and more tightly about the child the pet rattler put ill an appearance. Seeing the situ- ation, the rattlesnake dashed at it's nat ural enemy, the blacksnake, and forced it to relinquish It's hold upon the Infant and defend itself The rattler was vic torious, the blacksnake being Killed in the encounter. It Is only natural, in view of this important service in sav- Ing the life of his child, that MT. Rich ard Branning, of Deep Hilover, Colum- bia county, should be as much of a champion of rattlesnakes as Mir. Joseph O. Boggs, of Fayetteville, Franklin who wrote to "The Repository" is of blacksnakes.
 Most parts of the state have only sto- ries of rattlers, copperheads and black snakes, but Bucks county has tale Of an anaconda This anaconda is not Q native of Bucks @county, but was brought to this country from South America by Mrs George Kelly, wha was on a visit to her brother-in-law, Edward Smith. Mrs. Kelly Is snake cbarlner, and the anaconda was one of her exhibits. It was kept in cage by itself, but one night, by means of it's constructing power, 1t was able to bend the bars of the cage sufti- ciently to enable 1t to make it's escape. The anaconda is now in captivity again, but while it was at large it had great leai of fun with the people around Sum nyside schoohouse, near Doylestown.
 One morning soon after Mrs. Kelly's anaconda escaped party of boys went nto the ice pond on the Fordhook seed farm for an early swim. One of the ads stepped on what he thought was twisted root under the water near the oank Suddenly the root moved from / lnder him and losing his balance, he ell on top of the anaconda. The rep ile half wound itself round his naked body, but the youngsters shrieks frightened the serpent and the monster ( slided away. luge reptile for more than a month, put depredations on poultry yards and milk cans for many miles around be- anne of everyday occurrence. A little ,irl going to the spring house on her | ather's farm in Castle Valley was the ext to see the anaconda. It was re- losing in the clear water of the spring, nd had helped itself to the contents of hree milk cans and manifested re- fondness for butter. The frightened child, rushing back to her ~ 1other, reported a snake in the spring \ ouse as big as telegraph pole This me the anaconda escaped, but when 1t eturned last Saturday for another feast
 was pinioned by MT. Smith. who was a n the lookout for it, and 1t is now on s way to travelling show out in Ohio. Philadelphia Times.