Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1902-09-03
~ Love, -
The ConGuero-.

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| MS MRS. MORGAN bent over
Iii the wood heap in the yard of
her Australian home in the dusk of
the early morning, she felt a sharp,
fiery sting in her arm, and looking
down, saw snake glide away from
the logs. 1t had passed the night in
the wood-heap, and angry at being
disturbed, had stung her. She flung
down her armfull of logs and rushed
into the house. A sharp butcher.
knife lay on the table; this she
seized and cut the wound, then
sucked the blood. But she had little
hope, for the bite was from the
fangs of venomous snake, aud she
had received the full force of the
poison.
Already che seemed to feel the
first symptoms of coming death in
the deadly lethargy which orept
through her limbs. The thought of
her babies now lying asleep in the
adjoining room, further agonized
her, for mental picture rose before
her of her darlings starving slowly
to death. And how sad would be
their fathers home coming How
terrible to find the wife and children
he has left alive and well, lifeless
corpses
Then her mother-love cried out
for time, only little time, in order
that she might provide for them.
Her husband had been away shearing
for six weeks. He would be back in
a fortnight, and she must prepare
enough food to keep them for that
time. 1t would be of no use to take
the children to the nearest neighbor,
fifty miles distant she would die on
the way and leave the helpless little
ones in the cart. The old horse
might know enough to take them to
their destination, but probably he
would return home. There was
ample flour in the house; she would
bake and cook, and fight back death
until enough food was prepared to
keep the children alive until their
fathers return.
With feverish haste she ran back
to the wood heap, where she found
the snake pinioned under one of the
logs she had flung down in her hor-
ror. She quickly killed it; then she
returned to the kitchen, lighted the
fire, put on the camp oven, kneaded
up the dough she had prepared
over knight, and put the loaves in
the oven. Then she prepared other
patches of bread, and placed them in
the warmth to rise. Every few
minutes horrible drowsiness came
over her, but she resolutely fought it
down. She must do her work, and
death must be forced to wait until it
was done.
The children awoke and called
her "mamma." She attended to
their little wants in kind of dream.
Every now and again she would
sway and nearly fall, but always,
with strong effort of the will she
would shake off the fatal coma ard
address herself to some new task.
The water used in the house was
drawn from well near by; a sup
ply must be secured and placed
within reach of the children, the
horses must be taken from their own
paddock and put in one where the
sheep were grazing, within reach of
the great clay water-tank. Little
Mora, the eldest of the four children,
was trained to take charge of the
younger ones when mamma should
"have gone to Sleep" Thus the day
passed in ceasless activity, and the
evening found the mother still alive.
Only once had she fallen into the
comatose state which precedes death
from snake-b bite, and was reused
from this stupor by little Mora,
whom she had hidden not to let
mamma sleep for a moment, and by
the screams of the younger children.
She had risen and run up and down
like one distracted until the heavi-
ness partly left her.
Even now, when night had come,
and the children were peacefully
sleeping, she did not dare lie down
lest she should never rise again.
She looked round with intense
satisfaction on the pile of loaves she
had baked at least her babies would
not starve. Then hope began to
dawn. If she had lived through the
day might she not recover? Then
dim recollection came of having
heard that if one could ward off the
deadly coma until the snake poison
was worked ont of the blood life