The daily morning journal and courier., 1902-06-16

by the two canvas-clad figures, be-
 srneared with mud and carrying the bags of writhing snakes, as they came
 from the now murky interior of the swamp amid a glare and flash of daz-
 zling white light caused momentary | silence and awe among the negroes
 Another day had passed and added
 to the store of Captives but as night
 came on Snyder showed symptoms of fever and after imbibing substantial
 doses of quinine declared he felt too
 sick for nocturnal snake-hunting.
 Armed with the lantern his companion went down the road alone, but not car- | ing to enter the swamp without com pany seated himself upon stump and
 awaited the possible event of Old Davy crossing the road, The situation was so intensely lonely that every pass 1 ing moment dragged itself wearily along. The lagoon in the canebrake
 began to steam slowly and then The watcher jumped to his feet and
 experienced cold shivers by the score. The nearby vegetation rustled loudly, and what proved to be, an instant later, frightened rabbit, pursued by some creature of the night, scurried down the road and outside the beam cast by the lantern. Turning the lantern in the direction whence the rabbit came, an examination was carefully made of the nearby locality to discover the cause of the little creatures fright. Nothing resulted from the search. Thus an- other night when by without Old Davy, nor had his trail been seen in three days time.
 Snyder partially recovered his vigor, and snake hunting was resumed along the rice diches. The collectors were returning late in the afternoon, very tired. Snyder was explaining that ba felt hardly strong enough to go in search of Old Davy after the evening meal. when the distant report of a gun caused him to stop, while his face frightened.
 Rabbit for supper" he remarked "The fever has eaten up lot of me, but a cottontail to 20 with this appetite will brace me up enough to make an- other try in the canebrake"
 Supper came an hour later, but with it no rabbit much to Snyder's disap pointment. As this was the last day before the return north, however, it was decided to take one more trip into the swamp before giving up hope of bringing the big rattler to the reptile house
 It was a night born only in warm attitudes, with an absolutely motionless atmosphere and the landscape showing a combination of intense blue and black from the effect of moonlight and shadow.
 Arriving at the familiar stretch of road the collectors were brought to a sudden stop for there was the familiar trail A thrill went through them both. Old Davy was in the pine swamp. It was only question of waiting for him to return.
 Turning the rays of the lantern toward the place where the snake had left the road, Snyder sprang suddenly forward, then stopped as if rooted to the spot.
 A huge rattlesnake lay dead by the roadside, its head riddled by buckshot.
 Turning the lantern upon the velvety body, with it's richly marked scales of yellow, olive and black, the two com panions in disappointment beheld specimen fully seven feet long. It had met it's death from the gun of some wandering negro. It was a bitter disappointment after al the nights cf hunting and watching. Tha reptile curator preserved the fangs as a remembrance. Snyder possesses the | reptiles skin.-New York Commercial