The southern sentinel. (Winnfield, La.) 1883-1910, 1903-03-27
The LAST SNAKE.

~ II. GRAHAM and I. brothers-in-
law, lived on adjoining places
D and employed n gardener in
commons. Patrick was the gar
dener's name, and he stickled for it all,
as learned one day when CHANGED TO
call him Pat.
Patrick, If you please. sir" said he.
with the quiet dignity of a bishop.
There was something in the mans
serene iirmness which marked him as
a strong character and commanded my
respect, though ii did not endear him TO
me. He did his work with the utmost
faithfulness. was silent almost TO n
mysterious degree, had no cronies to
consume his time, drank no strong liz
uors-in short, was 4 model gardener
yet I could not like him. My brother
:n-law sought TO convince me that it
was Patrick's physical defornitieS
which offended me, for he was n short,
knotty person with malformed back
which resulted in lower limbs so dis
torted that he 'toed OUT almost a.
right angles TO the direction In which
he walked, or hobbled rather. His face
was an insolvable puzzle. Every de-
tail Of it. Judged by itself. was UMPIRE
possessing. yet rs Il whole ii was al
NEST beatific. 1t seemed fairly to
shout, "Here amid all this ugliness is
conscience utterly free from SIM
And | think 1t was this seeming incon-
gruity-this apparently impossible yet
obviously present ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
with his serene. almost patronizing; air
of soul superiority, which l resented in
our gardener.
In the fall, when the grapevines had
been covered for the winter. we let
Patrick 20 ard saw no more of him I'M
til the following St. Patricks day.
AS we sat waiting for the procession
we saw lone horseman whom we
stand beside the roadway half a
block above us. He wore great cloak
which covered his body and fell al
most to his stirrups. On his head was
a queer looking cap, shaped somewhat
In the semblance of Il bishops inter.
When the procession came along, this
horseman raised his arms as if lie were
pronouncing. benediction upon the
marchers and turned his face reyerent-
ly upward. The physical task of keep
ing his arms aloft. bearing upon them
the weight OF the great cloak, must
have been prodigious, yet so he sat.
motionless, silent, impressive. until the
last of the marchers had passed him.
We asked our neighbors on the plat
form who this strange man might be,
but none could tell. At last woman
with an old shawl over her head sitting
on one OF the steps volunteered the in
formation that lie was called st. Pat
rick the Second because he claimed TO
have killed the last and largest of the
snakes in Ireland.
Some poor, crazy fellow, we agreed,
and would have dropped the matter
there, but as the last of the marchers
passed him the horseman wheeled in
behind and rode toward us. Opposite
our platform he turned in his saddle
and raised his arms again as If TO bless
US ali. His race was positively beauti-
ful with the light of divine benevolence
upon it.
Il declare" said DR.. Graham, its
Patrick
Sure enough it was oui old gardener.
Ard he won me completely to him by
the sweetness of his face, the grandeur
of the soul that beamed upon it.
A few days later, when the warmer
winds of spring began 10 stir, Patrick
applied for his old place and was i'm
mediateIy taken on. He was not only a
good gardener and faithful worker,
but he now had become parsonage of
intense interest to US. The doctor
wished to study the ease" anu | had
much curiosity to satisfy. But, though
we cultivated Patrick assiduously,
about all we LEANED in the first two
months was that he believed himself to
be st. Patrick reincarnated and that
he had completed the purpose of his
second incarnation by Kidding Ireland
of her last and greatest shake. He was
now only awaiting in peace his time to
60 hence.
: Cautious questioning had ELECTED
this much, and we noted that when his
mind was on the subject of his accom-
plished mission his face shone with the
consciousness of noble work well
done But no art of ours could induce
him to tell anything more concerning
this wonderful snake or how it had
been so happily destroyed. Beyond the
fact that he had killed it for tie good
and glory of mankind he was as i'm.
movably silent as the rocks.
One evening in June as I was coming
home DIR. Graham met me at the cor
ner. 1t was manifest that something
had greatly disturbed him. though he
struggled TO hide his excitement behind
a calm exterior.
Patrick has gene.- said he. And his
tone plainly indicated that he was glad
of it
whats the natter asked
'He.is not as harmless as we thought
he was"