Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-01-28

TUSK AND COIL
Dallas Lore Sharp in National
Magazine.

e Dallas Lore Sharp in National 3
|3 Magazine. 9
Ibid ] ever have an adventure? Well,
no; but still. if you a call a big scare
an adventure then ] have mad one, at
least. a museum makers HE Is as
humdrum, for the most part. as the aY-
erage mans, tho once in a While he Is
pretty sure to have a TRANCE berth
The nearest / eve came to escaping
was from this specimen here. He
pointed to a jar in which hung the head
and skin of what had once been u huge
diamond rattlesnake.
1T was while l was collecting reptiles
on the Altamaha river. We had been
along Cedar Creek and We're making
across the swamp toward h railroad
at Lumber City. We had been out sew
eral days and every bag was full. l
never saw snakes as we saw them
there. If there is a snake heaven any
where, then it lies in hat stretch of
swamp between Cedar Creek and Lum-
Der City. And that is original, bona
fide swamp, too, along h Atlanta. l
had heard of dismal swamps, and
thought 1 had seen them, but never till
1 camped among the cypress of the AL
tamaha.
'.The day before we reached the rail-
road we caught this big fellow here in
the bottle. We had to spill out a whole
bagful of smaller specimens to make
room for him, but he was the largest
and the most beautifully wicked rat
tlesnake 1 had ever seen. l had to have
him. He was over five feet long.
thicker In the middle than my upper
arm, and all together with color and
malice.
There was no serpentine taper and
grace about him. Not any. Power only,
and malignity, compressed and concen-
trated. His body was sawed square
off at the tail, and his thick neck
swelled into the head that you see
here. Put poison into those heavy jaws
and a glitter into those eyes and you
will have a face as devilish as ever
crawled the earth.
I'VE had a tussle to bag him. We
finally got him, however, without a
scale or a broken fang. Coombs,
a naturalist along with me, shouldered
him for the afternoon and we kept on
the station. Along near night
we struck a trail, but the blazings were
few and faint and there were no signs
OF a cabin in sight when the darkness
began TO fall. 1t was time to look
sharp for a bed. In half al hour more
swami would be as black as the
heart OF the Catacombs. There is no
place on earth where the darkness falls
faster and thicker than in those sy-
press swamps Of the south.
I'VE seon found a little knoll that,
was high enough to give us a dry berth,
and, leaving Il specimens at the foot
Of a cypress. we laid down within easy
reach of them and began to wait for
daylight.
Sleep seemed out Of the question.
We hadn't even an overcoat for cover
ing, and it was along in October. We
put our backs together and warmed up
q little; but the night air had a deadly
chill in it. 1t was a grewsome place,
too. The silence was awful. There
Is something about a tall cypress with
it's draping moss something in the
depth n stirlessness of the night in
those great swamps, that's like the
grave. 1t was so still that l seemed
to hear the cypress needles let go and
The autumn had come far enough
to hush the insects; but Off in the
dead, dark calm the cry of an owl now
then. or the whinny OF a coon
would give the quiet tongue.
For a long time it was a struggle
between WEAKNESS and cold; but at last
WEAKNESS won the field, and we went
to sleep.
1T must have been near midnight.
[ don't know. But the moon was high
above the swamp. when felt her light
my face. Nothing eve touched
me more softly han the fingers of that
Nothing ever awoke me
more thoroughly. The scream Of a wild
cat. the touch Of cold steel, could not
nave done it more effectually. And yet,
{ had not moved a muscle. I could not.
The soft touch that woke me gripped
me like death.
II had rolled completely over in my
sleep, and now lay facing Coombs. He
turned upon his back and was
soundly with his face toward
sky.
Il knew by every atom of me that I
was in danger. I had heard nothing,
seen nothing, felt nothing. yet l was
aware before l knew 1 was awake, that
threatened. l was scarcely
an instant taking in Coomb's position,
when I caught a CLINT Of something on
his breast, and saw in the dim, half
light the form Of a huge snake partly
coiled upon the sleeper's body with its
big, horrid head lifted just above his
upturned face.
1T was the great diamond rattle
snake. The beast had worked a hole
the bag and crawled under Coombs.
evidently taking him for a log. Finding
the warmth of the body to its liking, 1t
had gently drawn itself up on the
mans breast to sleep till morning.