The sun., 1905-11-12
CNAKE METHOD OF
- BLEACHING HAIR.
A Newark CIergYman's Accom-,
Of a Robber Who Was on
Hand When Needed.

James's Episcopal Church, Newark, talk.J
about his travels the other evening to
club Of young men attached TO st. paups
Episcopal Church, Newark. Among othor
things he told Of one night he spent Will.
on an expedition to the Great Falls q, thS
2ambesi, in South Africa, when the psrty
camped in the forest and told stories whis
stretched around the fire.
In the company were Oxford and Cam.
bridge mon, graduate Of Yale and anothsr
from Princeton; and somehow they got u
talking about Byron's prisoner OF Chillon
Some one asked the question if it were Don.
sibe for a mans hair to turn white in 1.
single night. There was brisk disou,sio,
on the point until some one said
Wed better let old Bill Lee, sitting ovs,
there, settle the debate. How about h,
Bill?"
The man addressed told story, a TIM.
one. of his own experience in answer.
He said that some years before he had
been mining further down the country
in camp filed with all sorts of strange
characters, from the very ends of the earth,
and some Of them about as desperate men
as could be found anywhere. His own
claim was about two miles out of the minina
settlement.
Usually he washed out his gold at the end
Of each day and took it to the bank, but once
1t so happened that for two days he was
too tired at nghtfall to take hs gold in.
On the evening of the third day he took all
his washings in gold dust for the three days
and digging hole in the ground within ha
tent, buried it, and built his campfire
over it.
After his supper he lighted candle, stuck
it on box and lying down sank into the
slumber of the BEAUTIFULLY tired. After a
time he was awakened by a feeling Of some.
thing cold stealing up his right leg. He
did not raise his body, but in the dim ligh.
of the candle he was able to make out the
lower end Of one Of the most poisonous
snakes in Africa, one whose bite is fatal.
Lee knew that if he moved his leg the
snake would bite him, and he lay motion.
less TO some time wondering what to do.
Aft er a time it occurred to him that IL tho
On axe crawled to his abdomen it would
surely cause him to move, which would
arouse tn serpent to strike, so he cautiously
reached down and frightened his belt, which
he had loosened for the night.
The snake moved forward slowly and
steadily; he ould feel it's cold, clammy
body ascending, with the slowness Of the
hour hand of the clock, and the deliberate.
ness of it's motion caused an indescribabs
horror to rise in him and the cold sweat
broke out on his body. He could see no
way out Of this fix, and he tried to resign
himself to death.
Strangely and mysteriously the story
Of his whole life began to pass before his
gotten came rushing back into his memory
in troops, He had little doubt now
that he was to die there thus shabbily
far away from his English home, on the
dreary veldt.
He stretched out one hand and felt about
the ground until his fingers came upon a
nail He then paved about until he could
fasten his fingers over the edge of an empty
meat tin, and bringing the tin to his chest
he slowly scratched message to, his sste;
in the hope that those who found his body
would also light upon the scrawl, be able
to decipher it and send it to the address
he painfully etched on the tin
Then he composed himself for DEATH
with the empty meat can on his chest, all
the time feeling the slow advance OF the
deadly thing along his leg He thinks he
sank into a sort of stupor or trance, but
again consciousness came to him and he
found himself devising a new scheme for
extricating himself from his danger.
He decided to try and get his knife out
OF his pocket, open it and cut the pocke,
out OF his trousers, in the hope that when
the snake reached that point in his journey
up his leg it would thrust its head through
and that then he might seize it back Of the
head hold it so it could not bite and crush
its life out.
BY dint of cautious manpuvring Lee
finally got out his knife and cut out his
pocket and the cloth above 1t. But when
the snake reached the hole it felt the cold
air, from which it had sought refuge in biz
trouser leg, and did not come out.
ZEE again sank into trance, and after
a time he was aroused by feeling a cold
pressure on his forehead. He openei
his eyes and looked up. He saw the form
Of man. bending over him and heard
hoarse voice say:
Don't move, or I'll blow your brains
out!"
BLOW EN- out, old man, if it will give yon
any pleasure; he answered. Il don't cara
what you do
The man was, no doubt, one OF the des-
perate characters from the nearby camp.
He had probably noted that Lee had not
gone to the bank for three days, and figured
on laying his hands on fat little pile OF
gold dust.
He groped around the tent, searching for
Lees pile. He emptied tins and cans
poked into Lees chest, looked everywhere,
and finally approached Lee himself,
The latter lay motionless, as he had now
down and began feeling for Lees rocket
He found it and innocently thrust his hand
into the hole which Lee had cut in his
trousers leg.
On the instant the snake struck and biz
the robber, There was eoream of agony,
and the desperate was dancing about the
tent in pain and mortal fear, for he knew
full we'll what it was had struck him
The snake, having vented its anger
wriggled away, and the neyt thing Lee
heard was the desperate calling for an axe.
He found an axe and without an instants
hesitation he stretched his hand across
log and severed his thumb and two fingers,
and by SO doing saved his life, for n"
poison had not yet got into his system
Lee staggered to his feet, and did what he
could to bind up the mans bleeding hand,
gave him a drink of whiskey and sent him
packing or toward the mining town for
medical aid Soon the morning came, ana
then Lee discovered that his hair had turned
white in single night.
IL IUI.