The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1906-01-16
ROBBER WAS Fooled
BIZ YENOlNo . snake
SERPENT Il Ap era WE'D ITO
81 TF1Ille OF AN on I. WI n ON 4. 2
\ RoRslNc ATTEMR

CE0I VI ~ ~ "a
RoRslNc ATTEMPT
". MADE.
Il ROY, T. Pefciyal Bate rector q ~
Jamess episcopal Church. Newarlk,
talked about HIS travels recently to q
club Of young men attached Y 81.
Paurs Episcopal church, Newsrf,
Among other things he told q one ne
night he spent while on an exhibition y
to the great falls Of the zambesi, IN.
South Africa, when the party caEppesl
IN the. forest and told stories while
stretched around the FIRE, says the
New York Sun.
IN the company were Oxford and
Cambridge men, graduate of Yale
md another from : Princeton, and
somehow they got to talking about Bys
ron,s iPrisoper Of Chiffon" Some.
one asked the question II It were pos.
Iyihle for a mans hair to turn white in
single night. There was brisk
discussion on the point until some one
said:
"we'd better let old Bill Lee, sitting
over there, settle the debate. How
abottt 1, Bill"
The man addressed tod story, 4
tue one, Of his own experience in an:
swer.
He said that some years betore he
had been mining further down the
country in a camp filed with ali sorts
Of strange characters, from the very
ends Of the earth, and some Of them
about as desperate men aa could be
found anywhere. His own claim was
about two miles out Of the mining set.
tlement.
Usually he washed out his gold at
the end Of each day and took it to the
bank, but once it SO happened that for
Two days he was too tired at nightfall
to take his gold in. On the evening
OF the third day he took all his wash,
tngs in gold dust for three days, and
digging a hole in the ground wtthtl
his tent, buried it and built a campfire
over it.
After his supper he lighted a can.
die, stuck it on box and lying down
sank into the slumber of the health
fully tired. After a time he was awals;
edel by a feeling Of something cold
stealing up his right leg. ae did not
raise his body but in the dim light Of
the candle he was able to make OUT
the lower end Of one Of the most poi:
onous snakes in all Africa, one whose
lite is fatal.
Lee knew that If he moved his leg
the snake would bite him, and he lay
motionless for some time wonderinsT
What to do. After a time 1t occurred
to him that If the snake crawled to
his abdomen 1t would surely cause. htta
to move, so he would arouse the SER
pent to strike, so he cautiously reach
cd down and frightened his belt, which
he had loosened for the night,
The snake moved forward slowly
and steadily. he could feel its cold,
clammy body ascending, with the slow
ness Of the hour hand Of a clock, and
the deliberateness Of Its motion caused
an indescribable horror to arise in
him, and the cold sweat broke out on
his body. He could see no way out o:
the fix and he tried TO resign himself
To death,
Strangely and mysteriously tks sto-
ry Of his whole life began to pass b';-
fore his mental vision: deeds, long
since forgotten came rushing back into
his memory in troops. He had little
doubt now that he was to die there
thus shabby, far away from his Eng
lish home, on the dreary yeldt.
Heistretehed out one hand and felt
about the ground untilhis fingers came
upon a nail He then paved about I'M.
til he could fasten his fingers over Il I,
edge of an empty meat tin, and bring
ing the tin to his chest he slowly
scratched a message to his sister in
the hope that those who found his
body would also light upon the scrawl,
he able to declpher It and send 1t To
The address he painfully etched up'n
the tin.
Then he composed himself 70.
death; with the empty meat can on
his chest, all the time feeling the slow
advance Of the deadly thing along his