The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1907-05-19
HERE IS A REAL,
TRUE SNAKE STORY
Just Shows How Much Stranger
Than Fiction Truth
Really Is.
RATTLESNAkE THAT
DID GREAT MANY THINGS
Commits Suicide When His
Fire Alarm Business Is Put
Out of Commission.

"Out in Kimbles, Pike county, Penn
sylvania, where I worked nights for a
while, - said the talkative railroad tele-
graph operator, whose veracity is quite
way beyond question, to the New
York Sun, "the junior dry goods box
which did duty rs railroad station
was connected with the house of the
station agent by private telephone
This telephone was equipped with bell
that could make a noise to put any
peace congress in the shade.
"To muf]le the sound of this bell I
stuffed il with paper every night. AS
| was lying on the table one night
irving TO catch a few winks between
trains, every few minutes | would he
awakened by the rattle Of the paper
stuffed bell,
~ would answer the phone and the
station agent would declare that he
! hadn t been anywhere near the line,
/ turbing him and calling him out of bed
to ask such fool questions he would
come down 70 the station and endeayor
| to change the topography of my face.
$50 [ lay down TO rest, there being
q hiatus in the trains owing TO n
small freight wreck up the line. But
after brief interval I was awakened
| by buzz right by my ear.
~ jumped about 'steen feet whom l
discovered that | had made my bed
right near the biggest rattlesnako [ had
ever seen, ie was all curled up ready
to strike. This was what had been dis
turbiug my rest.
81 grabbed a broom handle and was
I going 10 put him out of business. But
- Il - l..
/ snake S eve seemed to fasclnate and
deter me from killing the reptile. Well,
sir, do YOU know that snake seemed TO
have a large degree of intelligence, and
as | had more or less experience in the
training of snakes, having been with
a travelling circus in my youth, | decid
ed ] could teach the reptile so he would
be Of use to me in my business
$50 | gave him the high sign and
in few minutes | had him charming
mice, with which the little station was
overrun. II WASH + many DAYS before
| had broken the snake, whom | chris
tened Deirium Tremens, so that he was
q regular alarm clock.
'' would make mp my bed of nights
and on the, approach of train the
snake would sound his rattles-he had
thirteen of thcm-and wake me up.
would then report the train as passing
the station, and go back to sleep.
II never knew old D. r. to fall
down on single train, ] might have
foreseen, though, that snake Will
thirteen rattles was IN for an unlucky
existence.
"Oue dav the electric bell on the
highway crossing which warned vehicles
and pedestrians passing along The road
Of the approach of a train got out oi
order. II would be somo time before
lineman could make his anpearance
and readlust the apparatus. The station
agent was in a pretty pickle,
Why. ] said, that S easy II
Just put old D. T up there in the bel
box and he Will stay on the works apc
do the Job up TO the handle He did
too.
"Thcre was only one thing which
marred the happiness up there at Kim
bles after | adopted the stake as as
sistant night operator The station
. agent had a large hound which was 1
general favorite around the station Will
the hnngcrs.oD. But the wonderful ac
' complIsbment Of my trained snake 90
noised around and Tipe g nose was ou
of JOINT
was persona non grata with him. How
ever, the dog was little afraid o
: the snake. and | had no fear that N,
would care TO violate the PRINCIPLES o.
The Hague conference and mix mat
ters up.
: 1.-The day that Tremcns was doin,
duty as crossing bell happened {,