The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-07-12

DI uSll
 "Is this den still there?' said Sykes.
 "Oh, I guess I could find it again if I wanted to-" returned the Stranger, but I don't want to. l had enough O snakes that day to last me tn rest of my natural life. I've heerd about snakes standin' up on their tails like walkin' sticks but l never saw 1t till that day. I swear l saw two or three snakes wrapped up in bunch like striped stick candy, go waltzin' around In each others arms over them rocks. I can stand snakes layin' down and crawlin but when they git to standin' up on their tails an walk in around, it's me for tn sage brush. Honest to goodness, pardner, tn buzz of 'em rattles made more noise than a threshin machine or a sawmill. Tn whole two sides of that gulch was alive with 'em, wrigglin an crawlin' an twist in like vermicelli If a feller had had a pitchfork I bet he could have forked' em up like hay"
 The bartender came over and sat down at the table. The other boys gathered around with increased interest.
 T happened to have some matches with me, an I raked up a little bunch of buck brush down at the bottom of tn gulch an set fire to that to keep 'em away from where I was standin'. But, by graciousl tn warmth of tn fire seemed to attract 'em, an tn must have been solid foot deep of snakes around on tn outside of that circle of fire, soak in up tn heat, an I didn't know what minute they'd come crawlin' through tn flames. Talk about a man bein hemmed in! I've ridden after a stampede herd, an I've tackled tn orneriest broncho tn boys could throw an git a saddle on him. I never went against anything like that snake den. A feller didn't simply have no show at all To git out I'd "a had to step over thousands of 'em an I wouldn't have lasted longer than a pan of hot biscuits around a camp fire"
 'I never heard of a proposition like that before" said Sykes.
 well, such things have been seen, but not often, agreed the Stranger. But look at tn fix I was in There I was. throwin what little buck brush I could gather up on that little fire, with circle of hissin snakes all aronud me- an, an tn supply of buck brush mighty short, I'm tellin' you As long as I could keep up fire I felt half way safe, but when that buck brush was gone I knew I was all in. An all tn time more snakes kept comin out of them holes and crawlin' down tn sides of tn gulch. Them holes must have run back into tn hills half a mile, because I'll bet you half a mile O snakes come out of some of em They come out so fast it looked like one long reptile, hundreds of feet long. You couldn't tell where the tail of one left off an tn head of another one began. They were the most soclable bunch of snakes man ever saw. All kinds of em lived together in tn same hole. I tell you, If ever a man prayed for St. Patrick to m, bal ant of had hy a ao me. I stuck 1t out for about three hours an then I got down to my last bit of buck brush. My fire was gittin' low an there wasn't another bit of fuel In sight. I knew then that unless somethin hap pened I was all in"
 The bartender wiped his brow and vert back to the bar, returning with quart bottle and some glasses.
 That's the best one I ever heard" he said. Have one on tn house. Where do you suppose those snakes all came from, stranger?"
 The Stranger looked at the bottle.
 Thanks, pardner, but don't indulge.' he said. well, sir, them snakes. every last one of 'em, came out of a bottle jest about like that, an I haven't touched a drop since"
 Sykes kicked the dead snake out from under the table and threw 1t out of the door
 Stranger" he said, "Fll jest double my contribution, if you don't mind' and he took out another f1ve-dollar bill And I'll see you to tn train, too. an see that y git a ticket an berth feller that s got your qualifications ain't goin' to suf- fer fir lack of medical attention if I can help it. you bet"
 And the boys formed him as escort to the train.