Vernon County censor. [volume] (Viroqua, Wis.) 1865-1955, 1909-04-14
Truth Hbonf Snakes

I
was very happy place in which
10 spend the day The dog rolled
over and over in the new grass,
roofing out the tiniest OF yellow VIC
| let's with his nose / sat on the
| doorstep and whistled the first mea-
sures OF the Spring Song in sheer
joy. Spring is a truly wonderful
thing wherever it happens but when
ones lot chances to be cast in the
midst of great green treeIess buttes,
where one can see Spring coming
for miles-well, in that case, one
may well rhapsodize
Something big and black doomed
up suddenly on the long valley road
to the south-so suddenly, that it
took only a few seconds to confirm
the suspicion that it was a touring
car. | stopped whistling the Spring
Song and began to pin back stray
locks of hair, for this looked like
the approach of civilization. Soon
the car paused in the road beside
the shack and / saw that its occu-
pants consisted of man and boy
in the front, and a woman with two
younger boys in the tonneau.
They were the curious kind of
tourists who consider any quality
and quantity of questioning in per-
feet taste. They granted me the in
formation that they were from Chi
oaon IN OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES vyhioh Fl,ov
seemed to expect would awe such
an untutored native as l as much as
if they had named Mars as their
dwelling place. After which they
added thai they were touring the
country about Pierre, the state cap
itol. in their machine
The boys clambered down from
the car and proceeded to investigate
claim life for themselves, while the
parents continued to catechise me
condeseendingly from their seats, as
to the country and my own life there
in. I dislike being inspected, and be-
side one youngster at this moment
was uncovering my little cellar and
could see another disappearing in
side the shack. I'm afraid my an
swers We're sadly absent and irrele-
want for / was trying to look in three
directions at once.
Just as the dog, usually the gen.
tlest of CANNES, came hurriedly to
sit on my skirt for protection, growl-
ing angrily. the eldest boy threw a
lump of coal at him. That the coal
hit my corn instead of the dog did
not tend to increase the sweetness
of my temper All at once the
youngest of the trio appeared around
the corner of the shack with
double handful Of my precious onion
sets. newly sprouted, with the earth
still clinging to them.
Perhaps the lady doesn't wish
you to pull up things" suggested
the mother.
THE lady" was past speech for
at that moment two heads came into
view on the roof of the shack and
two or three loosened shingles were
pried off with a great screeehing of
nails and came flying toward us.
The combined requests of both par
ents failed to induce the boys earth
ward, and the lady continued the
conversation where it had been in
terrupted
Il suppose the stories one hears
regarding the large number of snakes
ace exaggerated" she ventured
I'm afraid not" / answered with
one eye on the roof You see the
snake season is just opening-only
this morning saw RATHER in the
>oulee nearest the road
She glanced anxiously a. her hus-
band-wh;le saw another handful OF
shingles fly.
But they are not considered as
dangerous as they were formerly;
are they" he asked uneasily.
Yes, they are decidedly so" /
rejoined. Some other varieties too.
are even more dangerous than the
rattlers. The moccasin. for instance
which is plentiful here, is far more
poisonous.
Have You seen any of them since
you Gamer" in worried tones.
Two yesterday" I replied laoon-
ically.
In Eve minutes more the car with
its occupants whiT ed over the hill
and out OF sight. sat down on the
doorstep and viewed the w.lted on
ion sets and the splintered shingles.
while the dog laid his head on my
knee with a sigh Of relief while his
brown eyes said fiatteringly, Every
one is quee but thee and nj.
About the snakes-certainly, il Was
all true. We had seen one thar
morning and two the dsy previous
and perhaps we saw a half dozen
more later on in the season-but In
summer Of 80 DAYS what do 9
snakes amount to- Think OF q
snakeless DAYS. Beside. q. times
snakes are useful
There's Que sure thing. and that Is
that Won can't be sure Of anything.