Ottumwa semi-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1916-1918, 1917-03-02
Its lot smaller. m'Lord," ss

| | said: and | thought for minute.
And after all why should there be
only one snake? That basket would
hold a Dozen I added.
! 1t was not a pleasant thought and we
; looked at one another uncOmfOrtably.
! ! slipped another cartridge into my gun
: Fortunately. l had. without thinking,
put a handful into my pocket.
We moved cautiously on and | led
the way. The doors of some of the
rooms on the first floor were open, and
went into each of them first. with my
gun ready. The first two rooms - a
;. library and a smoking room were
/, empty The third room was draw
! ing room and as went into 1t l heard
/ a rustic. The blinds were down and
| the room was dim.
keep OUT I cried. went to one Of
, the windows and jerked up the blind
Ten feet from me, in an easy chair,
! a big headed snake was rearing itself
up I blew it's head off. At the bang
of the gun two smaller snakes came
, darting out of hiding.
shouted "Shut the door" and jump
, ed on a chair.
The door banged to and the snakes
darted quickly backward and forward
along and across the room. ! cut one
clean In two with the other barrel.
Then l reloaded and when the smoke
had cleared little, shot the other
Then ! waited while to see if any
| more came out. but none did. | called
out that 1t was all right and the police.
men came in. I had made a mess of
the room: had cut the back Of the
easy chair to ribbons and spoiled the
carpet.
We examined the dead snakes, and
Brookes and both agreed that the Zig
beaded snake. which had shot in the
easy chair. was the one we had seen on
the stairs. Then went to the middle
window, in which was the window box
Frederick had been clipping when he
fell and examined the blind. It was
very dusty and on one side near its
edge were finger prints. Frederick
had been right: some one had drawn
the blind on one side and looked at him
round the edge of it. The house had
not been empty.
There were no more snakef in any
of the other rooms on the first floor.
When we had made sure of it we went
to the staircase of the second floor
There was barricade at the bottom Of
it a large mass Of barbed wire but
it was drawn up close to the cell ng,
and could be let down with rope to
fill the whole width of the staircase to
a height of six feet 1t was 4 very
clever idea I led the way up the
stairs. and was few steps up the sec
ond fight when a big snake came
quickly over the top stair right down at
me. | fred from the hip: it gave a
jump, pitched down the stairs. hitting
NIX leg as it passed and fell souirm-
ing kissing heap on the landing. fired
the other barrel into it as the rolice.
men fell tnmbling over one another
down the lower flight
was beginning to enjoy it. but then
/ had gun. The policemen looked un-
commonly nervous and shaky. TIL"
snake was the biggest one we had
come across yet
| gave the policemen little time TO
pull themselves together and then we
went up to the second floor The doors
of all the rooms were closed, and it
did not seem likely that there were any
snakes in them. However. we looked
/ through them all they were bed
rooms and made sure that there
We're no snakes in them. Then led
the way, under another barbed wire
barricade, hung to the ceiling. ZIP the
narrow staircase to the third floor In
all the houses in the Gardens the third
floor is arranged as servants quarters,
and the rooms are small. The doors
of al but one Of them We're open.
Here's the end Of the search" said
tapping the closed door; and the In.
spector opened It.
The blind was down but the room
was brightly lighted by the burning
gas. On the bed Law the body of
swarthy hook nosed black haired man
of about fifty-five He was dressed in
pajamas and a dressing gown saw
at first glance that he was dead The
ankle. in which there were two deep
wounds Plainly he had cut away the
flesh round the punctures from the
snakes fangs: but it had been no use
A half smoked cigar had fallen from
the fingers of his right hand and burn.
ed a hole in the blanket On the table
by the bed was an erDtv champagne
bottle and glass half full of the wine
stood beside it.
"A cool hand and tough" said the in
SpectOr. round that It was all up with
him and died enjoying himself not
been dead long either
We'll. if the snakes were brought
here the night before last by the people
Rrookes saw, they've only been in the
house thirty hours" I said ~ expect
he was going about in the dark in his
! paiamas and trod on one of them"
That's it, said the inspector. But
! wonder that he didn't bolt out to a
doctor"
HE was probably afraid that the
people who's had brought the snakes
were waiting for him. or perhaps he
knew the snake and that ii was no use
/ bothering about a doctor. He looks
/ as if he had been well baked in the
! tropics
Perhaps that's It, mLord,' said the
INSPECTOR.
Hanging on the wall were a maya
! zine rife and two shotguns with their
barrels cut short 10 spread buck shot
; All along one side OF the room We're
{ the burglar alarms which the wires in
/ the hall set ringing.