The Pulaskian., 1920-06-24

did. Just to prove to the darkey that
 the snake was not poisonous, he made 1t cut itself, when it immediately
 swelied to twice it's original size,
 which was not very convincing toI
 Sam. He also held one with stick
 to see what it could do. It bent it's
 tail around a cornstalk. and as he drew it toward himself MT. Thomas
 could plainly hear it cutting the stalk.
 They are glassy black on the back
 and across their bellies run black and
 red bars They only inhabit the low
 swamp land, and if the soil is the
 least bit moist they can stick their |
 head into it and bore out of sight
 like an earthworm. MT. Thomas has
 killed them three and a half to four inches in diameter and five and one
 half feet long. l am not certain {
 whether this is the same as the horn and hoopsnake, but if it is, which it E very much resembles, it is a dangerous fellow
 MT Thomas father used to be the woods superintendent of one of the big sawmills, so his boys got an ex- cellent opportunity to study nature, and he always has something interest ing to tell me of the strange secrets of nature he has observed.
 He says thh jaybird is a tree planter and when he flies across an old field he carries an acorn, which he plants
 The pine seed is very tiny affair with one wing, and when it leaves it's parental home flies to it's growing place on a favorable breeze.
 He has three sons and tiny daughter and old Dan Dan is g years old, but still has lots of life. He will jump any fence except a barb wire over four feet high, and he will not allow another horse to stay in his The mules, however, he just bites and makes stand around. He seems to have an idea that they are useful to work, but must keep their place. He was the finest saddle and best work horse in the county. He worked him several years log ging, which is about as hard work as you can put a horse to, as well as at other equally hard work He was pre- sented to him when colt by his father, who gave each of his children one. Their school was so far away that they had to ride, and he has picture of the whole bunch of them mounted and ready to start to school He also has picture of himself on old Dan, when he was counting his wife, for he rode him while eourting her. He sent his oldest boy to the store on him after a lot of nails last summer, but old Dan would not either let the boy ride him back, nor would walk back and lead him. He never baked with Mir Thomas but once, and that was when he was young He gave him a good whipping then and he has never forgotten it, for he fears and hates a whipping worse than any horse, but he balks the first time any new man tries to work him, but when MT Thomas comes down and intro duces the stranger the latter has no more trouh1e with him
 Once while looking for the head of Fish Creek with two other men, he sat down in an open space on the root of big tree. One of the other men sat down on a root on the other side of the tree and when the other man pushed back some grass to sit down on the root between him and the tree he uncovered a big rattle snake about. five feet long all coiled up and ready to strike. He said the hair stood straight up on the mans head He cut little sprout and struck it back of the head just one lick and killed it dead, the easiest he ever killed snake in his life, which looks as though he was fright ened enough to hit hard
 Hogs fatten in these bottoms on crayfish when other stuff plays out E