Iowa
Old Press
Jackson Sentinel
Jackson co. Iowa
July 14, 1893
A STARTLING ADVENTURE WITH A RATTLER
The following incident was related to the rambling editor while
on his mission for items one day last week, but one Geo. Barnes,
as a true story,
as told him by one of the participants:
A young man named Hardin, residing near Crabbstown, accompanied
by his father went hunting recently in that locality which lies
in the interim of the Big Woods. They had not searched long until
they succeeded in chasing a squirrel up one of the tall giants of
the forest. The squirrel hid himself so snugly in the heavy
foliage and long branches of the tree that the young man found it
necessary to lie flat upon his back in order to sight his game.
He was not long in this position when he was aroused by the
startling sound of a rattler in close proximity to his head. He
sprang quickly to his feet, crying, "Father, (who was near),
where is that rattle snake?" "Around your neck,"
answered his father in an excited tone.
"Don't move my son, or it will bite you. Stand still and I
will shoot it." The venomous reptile had coiled it's tail
around the boy's neck, and
extended the rest of his body right in front of him with a fiery
darting tongue and villainous pair of eyes staring him in the
face.
"No, Father, that will be too risky. I will endeavor to
shoot it myself." The young man carefully raised his own
gun, pulled the trigger, blowing the
snake's head to atoms. The youth then fell in a fainting swoon,
and it was several minutes before he recovered from the terrible
nervous shock he had experienced.
The supposition is that when laying down he lay upon the snake
when it gave a hitch around the boy's neck. As a trophy this
young man is sporting seven rattles as the result of this
adventure. This is a little the worst snake experience we have
heard of this year.
[transcribed by L.Z., January 2007]