CHAPTER XV.
THE CROTALUS.
There are several species of rattlesnakes found in California, amongwhich are the black, spotted and striped. Some of them grow to anenormous size and are anything but pleasant strangers to encounter,especially when you come upon them suddenly and find them coiled. It isa peculiarity of these specimens of the _Crotalus_ of America that theystrike only from the coil, are easily killed, and generally, although_not always_, do they rattle before they dart forward their poisonousfangs.
We can conceive of nothing upon the face of this beautiful earth moreshudderingly repulsive than a rattlesnake. The arrowy head, and shiny,flabby body, with its glistening scales and variegated color, itstapering tail, with that dreadful arrangement by which it imitates soclosely the _whirr_ of the locust, the bead-like eyes, with no lids anda fleshy film dropping over them--all these make up the most terriblereptile found on the American continent.
And then imagine one of these creatures _coiled_! The thick, heavy bodywith the tail projecting upward from the center, the head drawn back,and the red, cavernous mouth open, with the curved, hollow teeth and thesacs at their roots filled nigh to bursting with this concentratedessence of the vilest of all poison--imagine this, we say--but don't doit either! If you have never seen a rattlesnake, don't go near one,unless you have a chance to kill it, even if his fangs have beenextracted. The heel shall bruise the serpent, and that is the best useto which they can be put.
But as Howard Lawrence opened his eyes, in the dull light of this summermorning, he saw coiled within five feet of him a striped rattlesnake,its intensely black eyes fairly scintillating light, and its rattlegently waving but making no noise.
In a single second his true peril flashed upon him. If he moved thereptile would strike. He might throw himself suddenly backward, but inthat case if he escaped, the malignant fangs would be buried in thesleeping Elwood ere he could open his eyes and understand the dangerthat threatened him. And he was afraid, too, to speak to him and Tim inthe hope of awaking them. There would be blundering upon their part, andblundering meant but one thing--death.
Howard looked straight at the serpent's eyes and became conscious of astrange sensation passing through him. The small, black orbs seemed toadvance, shrink and float away through the air, enchaining his ownvision until the will, which had so vehemently repelled the danger grewindifferent, and the thought of peril merged into a vague, dreamysemi-consciousness, which, while it took knowledge of the terriblereptile, coiled and ready to strike, yet failed to impress the mind withthe energy to withdraw from its terrible power. His blood slowlychilled, as if vein by vein it froze throughout his person, until fromhead to foot the vital current was congealed. At times he strove tomove, or more properly sought, in the mysterious make-up of ourcomposition, to rouse the will from its torpor, but with the same resultas follows the effort of the sufferer to use his paralyzed limb. Thewill seemed to make a feeble twitch or two and then subside, unable tobreak the fatal spell spreading over his mind and faculties. The eyes ofthe reptile glared upon his own, their bead-like blackness taking theform of a point of fire waving, floating, gyrating and circling in theair, doubling in and out in rings of the rainbow's hues, melting awayinto the distance, then drifting forward until mingled with his own, upand down in the same bewildering maze of color and design that visitsthe patient when lost in the delirium of fever. And all the time it wasas if the rattlesnake was conscious of the dreadful power he held overhis victim. Its arrowy head and long neck were started silently towardhim, as if threatening instant destruction; and then, like the cattoying with her victim, it was withdrawn again, and the spell deepenedand increased. A strange whirl passed through the mind of the boy. By aviolent attempt to call in his wandering thoughts he gathered an idea ofthe mortal danger impending over him, but he could not centralize hismental powers.
The bewildering sensations were somewhat similar to that of a man whosebrain has received a violent concussion--the mysterious chambers andchannels through which thought forced its way were choked up and thesubtle impetus recoiled, powerless to perform its function. He felt thenecessity of clear, vigorous thought, but his dull brain would notwork--the cold incubus upon it chilled it through and through; and allthe time the malignantly beautiful reptile was partly coiling anduncoiling, the articulated ring giving a faint rattle, as if caused bythe slight vibration of its body. After a while the serpent lay still,but never once was its eye removed from its victim. It was growing tiredof dallying with its prey and was making ready to strike. The coilbecame close and compact, the rattle rising from the center, and the eyeassumed a clear, metallic sharpness that appeared to throw forward itsfateful rays into his own. He saw that the sport was done and the snakewas ready to strike; he strove to move, but could not; he essayed tospeak, but the words choked him unuttered. He saw the reptile calling inits strength and----
_"Quick, Howard, draw the blanket over you! He can't strike throughthat!"_
The practical, energetic words of Elwood Brandon, whom he had imaginedasleep at his side, broke the dreadful spell that had enchained Howard.He felt the mist pass from his eyes, his mind threw off the incubuswhich had borne it down, and he was himself again, with clear mentalpowers.
His right hand lay upon the thick blanket, and sensible of his extremeperil, he quickly closed it, grasping the edge firmly, and then threwhimself over upon his face and against his cousin, but covering boththeir bodies at the same instant with the heavy, closely-knit cloth.
At the very moment of doing so the angry locust-like ring of the reptileand a sharp thrust against the blanket as if struck by a small stickannounced that it has given its blow.
Howard and Elwood both shouted to Tim to come to their assistance; butere he could respond a rush was heard, followed by a fierce growl, andthey understood at once that Terror had appeared upon the scene.
They let him rage for a few moments and then, Tim having informed themthat the snake was "kilt entirely," they cautiously crept forth. As theylooked furtively around they saw at once that the Newfoundland had donehis work well. The reptile was torn into shreds and strewn over an areaof several yards. Its fangs had entered the blanket where, while theydid not pierce through they stuck irrevocably, holding the reptile aprisoner to the fury of the dog.
Thankful indeed were the boys for their providential escape from thisdreaded creature. Elwood had been awakened by its slight rattling, when,suspecting the danger that was closing around his cousin, he uttered thewarning words which we have given and which proved the means of robbingthe blow of the reptile of its danger.
The fangs were carefully extracted from the blanket, and Howard declaredhis intention of preserving them as a curiosity; but within a half-hourafter leaving the camp they were lost, and he did not judge it worthwhile to search for them.