e body a foot or more and turning its insignificant head,
would look straight towards my partly closed eyes and, with its
hideous mouth agap, would dart its poisonous arrow-like tongue in and
out like lightning, then lowering itself, it would resume the same
tactics as before. How many times it repeated this, I shall never
know. No words have ever been formed that can adequately express the
feeling that took possession of me. I seemed powerless to move a
muscle or twitch an eye-lid. The suspense was terrible, expecting
each time that the slimy body descended the viper would thrust his
poisonous lance into my leg and all would be over. The horror of it
all cannot be imagined, and to this day, when I recall the incident,
it sends a shiver through my entire body. As the coarse rattles of his
tail left the bare flesh of my leg, my senses seemed to return; but it
was only for a moment, for through the pant of my right leg I felt
that same crawling sensation and I knew in an instant that it was a
mate following the one that had just passed over the bridge of flesh.
As soon as it reached the bare leg the dirty reptile went through the
same horrible stunts as the first one. The agony seemed impossible to
bear and when at last the thing had completed its journey and was at a
safe distance away, I leaped into the air--how far I shall leave the
reader to surmise. Crazed with anger and trembling from head to foot,
I rushed for my revolvers and fired at random. I was considered a good
shot in those days, but in this excited condition I would not have
been able to hit a barn. I ran for my Henry Carbine and, grasping it
by the barrel, made short work of ridding the earth of the cause that
had produced the most terrifying scare experience during my western
life.

[Illustration: BILLIE! BILLIE!]

THE FAITHFUL HORSE

For the first time during the excitement my thoughts turned to my
faithful horse, but he was nowhere to be seen. The horror of the
situation began to dawn upon me and I realized at once that I was lost
on that desolate plain--one hundred miles from any camp that I knew of
and apparently alone. I cried out, "My God, what can be done!" The
thought was enough to drive one crazy. Can I ever forget it? I think
not; nor could anyone. Even to see or talk to an Indian would have
been a comfort. Driven to agonizing despair I ran for my field glass
and scanned the rolling ground in every direction. Buffalo, deer,
antelope, coyot