The Pickens sentinel. (Pickens, S.C.) 1911-2016, August 25, 1921, Image 4
sclens Sonlbisi
PICKENS, S. C.
LISHED EVERY THURSDAY.
a Year Invariably in Advance.
red at sickens, S. C. Postoffice as
Senond Class Mai! Matter.
ARY HIOTT, Editor and Mgr.
7* *
*
THE HORN SNAKE. *
2veral weeks ago The Sentinel
ished the re,,ort that a horn (or
) snake had been killed in the
ky Bottom section of Pickens
y. T(lTe Greenville Piedmont
..d the Item and said there was
.uch thing as a horn snake in
country and the hoop snake ex
I in imagination only. The Co
bia State also ridiculed the idea
such a snake really existed, as
several others.
ast week The Sentinel reproduc
from Logan's History of Upper
th Carolina facts that proved the
n snake was in this section before
Revolutionary War and was
itly dreaded by the Indians and
y settlers.
Ve are bringing the proof closer
ie ths week.
n an effort to learn more of th<
n snake The Sentinel has inter
Ned several people who have actu
seen these reptiles and we be
e the information we have gain
is sufficient to prove to any on
t there is not only such a serpen
the horn snake, but that it ha
:n known to make a circle of itsel
I roll like a hoop.
\lost everybody has heard of th
rn (or hoop) snake, but few hav
:ually seen them. The belief tha
ere is such a snake is so genera
d tales of it so numerous tha
.'re is bound to be some foundatio
r it. However, in this attempt t
ove that there is a horn snak
10 Sentinel is using no heresa
-idence at all, but all statement
adie can be proven by some of ou
ost reputable and honorable eit
as.
The snake referred to in the r<
nt news item was killed in Rock
ottom by Messrs. lrank Stewar
harlie and Il om r Gravley. W
ave seen one of the Messrs. (Grp
!y and he tells us the amu" w
early nine feet long angiJs large
n average man's thi od. The snake
end was in ,th aio track of th
0oad wVheyir /first seen andl was sho
.Vhe 111 iot it violenitly br'ought it
aMi4uer its hack and struck it int
he ground. An examinat ion of' th
nake p)roved that two or three inach
s of the extreme (end of its tail wa
ahardl, horny subhsta nce' which taper0
~d to a sharp l)oint andl in the ema
* >f this point was a pin-like "sting
yr." It is supplosed that the snak<
* fliuts out its p)oison wvith this stin~ger
(loor the past several years man:
cattle in the Rocky Bottom sectio1
have been found dleadl and no caus
for dea1th could be found. It is noi
thought by the people up there tha
the large horn snake recently kille
in that section was the cause of th
death of the cattle. There is n
proof of this, but it is a likely sur
position.)
Mr. "Buddy" Patterson, wvho kille
.wo horn asnakes this summer, wan
*nterviewedl by Mr. E. D. (Lige
Thastain for The Sentinel. Mi
Thastain is one of our best know:
* itizens and his word cannot for on
* noment be. doubted in the least. IH
knows all parties mentioned in hi
interview andl vouches for them
The first one of these snakes tha
Mt. Patterson killed was near Mr
SLee $tansell's home on Big Easta
tee. Mrs. Stansell discovered it an<
called to Mr. Patterson, who waII
'aearby. Hie cameC and shot tho
mrake. After its head was shot en.
Lirely from its body the snake threwi
ta tall ove'r and struck its horn int<
;he ground exactly as did the ono
killed by Messrs. Stewart and Grayv
ley. The -Stansells and Pattersor
never having seen such a snake be.
fore, they called In Mr. Cling Bowven
the oldest citizen of the section, who
said' it was a horn snake and1( that he
had seen them before. The other
horn snake Mr. Patterson killed this
summer was at Standing Rock on
the line between North and South
Carolina. It wvas first seen by a
daughter of Mr. Colema'n Aiken. She
called to her' father to conme kill it.
He came with a hoe, but after see
ing the snake decidled it was too, big
and serious looking to tackle with a
hoe, so he called Mr. Patterson to
come with his gun. After being
shot It acted like the others andl
stuck its horn into the earth. Both
(these snakes are described as being
six or seven feet long andl as large
a anman's le at the knee. Their
cept that some six or eight inchei
below the neck there were stripes
that run up and down, and thebr
head., are thick from top to bottom
instead o . ming broad from side t<
side. The horns on the end of thel
tails are something like a cock'i
spur, except larger, and i the ehd
of the horn is a stinger. Withou
exception every person who has seer
one of these snakes describes it
horn and stinger exactly alike.
County Auditor N. A. Christophe
once killed a horn snake and his wife
also killed one. While their soi
Ernest was hoeing in the field once
he dug a snake from under a rool
The snake - inmediately wrappee
itself around the hoe handle an
struck the handle with its tail sev
eral times. This is the one Mrs
Christopher Wiled. Mr. Ernes
"h.'.".opher is now manager of Ben
son's store in Pickens and he als
distinctly remembers this inciden
that happened when he was a boy.
Mr. Wade H. Chastain killed
horn snake when he was a boy
Sheriff Roark killed a small one o
Wolf Creek near Pickens last Jula
Mr. W. W. Aiken saw one that wa
killed on his place above Picker
several years ago.
Mr. Aiken also tells us that i
distinctly remembers hearing h
mother tell of seeing a snake rollin
like a hoop. Mrs. Aiken did n<
hear of this snake but saw it wil
her own eyes.
Mr. Alonzo Pace tells us thi
when a young man he was fishing c
Twelve Mile river with several cor
panions and they saw a snake rollir
like a hoop. When the mnake reac
ed the shrubbery near the raver bar
it straightened out and was killi
by Mr. Pace and his companior
It was a horn snake and Mr. Pa
described its horn exactly like othe
have described them.
Mr. J. L. LaFoy, who is now an o
man, says he lkilled a horn snake
the Travelers 'Rest section
Greenville cuonty some thirty yea
ago. The snake was after a do
but was crawling. Mr. LaFoy al
t. saw a horn sna'ke fastenedl in a tr
I on Mr. Marion Hunt's place on tl
t Cox bridge road about forty yea
. go. The snake had thrown its hoi
into the tree and could not relea
e it. When Mr. La~oy saw the snal
Iy was dead and the leaves of ti
s tr-- , which was known to have bee
r -div a short time before, were wit
All of the above t -tiIn( nv i I
ic"I ',,nty 4itizien who ar<- a
ho/nortabhe aInd reliale yr
w\\ m il ven Ia.'ty cam mI?I 1.. % ',ti; et
\v, '6, s bmit that it ab.
- .e l(P f t hat t h- hor snake do
exi:. We have heard of othe
who have seen these reptiles, bi
we are not publishing any hearsa
vilence" at all, and, besides, we b
Ieve the evidlence~ we have pro(duct
Tlhere is no doubt but there
suhasrpenlt asthe horn snake a
thatt it has been knowvn to make
hoop of itself and roll like one, no
withstanding the fact that so-calit
herpetologists fail to mention it
their books, and the learned edlit<
of the Columbia State. has never set
one. We trust that this evidence
also sufficient to make a believer
the editor of The Greenville Pie
mont. He is a good friend
-Pickens county and he should give
tcredit for our snakes, too.
e Since the above wvas put in ty]
a The Piedmont has expressed furth
- doubt of horn snakes being
Pickens. We believe, howvever, th
the above dlisposes of every argi
Iment The Piedmont put uip.
Does The Piedmont still think thi
the only reason we believe the hor
snake is here is because it wvas he:
a hundred yer ago?
Does The Piedmont still dloul
that a horn snake was killedi
Rocky Bottom this year?
And does The Piedmont still thin
that we have producedl no testimon
that wvould be accepted by a Piec<
1ens county jury?
Come, Colonel; come clean an
acknowvledge that we have prove
our case. And then we will tell yo
about that "magnolia altissima," et<
*1OLD TIME PRINTER DEAD.
Mr. Charlie Tilden, an old tim
printer wvho had spent most o( his lat
ter years in Anderson, recently dliet
out West, wvhere he had gone ii
search of health. Charlie knew mana
of the famous "tourist" prin'ters o1
his (lay and at one time wvorkedl wit1
Opie Read, the author, when Rea(
w'as a prinlter. Ini the 80's Charli<
worked in Pickens and he used t<
tell how lie kept two water' buckets
on the table in the shop, one tille('
with water andl the other filled wit):
whiskey and1( his friends wecre wch.
come to help) themselves to which.
ever beverage. they preferred. So
far as we knowv whiskey wvas Char.
lie's. only fault. Outside of that he
wa*is a good man and a good printer.
We hope that he finally conquered
his fault and that all is well with
Q)
rS
PClo
~ 1
e
is A"
,h
LtI
n
*1
I- I
i 1
rs
Announilngwi
i
I
$25-$3o0
la
1
Styled finely and tail
n famous clothes must be--ar
Fall products of our leads
opportunity for distinctly u
Really, clothes so fi
> should call for no further
we only hope you will see
here.
l* We've the newest sty]
n others with reserve, and
range of sizes.
Every man will find
every man will find them h<
Tomorrow will suit us
OUR STANE
Arrow Brand 6
Florshiem Sho<
Stetson and Sc)
1Arrow Collars.
Knit Ties.
E-Z, Ivory and ]
T.1. BEN
PIckens &
New Fal
thes..
-4- Deind n ad o
ordsbtNtialy Falluc
detailecooias h
ng Daese hold made too
patrne, andwi price-deae
nthate oernb thellothe tha
Bes knwfabrics toet and hs
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his ceraily clonomicalr, the
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