“If you say you’ll fight the snakes, I’ll git it for you—­I’m a going to stay here till they’re all killed,” continued Sneak.

“Give it to me, then—­I’ll smash their brains out the next time!” said Joe, with desperate determination.

“But you musn’t hit me agin!” said Sneak, dismounting and handing up the weapon to Joe, and then leaping on the steed again.

“Sneak, you’re no better than a snake, to bring me into such a scrape as this!” said Joe, leaning forward and scanning the black mass of serpents at the pool.

In a few minutes they whipped forward, Sneak in advance, and again they were passing through the army of snakes.  This time Joe did good service.  He massacred one of the coiled rattlesnakes at a blow, and his pony kicked a puffing viper to atoms.  Sneak paused a moment at the pool, and dealt his blows with such rapidity that nearly all the black racers that survived glided swiftly into the tall grass, and one of the largest was seen by Joe to run up the trunk of a solitary blasted tree that stood near the pool, and enter a round hole about ten feet from the ground.

But if the serpents were mostly dispersed from the area around the pool, they were by no means all destroyed; and when the equestrians were again in the tall grass, they found them whizzing furiously about the hoofs of their horses.  Once or twice Sneak’s horse sprang suddenly forward in pain, being stung on the ham or shoulder by the tails of the racers as they flew past with almost inconceivable rapidity.

“Oh!  St. Peter!  Sneak!” cried Joe, throwing back his head, and lifting up his knees nearly to his chin.

“Ha! ha! ha! did one of ’em cut you, Joe?  They hurt like fury, but their tails ain’t pisen.  Look what a whelk they’ve made on the hoss.”

“Sneak, why don’t you get away from this nasty place!  One of them shot right over the pony’s neck a while ago, and came very near hitting me on the chin.”

“You must hit ’em as they come.  Yander comes one—­now watch me!” Saying this, Sneak turned the steed so as to face a tremendous racer about forty paces distant, that was approaching with the celerity of the wind with its head above the tall grass.  When it came within reach of his rod, he bestowed upon it a blow that entirely severed the head, and the impetus with which it came caused the body to fly over the steed, and falling upon the neck of the pony, with the life yet remaining (for they are constrictors,) instantly wrapped in a half dozen folds around it!  Pete snorted aloud, and, springing forward, ran a hundred paces with all the fleetness of which he was capable.  But being unable to shake off the terrible incumbrance, with his tongue hanging out in agony, he turned back and ran directly for the horse.  When he came up to the steed, he pushed his head under his neck, manifesting the greatest distress, and stamping and groaning as if becoming crazed.

“Dod! let me git hold of him!” cried Sneak, bending forward and seizing the snake by the tail.  The long head-less body gave way gradually, and becoming quite relaxed fell powerless and dead to the earth.