MARTIN RATTLER. 163

exclaimed that dingy individual, making a torrent of
remarks in Portuguese, while he darted his long pole
hither and thither; then, observing that Martin and
Barney were gazing at him open-mouthed, he shouted,
“Look out, boys! here ‘im comes! Take care, ole
feller, or he jump right down you’ throat! hi-i-i!”
As he spoke, a large alligator, having been rudely
stirred up from his muddy bed, floundered on the sur-
face of the lake, and Sambo instantly gave it a thump
over the back and a blow under the ribs, which had
the effect of driving it in the direction of the shore.
Here a number of Negroes were ready for him, and the
moment he came within reach a coil of rope with a noose
on the end of it, called a lasso, was adroitly thrown
over the reptile’s head; ten or twelve men then hauled
the lasso and dragged it ashore amid shouts of triumph.
This alligator was twenty feet long, with an enormous
misshapen head and fearful rows of teeth that were
terrible to behold. The monster did not submit to be
captured, however,without a struggle; and the Negroes
grew wild with excitement as they yelled and leaped
madly about, seeking to avoid its dangerous jaws and
the blows of its powerful tail. After some trouble,
a second lasso was thrown over the tail, which was
thus somewhat restrained in its movements; and

Sambo, approaching cautiously with an axe, cut a deep