expression. Can hate and fear show there? 

 They certainly can, at least to my imagination. 

 If ever hate and fear mantled a face, they did 

 this one in the grass. The sound of the switch 

 only maddened the creature. He had too long 

 dictated terms in this part of the swale to crawl 

 aside for me. 



'Not would I give way to him. But I ceased 

 switching, drew back a step, and looked at him 

 with more respect than I ever before showed a 

 snake. 



The curved neck straightened at that, the 

 glinting head swayed forward, and shivering 

 through me as the swish of a stick never shivered 

 through a snake, sounded that unearthly hissing 

 whistle. For a second — for just the fraction of 

 a second that it takes to jump — I was, not 

 scared, but shocked ; and I slipped on something 

 underfoot. In three directions I wallowed the 

 ferns before I got to my feet to watch the snake 

 again, and by that time the snake was gone. 



I found myself somewhat muddy and breathing 

 a little hard ; but I was not wholly chagrined. 

 I had heard and seen a black-snake whistle. I 

 had never even known of the habit before. 

 [154] 



