Old Ray never eats alone

Over in central Oregon near the little town of Monument is Cupper Canyon Ranch, there once lived Ol' Ray Ackerman.

My cutt'n partner got me hooked up with Old Ray, thought I might get to hunt muleys on his diggings. "You bet," sezs Ray. Pullin' into the yard I got mobbed by the usual stock dogs and they got attacked by a suspicious look'n part lab.

Anyway, Ray yelled me in, he sez just make'n coffee, pull up a chair. I thought I better shake his hand and thank him for hav'n me over. My attention was with Ray, over at the stove. So I pulled up a chair and then I saw it!!! There in the middle of the table in a glass gallon jar glaring at me was a rattler.

"Whoa Ray, what's this all about. "

"Oh I just don't like to eat alone."

He went on to say the reptile was in there three months. He fed it a mouse which the snake killed and never ate. I wished I'd been there when he fished the mouse out. And it never got no water. He tapped the lid with his spoon, that snake was ready for action.

I was informed lots of rattlesnakes here-abouts. As proof there on the shelves was a jar full of rattles.

"Ya, know," sez Ray, "that there black dog out there is my snake hunter. He smells 'um out for me. Out in my lean-to there's a plank floor. The rattlers crawl under this one plank. Mick, the dog, smells 'um out, I flip the plank and before they can coil to strike, Mickey snaps 'um out, then I nail them with my boot, cut their head and tail off!!"

Ol' Ray was like a lot of bachelor cowboys who ya might think a little weird. But were mostly lonely. And before the year was out he gave me that black dog, cause the mutt kept beating up on his stock dogs...but that's another story.