This week’s Footprints story will be a continuation of the stories about the “footprints” left by our animal friends, be they domestic or wild, in Fayette County history. These stories, important enough to appear in our local newspapers, and the subject of talk and gossip amongst our past local citizens, showed the interaction between man and animal. This week, the stories are about some small animals and one very large animal.
“A Faithful Companion” In a story from the October 18, 1928 edition of the La Grange Journal, we learn that: “Professor O. E. Waiser lost a dog two weeks ago, and on last Friday, while leaving the Fairgrounds at La Grange, in company with Mrs. Waiser, noticed a dog running toward them. They stopped the car and sure enough when the canine jumped on the running board, it was their lost dog.” (Note: Mr. and Mrs. Waiser resided in Winchester, a distance of nearly 10 miles “as the crow flies" from the Fairgrounds.)
“A Little Dog Saves a Life” In a story in the La Grange Journal, dated September 10, 1964, “Mrs. Joe Hubenak, hearing a noise resembling the sound of a dripping faucet decided to go outside to investigate. The dog was barking also at the time, but she paid no attention to him, and after examining the faucet, she went back into the house, still hearing this same sound. She then got her flashlight and was determined to find out what the noise was. When she flashed the light on the ground near the faucet, she saw a large rattlesnake, approximately 44 inches in length. The snake had 9 rattlers and one button. The reason the snake did not bite her was because the snake’s attention was on the barking dog.” A neighbor dispatched the snake.
