dogs, as large as common bull-dogs, were bitten by him the one in the inside of his left thigh, which died exactly in half a minute'; and the other on the outside of the thigh, which died in four minutes. Captain Hall, after some other experiments, wished at last to prove whether its poison would prove mor◄ tal to itself. He therefore hung it up in such a manner that it had about half its length on the ground, and irritated it by two needles fastened to the end of a stick. The creature made several at tempts to seize the stick, and then bit itself. It was let down, and in eight or ten minutes was found to be lifeless. The snake was afterwards cut into five pieces, which were successively devoured by a hog, but without receiving any injury in consequence. We are told by an intelligent American writer, that a farmer was one day mowing with his negroes, when he by chance trod on a Rattle-snake, that immediately turned upon him, and bit his boot. At night, when he went to bed, he was attacked with a sickness; he swelled, and before a physician could be called in he died. All his neighbours were surprised at his sudden death, but the corpse was interred without examination. A few days after one of the sons put on his father's boots, and at night when he pulled them off he was seized with the same symptoms, and died on the following morning. The doctor arrived, but, unable to divine the cause of so singular a disorder, seriously pronounced both the father and the son to have been bewitched. At the sale of the effects a neighbour purchased the boots, and on putting them on experienced the like dreadful symptoms with the father and son a skilful physician, however, being sent for, who had heard of the preceding affair, suspected the cause, and, by applying proper reme. dies, recovered his patient. The fatal boots were now carefully examined, and the two fangs of the snake were discovered to have been left in the leather with the poison-bladders adhering to them.They had penetrated entirely through, and both the father and son had imperceptibly scratched themselves with their points in pulling off the boots *. Dr. Brickell says he was a witness to an encounter between a Dog and a Ratile-snake which was fastened to the ground by a tolerably long string. The snake coiled up, and rattled its tail; and the dog being let loose seized, and attempted to shake it out at full length, but from the weight was prevented from doing it, and in consequence it bit him in the car. He seemed somewhat stunned, and left the place, but returned on being encouraged by the company. In the second encounter he received a bite in his lip, after which the snake bit himself, The dog from that moment appeared senseless of every thing around him, even the caresses of his brutal master had now no effect, and in less than half an hour both the animals were found dead †. A Rattle-snake which had been highly irritated by an Indian Dog, that had both cunning and agility enough always to keep out of his reach, was observed at the time to contract the muscles that moved his scales in such a manner as to make his body *Hector St. John, 238. + Brickell, 146. appear extremely bright: but immediately after he had bitten himself all his splendour was gone If they are not provoked, these animals are perfectly inoffensive to mankind, being so much alarmed at the sight of men, as always, if possible, to avoid them, and never commencing an attack. Their anger is said to be easily known from the noise of their rattle, which in this state is always loud and distinct; but when they are pleased it is said to sound like a distant trepidation, in which nothing distinct can be heard. Negroes and others who have been bitten by them have also frequently recovered without any assistance; and indeed the Indian medicines are mostly so fanciful, that nature recovers many whose cure is attributed only to these. Mr. St. John once saw a tamed. Rattle-snake as gentle as it is possible to conceive a reptile to be. It went to the water and swam whenever it pleased; and when the boys, to whom it belonged, called it back, their summons was readily obeyed. It had been deprived of its fangs. They often stroked it with a soft brush: and this friction seemed to cause the most pleasing sensations; for it would turn on its back to enjoy it, as a cat does before the fire. They are viviparous, producing their young, generally about twelve in number, in the month of June; and by September these acquire the length. of twelve inches. It has been well attested, that they adopt the same mode of preserving their young Bartram's Obs. on Pennsylvania, II. from danger as that attributed to the European Viper, receiving them into their mouth and swallowing them.-M. de Beauvois declares that he was an eye-witness of the process. He saw a large Rattlesnake, which he had disturbed in his walks: it immediately coiled itself up, opened its jaws, and in an instant five small ones that were lying by it rushed into its mouth. He retired in order to watch the snake, and in a quarter of an hour saw her again discharge them. He then approached a second time, when the young rushed into its mouth more quickly than before, and the animal immediately moved off and escaped*. The Rattle-snake is known to devour several of the smaller animals, and it has generally been believed, that it is endowed with the power of fascinating or charming its prey till they even run into its jaws. Mr. Pennant, from Kalm, says that the snake will frequently lie at the bottom of a tree on which a squirrel is seated. He fixes his eyes upon the little animal, and from that moment it cannot escape: it begins a doleful outcry, which is so well known that a person passing by, on hearing it, immediately knows that a snake is present. The squirrel runs up the tree a little way, comes downwards again, then goes up, and afterwards comes still lower. The snake continues at the bottom of the tree with his eyes fixed on the squirrel; with which his attention is so entirely taken up, that a person accidentally approaching may make a consi Phil. Tran. vol. iv. derable noise without so much as the snake's turning about. The squirrel comes lower, and at last leaps down to the snake, whose mouth is already wide open for its reception. The poor little animal then with a piteous cry runs into his jaws, and is swallowed *. Some colour is given to this by M. Vaillant, who says, that he saw, on the branch of a tree, a bird trembling as if in convulsions, and at the distance of about four feet, on another branch, a large species of snake, that was lying with out-stretched neck, and fiery eyes, gazing steadily at the poor animal. The agony of the bird was so great that it was deprived of the power of moving away; and when one of the party killed the snake, it was found dead upon the spot-and that entirely from fear-for on examination it appeared not to have received the slightest wound. The same gentleman informs us, that a short time afterwards he observed a small mouse, in similar agonizing convulsions, about two yards distant from a snake, whose eyes were intently fixed upon it; and on frightening away the reptile, and taking up the mouse, it expired in his hand. The Hottentots who were with him said that this was very common; and the fact was confirmed by the assertions of all to whom he mentioned these instances +. Dr. Barton of Philadelphia, however, after having. * Penn. Arct. Zool. ii. 338. Vaillant's New Travels, i. 33-37. |