if much pressed, they begin to hiss, and put themselves in a threatening position, though incapable of doing mischief.

These snakes conceal themselves in winter, and become nearly torpid: they re-appear in spring, and then they uniformly cast their skins. This is a process that they also seem to undergo in the autumn.

The female deposits her eggs in holes fronting the south, near stagnant waters; but more frequently in dunghills, in the form of a continued chain of ova, to the number of from twelve to twenty: these are about the size of the eggs of the blackbird, of a whitish colour, and covered with a parchment-like membrane. young ones are rolled up spirally within the middle of the fluid, which greatly resembles the white of a fowl's egg. They are not hatched till the spring following the time when they are laid.

The

THE ground of this snake is white, with brown transverse bars, which are straight and distinct on the back, but run into one another on the belly. The tail is slender, and has two ranges of imbricated scales on its under surface. This animal is a native of South America, and when irritated, or preparing to bite, raises up the fore part of its body, and carries its head in a bending position.

Of this species there are a great number of elegant varieties, many of which are figured in the elaborate work of Seba, particularly the large annulated snake of Surinam.

THIS species is a native of India, frequenting wet, swampy fields, and commonly reckoned a water snake: its length is about two feet nine inches; circumference, three inches and a half: head rather broad, somewhat depressed, and laterally compressed; its body is covered with large scales, gradually diminishing towards the tail, which is eleven inches in length, slightly carinated, tapering very gradually, and terminating sharply. Head dusky; rest of the animal yellowish brown, with numerous round black spots, joined by yellow fillets regularly disposed in oblique rows, a few scales of light yellow being interspersed; abdomen, yellowish white.

One of these vipers was caught in the lake of Ankapilly, in one of the traps employed for catching eels, and by several experiments made with a stick in trying to provoke it, it did not either hiss or snap; neither was it provoked to bite a chicken, though pecked several times by the animal. While it lay coiled up, a chicken, properly secured, was laid upon it; but it continued quiet, without attempting to wreath round the chicken, or otherwise to annoy it; and when the bird fluttered and struggled to get loose, the snake, as if afraid, crept away. It should be remarked, however, that in the course of this last experiment, the viper threw up a large fish, which appeared to have been but a short time in its stomach; so that its forbearance might, in some measure, be owing to not being hungry; a circumstance that suggested caution against hasty decision. But it certainly is not venomous, and does not appear to be very irascible. It is regarded by the natives as harmless.

THIS is said to be the officinal viper of the Egyptians, and is by some supposed to be the asp of Cleopatra, by the bite of which that high-spirited princess determined to die, rather than submit to be carried to Rome in order to grace the triumph of Augustus. It is imported in considerable quantities every year to Venice, for the use of the apothecaries in the composition of treacle, and for other purposes. It is abundant in Egypt; and is found in other parts of Africa, as well as in Asia. It is from twenty inches long, to three feet, and upwards, variegated with rich chestnut brown spots or bands, on a lighter brown ground; the scales are remarkably short, close, and hard; the eyes are vertical; the head compressed, and covered with very minute dark brown scales, and redish stripes. It is very poisonous, but not always fatally so.

The variegated viper, so named from the mixture of colours on its body, which is mottled with white, brown, and grey; the sides and belly are pale yellow; and its form and size is much the same as the preceding. It is a native of America, but not poisonous.

THE INTESTINE VIPER.

So named from its lurking in secret and hidden places for its prey. It is a small species, inoffensive to man, and devoid of poison. Its prey is insects, lizards, frogs, toads, and mice. The ground colour of its body is a redish. brown, mottled and variegated with white transverse bands, and narrow longitudinal lines on the back and sides. It is a native of Africa, and found plentifully on the coast of Guinea.

THE cerastes, or horned viper, which commonly grows to the length of about a foot or fifteen inches, but sometimes more than two feet, is distinguished by a pair of horns, or curved processes, situate above the eyes, and pointing forward: these horns have nothing analogous in their structure to the horns of quadrupeds, and are by no means to be considered in the light of either offensive or defensive weapons; they are moveable, and about one sixth of an inch long.

The head of the cerastes is flattened; the muzzle thick and short; the eye yellowish green: the hind part of the head is narrower than the part of the body to which it is attached; the scales of the head are of the same size with those on the back, or only a little less; and all the scales are oval, with a longitudinal ridge. The general colour of the back is yellowish, with irregular spots of different degrees of darkness, in form of transverse bands; the under surface of the body is brighter. The cerastes inhabits the greatest part of the eastern continent, especially the desert sandy part of it. abounds in the three Arabias, and in Africa.

It

This animal can endure hunger and thirst much longer than most serpents; some naturalists assert, that it can exist five years without nourishment.-But, though able to live long without food, these animals are extremely voracious, and attack small birds, quadrupeds, and rep

tiles with great eagerness. Their skins are capable of very great extension, and they can swallow food till increased to twice their ordinary size; but as their digestion is extremely slow, they become when gorged, quite torpid and motionless, in which situation they are very easily killed.

THIS venomous serpent well deserves the above name; and is most deservedly dedicated to one of the fates, on account of the violent poison which distils from its murderous fangs. It is a native of the burning zone of Africa, and of the warm regions of South America; it is also found in the island of Ceylon, and in the remote provinces of Asia. The ground colour is a silvery white, variegated with black irregular spots and blotches: the head is broad, and the mouth large and blunt; the eyes like drops of pearl, surrounded with a green iris; the head cordated, with quadruple rows of transverse white bead-like lines, passing behind the eyes, on a black ground; the scales are varied, some large and shieldformed, others small and pointed; all remarkably strong and close set. This is a most dangerous and formidable serpent, whose poison, though not so rapid in its effects as some, yet causes a stupefaction of the mental faculties, a wasting of the flesh by incurable consumption, and finally death.