534 JOURNAL, BOMBAY NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY, Vol. XVIII. 



There is abundant evidence, however, to show that the bite of the 

 Echis may produce not only the most alarming symptoms, but 

 frequently death. How far the fatal issue may have been contributed 

 to by fright, it is impossible to conjecture; but in the face of the many 

 opinions expressed by those who have experimented with the poison 

 as to the extraordinary virulence of Echis venom, compared with that 

 of other venomous snakes, I see no reason to specially invoke the 

 assistance of fright to account for Echis fatalities. 



Dr. Imlach in 1856 wrote : * " The Kuppur is, without exception, 

 the most deadly poisonous snake in Sind." He substantiates the 

 remark by showing that in Shikarpur alone there were 306 cases of 

 snakebite from May to October with 63 deaths, i.e., a mortality of 

 2058 per cent. He goes on to say : " a reference to police returns will 

 show that in by far the greatest majority of cases, serious injury and 

 death have been caused by the bite of this species." In 1874 

 Fayrer,f quoting Gunther's opinion above alluded to, expressed 

 doubts as to its accuracv, remarking on the great virulence of the 

 venom on the lower animals. Further, % he quotes from a letter 

 written to him by Major McMahon from Delhi, who, speaking of this 

 snake, said " they have the reputation of being very deadly, and cer- 

 tainly my old snake man died from the bite of one of his specimens." 

 Later in 1883 Wall § (A J) placed the Echis as the third most 

 dangerous snake, giving the fourth place to the Daboia, the fifth to 

 the banded krait (Bungarus fasciatus), and the sixth to the Hamadryad 

 {Naia bungarus syn. Ophiophagus elaps). He remarks, too, that 

 "there can be no doubt that it contributes very largely to the morta- 

 lity from snakebite, especially in Northern and Western India." 



In 1890 Vidal wrote to this Journal H recording 62 fatalities 

 from this snake in the Civil Hospital at Katnagiri in the year 1878. 



He estimated that about 20 per cent, of the cases of Echis bite 

 proved fatal, and remarks that the poison is slow, death occurring on 

 an average in 4^ days, but that some cases lingered on for 20 days. 



He shows later that the Echis is a far more potent factor than any 

 other venomous species in swelling the mortality of the Bombay 

 Presidency. He substantiates the assertion by the very significant 



* Loc. cit., p. 80. 



t Thanatoph. Ind., p. 15. § Ind. Snake Poisons, p. 159. 



% Loc. cit., p. 1-23. 1 Vol. V, p. 61, et seq. 



