340 OPHIDIA. 



however, is by no means confined to the continent and Ceylon, being found in a number of 

 the larger islands of the Archipelago. It extends eastwards to the Sutlej, and westwards to 

 the Chinese island of Chusan. Singularly, it has never been observed by Mr. Hodgson in 

 the valley of Nepal, but occurs in difierent parts of the Himalayas, reaching an altitude of 

 8000 feet in Sikkim. It attains to a length of 5 feet, feeding on small mammals and birds, 

 on lizards, frogs, toads, and fishes ; in order to obtain its prey it occasionally climbs trees or 

 the roofs of huts ; it is an expert swimmer, and is sometimes found at a considerable dis- 

 tance out at sea. It is more a nocturnal animal than a diurnal one, and ovoviviparous. Its 

 chief enemies are the jungle fowl, which destroy the young brood, and the Herpestes or 

 ichneumons, which will attack and master the largest Cobra : in districts where the Cobras 

 or other venomous snakes have too much increased in number, the most efficient way of 

 destroying them is to protect their natural enemies. 



The Cobra, the most common venomous snake of India, is so much an object of dread to 

 the natives, of wonder to the Europeans, and of profit to the numerous itinerant snake- 

 charmers, that it has become as celebrated an animal as its cousin, the Naja haje, which was 

 a symbol of female divinities among the ancient Egyptians. Almost every writer on the 

 natural productions of the East Indies has contributed to the natui'al history of this snake, 

 which has been surrounded by such a number of evidently fabulous stories that their repe- 

 tition and contradiction would fill a volume. 



This snake is frequently brought to Europe, and -will live in captivity for years. Two may 

 be well kept together ; and it appears as if they felt some attachment for each other, for when 

 they are excited by having food brought into their cage, or by some other incident, they will 

 frequently fight each other, raising the anterior part of the body, spreading the hood, and 

 darting as if to bite, but always carefully avoiding to wound. When, however, a third indi- 

 vidual or any other snake is brought into the same cage, they attack and kill it. They 

 feed more frequently at dusk and duiing the night than in the daytime ; they drink often 

 and much. 



The Cobra is one of the most deadly snakes, the poison of which afiects the whole system 

 in a very short time ; comparatively few are the cases where the person bitten escaped death 

 without the timely application of remedies, and only too frequently the psychical and physical 

 health of the unfortunate individual remains for a long time afiected, sufiering periodical 

 returns of most painful symptoms. We refer to our general remarks on the poison of snakes 

 and on its antidotes, pp. 167 & 1G8. 



OPHIOPHAGUS, Gthr. 



Body rather elongate ; tail of proportionate length ; head rather short, 

 depressed, scarcely distinct from neck, which is dilatable. Occipitals sur- 

 rounded by three pairs of large shields, the two anterior of which are 

 temporals. Nostril between two nasals. Loreal none ; one or two prae-, 



