MIISCELLASEOUS XOTES. ir,l 



only lately swallowed a 3 year old barking deor (male) which, when the 

 Piiako was opened up, was found <iuite fresh inside, some of the hair being 

 still dry. The only bone broken was the near hind leg ; the fore legs and 

 ribs were intact. The horns were gone too ; at least 1 take it there had 

 been horns for the roots were raw and bloody. I may add that a couple 

 of Burmans asked for permission to take the deer away to eat ! Permis- 

 sion was granteil. My cook a Burmau, rather amused me by stating quite 

 gravely that the snake, after digesting its meal, would hang itself by the 

 tail over the branch of a tree and shake its head until the indigestible 

 bones came up. It would be interesting to know if a like superstition 

 exists in Assam or in other places where this varietj' of snake is found. 



I may add that the measurement was taken by tape as the reptile lay 

 on the ground and was found to be just over the 13^ feet. 



C. G. STEWART. 

 MiNBU, Burma, 



Ttft Octoher [9H5. 



No. X.— OCCURRENCE OF RUSSELL'S EARTH SNAKE (EBYX 

 COXICVS) AT 2,-200 FEET ALTITUDE IN THE C. P. 



Herewith the Railway receipt for the Earth Snake Efi/:v conicus des- 

 patched to-day. As he was caught on the 2nd instant and has not fed 

 since, he should be redeemed quickly. 



I was waiting for the beat to come up, in scrub jungle, when a grass- 

 hopper flying away w-ith signs of agitation attracted my notice to the 

 snake. The aboriginals, after inspection, pronounced it to be highly 

 venomous ! " He blows on men and cattle and they swell as large as 

 elephants. He kills his prey like the python." This was half true. 



On consulting the map of its distribution in your Journals I notice that 

 its occurrence in the C. P., at a height of about 2,200 ft., is remarkable. 



C. G. CHEVENIX TRENCH, i.c.s. 

 Betul, C. p., 

 Ith December 1916. 



No. XI.— NOTE ON THE HAMADRAYAD OR KING COBRA 

 {NAIA BUNGARUS) IN NORTH KANARA. 



The Hamadrayad is nowhere very common, and many years ago, when 

 engaged on survey work in North Kanara, I never even heard of one 

 although I had the best of opportunities for doing so. The first one that 

 I ever saw in the district, was at Supa, in 1914 when revisiting my old 

 haunts. It was found coiled up in the fork of a tree near the Kali Nadi, 

 by wood cutters, who informed some snake charmers living at Supa, of 

 their find and the latter went out at once and snared it. It was a fine 

 adult specimen about 11 feet long and of a pale olive-green colour, but 

 did not look very happy when 1 saw it, owing to the bad treatment it had 

 received at the hands of the snake charmers, vvho had extracted its fangs. 



This year (1916) when encamped at Potoli in the same district, I was 

 fortunate enough to be able to renew my acquaintance with the snake. 

 I had for sometime been offering a reward to any one who would show 

 me one, but although the natives were apparently well acquainted with the 

 snake and had a wholes jme dread of it, they said that it was very rare. 



