1903 Editorials 195 



to how tin's might be accomplished, but prefer to await 

 developments for the present. What we are anxious to 

 impress upon our clubs is the urgent necessity for such a 

 system. 



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An excellent example of the valuable results to be 

 obtained from working at a definite problem is to be found in 

 Mr. Blundell's note on the "Reappearance of the Smooth 

 Snake in Berkshire " in this issue. Here is a case of a rare 

 animal in this country, known to be formerly not uncommon 

 in a particular district, but since it had not been recorded 

 for some twenty years in the neighbourhood, it was most 

 naturally regarded as having become extinct locally. As 

 the result of some arguments addressed to the Natural 

 History Society at Wellington College, some of the students 

 made careful search, and ultimately, on 1 8th June 1903, 

 Mr. R. H. A. Morshead had the satisfaction of capturing a 

 specimen of the supposed extinct reptile. In the case of 

 this particular species of snake, we have elsewhere expressed 

 the opinion that such a result would be likely to follow a 

 close search. The smooth snake is found usually only in 

 some few very restricted areas in Dorset, Hants, and Surrey, 

 but at a short distance it is so like the adder, that an 

 ordinary observer would be most likely to mistake it for 

 the venomous species, and destroy it without further ex- 

 amination. In the case of Berkshire it happens that our 

 opinion was justified, and it would be most interesting to 

 ascertain if a similar search in other parts of the counties 

 mentioned, where the nature of the ground appeared suit- 

 able to its needs, would result in a further discovery of its 

 existence. The moral for the naturalist is that he cannot 

 be too careful in coming to a conclusion as to the restricted 

 distribution of a species ; it may simply be that it has not 

 been sufficiently carefully looked for in other places. In 

 any case, this addition to our knowledge of the distribution 

 of Coronella austriaca in this country is a valuable observa- 

 tion, the direct result of field work with a special aim in 

 view. 



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