RINGED SNAKE. 57 
some country people in great consternation to my friend, 
Dr. J. L. Drummond, I thought this might be one of those 
alluded to; and recently made inquiry of James Clealand, 
Esq. of Ruth Gael House (county Down), twenty-five 
miles distant in a direct line from Downpatrick, respecting 
Snakes said to have been turned out by him; I was fa- 
voured by that gentleman with the following satisfactory 
reply :—‘ The report of my having introduced Snakes into 
this country is correct. Being curious to ascertain whether 
the climate of Ireland was destructive to that class of rep- 
tiles, about six years ago I purchased half a dozen of them 
in Covent Garden Market in London; they had been taken 
some time, and were quite tame and familiar. I turned 
them out in my garden; they immediately rambled away ; 
one of them was killed at Milecross,* three miles distant, 
in about a week after its liberation ; and three others were 
shortly afterwards killed within that distance of the place 
where they were turned out; and it is highly probable 
that the remaining two met with a similar fate, falling 
victims to a reward which it appears was offered for their 
destruction.” 
Such is the most accurate and authentic account which 
I have yet obtained respecting this curious fact in the geo- 
graphical distribution of these animals; and it certainly 
does not appear that the failure of these attempts to intro- 
duce Snakes into Ireland is to be attributed to anything 
connected with the climate, or other local circumstances, 
but rather to the prejudices of the inhabitants which led to 
their destruction, nor is there reason to believe that their 
absence from Ireland is other than purely accidental. 
That this immunity from reptile infestation was an an- 
* This was the one before alluded to, as haying been brought to Dr. Drum- 
mond, 
