RINGED SNAKE. 55 



lowing satisfactory reply : — ' The report of my having intro- 

 duced Snakes into this country is correct. Being curious 

 to ascertain whether the climate of Ireland was destructive 

 to that class of reptiles, 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 imme- 

 diately 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 dis- 

 tance 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 geogra- 

 phical distribution of these animals ; and it certainly does 

 not appear that the failure of these attempts to introduce 

 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 destruc- 

 tion, nor is there reason to believe that their absence from 

 Ireland is other than purely accidental. 



This species grows to the length of more than three feet, 

 sometimes, though rarely, of four feet. The head is consi- 

 derably depressed, of an elegant ovate form, the back part 

 broader than the neck ; the gape is of the length of the head, 

 and slightly curved, rising posteriorly. The teeth are small, 

 curved backwards, and, as in all the other innocuous Snakes, 

 arranged in two series on each side of the jaw both above 

 and below. Plates of the head broad and flat ; labial plates 

 seven. Tongue long, excessively flexible, bifid to about one 



* This was the one before alluded to, as having been brought to Dr. Drum- 

 mond. 



