HE WAS PARALYZED WITH FEAR 259 
Seeing a bird in either of these positions would seem to the 
casual observer proof positive that it was being fascinated by the 
snake. 
If a rat is cornered by a snake it often loses all presence of 
mind, and facing the reptile it simply squeals. This, however, is 
more usually the case after the snake has bitten it. 
If a water snake should swim toward a frog sitting on the 
bank, the latter, whose dominant instinct is to dive into the water, 
becomes paralyzed with fear, and, sitting still, it emits a series of 
squeaks. 
CAPTIVE SNAKES AND BIRDS. 
British and European birds, having no snake enemies, are in 
consequence not at all afraid of these creatures. If placed in the 
same cage with snakes, they will confidently hop amongst the 
reptiles, and even perch on their bodies. 
If birds of this country be placed in an aviary with snakes, they 
show little or no alarm if they are able to fly up to perches out of 
the reach of the snakes. After a few days they get quite indifferent 
to the presence of the reptiles, and will not hesitate to feed upon 
the ground within a few inches of their enemies. Perches have 
been so arranged that the birds were just out of reach of the snakes, 
and in no single instance did any of the various species of snakes 
ever exercise any fascinating power over them. Any bird which 
became over-confident and approached within striking distance 
was invariably bitten if the snake was in a mood for eating. If 
not, the birds were not molested. Practically all the popular 
beliefs about snakes in South Africa are more or less untrue. 
Most, if not all, of these erroneous beliefs have originated from 
the natives. If they were all collected they would fill a large 
volume, and provide entertaining reading to lovers of fiction. 
HE WAS PARALYZED WITH FEAR. 
A friend had just arrived from the Homeland. I took him 
out to show him the luxuriant semi-tropical vegetation which is so 
profuse in Natal. Meandering along a kafir track through a 
forest, I paused for a moment to examine a curious insect. On 
