90 Of the fascinating FACULTY 



evolved in the ftomach, during the long and tedious 

 procefs of digeftion in thefe animals, a vapour, or a gas, 

 whofe odour is intenfely fetid. I have not, however, 

 found that this is the cafe with the ratde-fnake, and other 

 North-American ferpents, that I have examined. But 

 my own obfervations on this head have not been very 

 minute. I have made inquiry of fome perfons (whofe 

 prejudices againft the ferpent-tribe are not fo powerful as 

 my own), who are not afraid to put the heads and necks 

 of the black-fnake, and other ferpents that are deftitute 

 of venomous fangs, into their mouths, and have been 

 informed, that they never perceived any difagreeable 

 fmell to proceed from the breath of thefe animals. I 

 have been prefent at the opening of a box which contain- 

 ed a number of living ferpents ; and although the box 

 had been fo clofe as to admit but a very fmall quantity of 

 frefh air, although the obfervation was made in a fmall 

 warm room, I did not perceive any peculiarly difagree- 

 able effluvium to arife from the bodies of thefe animals. 

 I am, moreover, informed by a member of this fociety*, 

 who has, for a confiderable time, had a rattle-fnake under 

 his immediate care, that he has not obferved that any 

 difagreeable vapour proceeds from this reptile. On the 

 other hand, however, it is aflerted by fome creditable 

 perfons of my acquaintance, that a moft offenfive odour, 

 iimilar to that of flefli, in the laft flage of putrefadion, is 

 continually emanating from every part of the rattle-fnake, 

 and fome other fpecies of ferpents. This odour extends, 

 under certain circumftances, to a confiderable diftance 

 from the body of the animal. Mr. William Bartram 

 alfures me, that he has obferved " horfes to be fenfible 

 of, and greatly agitated by, it at the diftance of forty 

 or fifty yards from the fnake. They fhowed," he fays, 



* Mr. Charles Wilfon P«ale. 



" their 



