69 
their prolonged slumbers in various situations 
and conditions. I have caught them in early 
spring basking in the sun’s warm rays on 
leaves and flat stones on the south side of a 
sunny bank. I have secured them beneath de- 
cayed vegetation along meadow streams, snugly 
sheltered from winter’s cold blasts among the 
aquatic plants peculiar to such localities. I 
have unearthed a colony of different species, so 
twined and tangled together as to make it a 
difficult task to distinguish individuals. After 
a few warm days in early spring an observant 
rambler will notice numerous round holes in the 
soft mold of meadow-land, and in the banks 
of high ground facing the south, all unmistak- 
able evidences of the places of hibernation 
used by our common snakes. 
During this lethargic state of hibernation, 
respiration and circulation in the snake are al- 
most entirely suspended. When brought into 
association with a moderate rise in temperature 
the hibernating snake soon regains activity.” 
DO SNAKES CHARM ? 
“Now, my dear Count, there is a much de- 
bated question, relative to the peculiar powers 
of snakes, that I wish to ask you: Do snakes 
charm ?” 
“That simple question has been asked time 
and again during decades of scientific research, 
and it still remains a controverted point. It is 
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