188 NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL, SOCIEDY: 
ward, and with such force that they generally slide forward bodily, 
with the movement of the darting anterior portion. A few suc- 
cessive strikes thus bring them nearer the object of their anger, 
when they rear still higher, striking with a sharp hiss, which can 
be heard seventy-five feet or more. When near the object of 
their anger, they evince a bold habit of suddenly dropping from 
the upright position, darting forward, then flinging the body into 
the upright position again. This trait brings the serpent uncom- 
fortably near the observer. 
It is an action devoid of fear, and is common to all the Cobras 
when ina state of perfect health and vigor. It is most frequently 
enacted by the King Cobra, a bold and seemingly fearless reptile, 
that will obey no threat, and is, on the whole, the most dangerous 
in disposition and fang-power of all poisonous snakes. It is con- 
cerning this snake that most of the stories relating to actual 
aggressiveness toward man have emanated. 
It is rather fortunate for interested visitors in the Reptile House 
that these snakes retain their wild nature, as the spreading of the 
hood of the spectacled Cobras, with the attendant display of the 
weird and vivid markings upon the same, constitute a sight that 
is long remembered, and often recalls tales of India. The deadly 
pit-vipers—the Fer-de-Lance, the Bushmaster, and their thick- 
bodied Old-World allies * of the warm sands of desert Africa— 
although much reputed for ferocity, after they have been a few 
months in captivity, become tame and show few signs of bad 
temper, even when closely inspected. 
In biting, the Cobras exhibit a different series of movements 
from those displayed by the viperine snakes, with their long, 
erectile fangs. When striking, the latter throw open the jaws to 
a great angle, and the fangs literally stab the object aimed at. 
At the instant of penetration there is a biting movement, to make 
the poison-conducting teeth penetrate as deeply as possible. The 
two processes are almost simultaneous, and to the eye the effect 
is simply a lightning-like dart and return to the original position 
of defence, with no pause between the two motions. Sometimes, 
however, the Rattlesnake holds fast to its victim for a space of 
one or two seconds. 
With the Cobras, such movements would be productive of but 
little effect, owing to the shortness of the fangs. If the Cobra 
reaches the offending object, it grasps it tenaciously, and with 
the peculiar chewing motion of the jaws characteristic of snakes, 
advances the fangs several times, stabbing deeply with them, and 
* The latter of the Subfamily Viperznae. 
