48. CROTALUS 939 
poked with a stick. Many of these were encountered on 
trails or open stretches of sand, where they had crawled in 
the hottest part of the day. In such locations are they 
usually surprised by the camper and tourist in the moun- 
tains, and often give rise to spasms of fear and palpitations 
of the heart on the part of the timid people, who expect the 
snake to coil and spring up at them as if discharged from a 
catapult! From this vear’s experience with the Pacific rattle- 
snake, combined with all our previous acquaintance, we pre- 
sent the following facts. 
“A rattlesnake, as a rule, is a very timid animal; only 
when suddenly surprised in a broad open space, does it fail 
to retreat into the nearest hiding place, such as a brush patch 
or rock-pile. Then it coils and begins to rattle warningly. 
Sometimes, when logy from cold or a recent heavy meal, 
the snake fails to rattle; but if it hasn’t energy enough to 
rattle neither has it energy enough to strike. The senior 
author has several times put his foot close by and even kicked 
aside rattlesnakes; in each case there was no warning rattle, 
and in no case did the snake strike, until perhaps subsequent- 
ly stirred up on purpose. The point we wish to make here 
is that when in the mood to strike the snake gives notice of 
its proximity by rattling vehemently, as soon as it sees (or 
hears) a person or other large animal approaching. The 
great majority of rattlers at once endeavor to crawl into 
some place of safety, but if unable to find a retreat and 
especially if stoned or jabbed it coils and begins to strike, 
often blindly, if excessively irritated. 
“Now here is where the popular idea has grotesquely 
exaggerated the ferocious propensities of the rattlesnake. 
We have heard people seriously aver that rattlers can in- 
stantly spring to a distance of many feet, accurately aiming 
to bite (or “sting”) one. We have taken pains to closely 
watch particularly lively rattlers, at the same time prodding 
