60 DR. D. H. STOKER'S REPORT. April, '38. 



by this last species, thousands of rats are destroyed, which otherwise 

 would have seriously injured the crops of n'ce. 



The Crotalus durissus, — Banded rattlesnake, — is occasionally met 

 with — but very seldom are accidents produced by its bite ; proving 

 its unwillingness to be the aggressor, and that the fangs are used only 

 as weapons of defence, after sufficient warning has been given of its 

 presence by the rattles. A few years since, a surgeon in a neigh- 

 boring town became quite celebrated for a liniment he often pre- 

 scribed, the basis of which, if not the entire substance, was the oil 

 procured from this species. 



Great errors also exist with regard to the order Batrachia. The 

 acrid secretion found upon the skin of the Hyla versicolor, the toad, 

 and several species of efts or newts, has caused them to be consid- 

 ered venomous, — which is incorrect. Every species of this order 

 is inoffensive, and, when better known, will undoubtedly be found 

 beneficial to man. 



In some countries, the flesh of the'difFerent Ranae, Frogs, is an ar- 

 ticle of food. With us, the habits of the Bufo Jlmericanus, Com- 

 mon Toad, are becoming better understood, and the Horticulturalist, 

 instead of destroying, carefully preserves it on his grounds, for the 

 benefit it affords him, by feeding upon noxious insects. In the same 

 way are our springs and wells rendered the purer, by the presence of 

 the carnivorous salamander. 



No little confusion exists in the catalogue of our Reptiles. Each 

 of the orders require, corrections, more or less important. It shall 

 be my effort, to make the list as accurate as my means will allow. 



All which is most respectfully submitted, by 



Your Excellency's ob't. servant, 



D. HUMPHREYS STORER. 



