New J?' f ' fey. Raccoon. 20.3 



I likewife allured myfelf of, by counting 

 the fcales over again. It is poffible that 

 the end of this laft fnakc's tail was cut off, 

 and the wound healed up again -f. 



The country abounds with Black Snakes. 

 They are among the firft that come out in 

 fpring, and often appear very early if warm 

 weather happens •, but if it grows cold 

 again after that, they are quite frozen, and 

 lie ftiff and torpid on the ground or on the 

 ice ; when taken in this ftate and put be- 

 fore a fire, they revive in lefs than an hour's 

 time 1 It has fometimes happened, when 

 the beginning of 'January is very warm, 

 {hat they come out of their winter habita- 

 tions. They commonly appear about the 

 end of March* old ftyle. 



This 



f It has been found by repeated experience, that the 

 fpecific ch^radter employed by Dr. Linnaw, for the dif- 

 tinclion of the fpecies of fnakes, taken from their Scuta 

 abdominal: a & caudalia, or their Squama fubcaudales, va- 

 ries greatly in fnakes of the fame fpecies, Co that often the 

 difference amounts to tvn or more : the whole number of 

 the fcuta fometimes helps to find out the fpecies; care 

 ought however to be taken, that the fnake may not by any 

 accident have loir, its tail, and that it be growing again ; 

 in which cafe, it is impo.lible to make ufe of this charac- 

 ter. The character is not quite fo good and decifive, as 

 may be wifhed, but neither arc the marks taken from co- 

 lours, fpots, ftripes, $:c. quite conftant ; and fo it is bet- 

 ter to make ufe of an imperfett charadVr, than none at all. 

 Time, and greater acquaintance with this clafs of animals. 

 may perhaps clear up their natural characters. F. 



