^ti4 THE GOODNESS OF THE DEITV. 



those of large quadrupeds, is greatly overdone; that it migh' 

 have fuliilled its use, and yet have been much less delete- 

 rious than it is. Now I believe the case of bites, which 

 produce death in large animals, (of stings I think there are 

 none,) to be very few. The experiments of the Abbe Fon- 

 tana, which were numerous, go strongly to the proof of this 

 point. He found that it required the action of five exaspe- 

 rated vipers to kill a dog of a moderate size ; but that, to 

 the killing of a mouse or a frog, a single bite was sufficient : 

 which agrees with the use which we assign to the faculty. 

 The Abbe seemed to be of opinion, that the bite even of 

 the rattlesnake would not usually be mortal ; allowing, how- 

 ever, that in certain particularly unfortunate cases, as when 

 the puncture had touched some very tender part, pricked a 

 principal nerve for instance, or, as it is said, some more 

 considerable lymphatic vessel, death might speedily ensue. 



3. It has been, I think, very justly remarked concerning 

 serpents, that, whilst only a few species possess the veno- 

 mous property, that property guards the whole tribe. The 

 most innocuous snake is avoided with as much care as a 

 viper. Now the terror, with which large animals regard 

 this class of reptiles, is its protection ; and this terror is 

 founded in the formidable revenge, wiiich a few of the num- 

 ber, compared with the wiiole, are capable of taking. The 

 species of serpents, described by Linnseus, amount to two 

 hundred and eighteen, of which thirty-two only are poison- 

 ous. 



4. It seems to me, that animal constitutions are provid- 

 ed, not only for each element, but for each state of the ele- 

 ments, i e. for every climate, and for every temperature ; 

 and that part of the mischief complained of arises from an- 

 imals (the human animal most especially) occupying situ- 

 ations upon the earth vv'hich do not belong to them, nor 

 were ever intended for their habitation. The folly and 

 wickedness of mankind, and necessities proceeding from 

 these causes, have driven multitudes of the species to seek 

 a refuge amongst burninir sands, whilst countries blessed 

 with hospitable skies, and with the most fertile soils, re- 

 main almost without a human tenant. We invade the ter- 

 ritories of wild beasts and venomous reptiles, and then com- 

 plain that we are infested by their bites and stings. Some 

 accounts of Africa place this observation in a strong point 

 of view. " The deserts," says Adanson, " are entirely bar- 

 ren, except where they are found to produce serpents ; and 

 in such quantities, that some extensive plains are almost 



